Emeritus landscape architecture professor elected to ASLA Council of Fellows

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Kelleann Foster, emeritus professor of landscape architecture at Penn State who served as director of the Stuckeman School and associate dean of the College of Arts and Architecture from 2014 to 2019, has been elected to the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) 2023 Council of Fellows. The distinction is among the highest honors ASLA bestows on members.

“Landscape architects help build a better world for all of us, and ASLA Fellows represent the most respected and accomplished professionals in the entire field,” said ASLA President Emily O'Mahoney. “This year's class of ASLA Fellows has made outstanding contributions to people's health, safety and welfare; environmental sustainability and climate resilience; and stronger communities.

Foster was a faculty member in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Penn State from 1989 until her retirement in December 2021. She also led the development of the Geodesign program, which is offered exclusively through the World Campus, and served as its director for eight years.

Foster garnered numerous awards in her field throughout her career, including the 2019 Donald Hamer Leadership Award from the ClearWater Conversancy, a land trust and natural resource conservation organization in central Pennsylvania. A former board member and past president of the organization, she garnered the award for “sustained significant leadership in advancing Clearwater's mission.”

Foster was named a recipient of the Presidential Award of Excellence from the Pennsylvania/Delaware chapter of the ASLA for her book, “Becoming a Landscape Architect: A Guide to Careers in Design,” originally published in 2010 by John Wiley & Sons with a Chinese version published in 2014. She also received Merit Awards from the chapter for the State College Borough Design Guide and the Land Use Management Program, which was completed for 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, a leading advocate for responsible and efficient land use. The 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania group is a client of the Visual Interactive Communications Group, of which Foster was a managing partner from 1996 to 2013.

In addition, she was honored with the Distinguished Service Award from the ASLA Pennsylvania/Delaware chapter for leadership in the authoring and production of a CD on landscape architecture schools in Pennsylvania.

Foster served as chair of the Penn State University Tree Commission for 16 years, through which she established the Campus Heritage Tree Program. She holds memberships in the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture, American Planning Association and ASLA.

“Recognition as an ASLA Fellow highlights Kelleann's exemplary leadership and scholarship, which has reshaped the profession and has left an indelible mark on our department, Stuckeman School and the discipline,” said Roxi Thoren, professor and head landscape architecture. “We have been privileged to have Kelleann as our colleague and leader over her career, with her commitment to innovation and sustainability in our communities, and I feel lucky that she remains connected to the department as a mentor and friend.“

The 48 members of the ASLA Class of 2023 Fellows will be elevated during a special investiture ceremony at the ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in Minneapolis from Oct. 27-30.