Students in Adjunct Professor Vincent Marchetto’s architecture studio are redesigning an abandoned railroad right-of-way in Jersey City as a 21st century urban greenway. Reconnection: The Bergen Arches studio focuses on the mile-long Erie Cut, a 60-foot-wide channel blasted from the live rock of the Palisades to a depth of 40–75 feet and crossed by four monumental arches.
Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, energy demand, transportation systems, water quality and workforce development are no longer separate conversations, but rather connected challenges where universities can help move ideas into practice, said leaders from academia, government and industry at New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Spring 2026 Infrastructure Forum.
Two teams from NJIT's New Jersey School of Architecture won top awards in the Princeton Kiosk Design Competition. The design competition is one of several of American Institute of Architects (AIA) New Jersey 125th anniversary events. Launched in May of 2025 in collaboration with the municipality of Princeton, submissions were juried in March of 2026.
Michael Higgins ‘90 believes the true measure of architecture is not the building itself, but what happens around it over time. The families who move in. The storefronts that open. The sidewalks that fill. The community that grows.
As managing principal and CEO of MHS Architecture, he oversees large-scale mixed-use and transit-oriented developments that are reshaping communities across New Jersey and beyond. His work spans entire blocks, neighborhoods and public spaces. Yet the philosophy guiding that work began years ago in the studios of NJIT.
Liliana Torres’s architecture has always been about people.
“The way I want my story to be told is through how everything I learned at NJIT continues to translate into my professional life — the values, the sense of responsibility, and the commitment to helping others never stopped at graduation,” she said.
Torres '17, '18 is an undergraduate and graduate alumna of the Hillier College of Architecture and Design (HCAD), as well as a scholar of the Albert Dorman Honors College.
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) earned the second-highest rating in Money’s 2025 list of the best universities in the U.S.
At 4 ½ stars, NJIT is tied for the highest rated public institution and trails only Princeton University in New Jersey. NJIT is also featured in Money’s national list of the Best Public Colleges.
Effective July 1, 2025 for a three-year term, Gernot Riether became the first elected chair of NJIT’s School of Architecture, bringing with him a visionary approach rooted in interdisciplinary collaboration, technological innovation and public engagement.
The Hillier College of Architecture and Design, through a public-private partnership formed between NJIT, the city of Newark and the logistics real estate company Prologis, gave second-year architecture students the opportunity to complete a studio design-build of custom cabanas for Newark’s public pools.
Every year, NJIT’s detachment of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps graduates several successful cadets into the military officer ranks. Three members of the Class of 2025 spoke about their backgrounds that led them to the program, experiences during their time as Highlanders and future plans.
The young men who will soon receive their commissions as second lieutenants are Fredy Aleman Jr., a computer engineering major from Elizabeth; Irvin Hoyos, an architecture major from Paterson; and Michael Ruzzi, an industrial engineering major from Trenton.
Imani Ihmaid’s journey as an interior design student at NJIT is rooted in a passion for design that began in high school. After taking a drafting class and completing an internship with RH Interiors, the Paterson, New Jersey native discovered a love for interior design that solidified her decision to pursue the dual path of architecture and interior design. At NJIT, she found a welcoming and respected environment that fostered her creativity and growth.
