Richard Zweifel, FASLA, helped begin the landscape architecture department at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and taught the curriculum for 14 years. He has been the associate dean for the College of Architecture and Environmental Design at Cal Poly for the past 25 years. Cal Poly's BLA program was ranked No. 1 this year by DesignIntelligence.

Associate Dean K. Richard Zweifel, FASLA, garnered 3,425 votes (1,608 paper ballots, 1,817 electronic ballots) to capture the position of ASLA president for 2014-2015. That vote tally represents 28.6 percent of eligible ASLA voters. Zweifel is the 70th president of ASLA, which was founded in 1899.

Zweifel earned his BSLA and MSLA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and began his career at the Milwaukee County Parks Commission.

Zweifel is currently the ASLA vice present of education, and has chaired the licensure committee and the Council of Fellows jury. On the state side, he has chaired the California Landscape Architecture Board, participated in multiple ASLA licensure summit meetings and worked for over 10 years on LARE exam development and grading committees for CLARB.

In his "if nominated" speech, Zweifel noted throughout his career he's been "inspired, energized and extremely proud of the contributions that the profession makes in creating places that are sensitive to their context and offer aesthetic enrichment." As an associate dean, he works within five complementary professional disciplines: landscape architecture, planning, architecture, structural engineering and construction management.

He pointed to landscape architecture as an evidenced-based profession, and the importance of identifying the profession's impact, noting the most successful ASLA accomplishments have "catalyzed participation around tangible and visible outcomes." He believes the profession should be the "nexus for creative and inclusive response to a range of green issues," that ASLA must be "connected to an increased demand for adaptability, new collaborations, research and evidence-based solutions in the very areas of landscape architecture's most significant strengths."

Among the roles he sees for ASLA is expanding collaborations and opportunities with allied organizations, including achieving federal STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) recognition for landscape architecture, supporting small business through advocacy and professional practice services, investing in life-long learning opportunities and attracting new members.

On a personal note, Zweifel is married to Pam, and the couple has three children.