University of California Berkeley announced today it has appointed Nicholas de Monchaux as the William W. Wurster Dean of the College of Environmental Design (CED). De Monchaux—an architect, urbanist, and scholar—was previously a professor of architecture and urban design at UC Berkeley from 2006 to 2019. Since 2020 he has served as head of MIT’s Department of Architecture. His CED appointment follows news from MIT that Ana Miljački has been appointed as the next head of the MIT Department of Architecture.

At Berkeley, de Monchaux will assume the position that outgoing dean Renee Y. Chow held for five years. In February 2025, the college shared news of Chow’s decision to step down from the role. Chow has also decided to retire from the college’s faculty, which she has served on for over 30 years in teaching and leadership roles. She also works in the fields of architecture and urban design as co-principal of Studio Urbis.

While a professor of architecture and urban design at UC Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design, de Monchaux was the director of the Berkeley Center for New Media (BCNM) and was named Craigslist Distinguished Chair in New Media.

“CED powerfully shaped every way in which I think about design and its responsibility in the world,” de Monchaux said in a statement. “I am thrilled to return to the college and support its mission at a time when it has never been more relevant. From the role of building in driving our climate crisis, through the role of construction, policy and planning in stewarding resilient landscapes and institutions, to the urgent task of ensuring access to cities, housing, and education across the world, CED addresses the great challenges of our time. I can’t wait to support the college as it reinvents and strengthens its impact.”

De Monchaux was educated in architecture at Yale and Princeton. His interest in the field is far-reaching, extending beyond buildings to encompass the built environment’s relationship with technology, urbanism, digital simulation, world-building, and sci-fi. His past research, including published books, has focused on the origin of the Apollo spacesuit and explored the special effects used in Star Wars.

Beyond teaching and research, he is a partner at the interdisciplinary practice modem. He previously worked as a designer at Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Michael Hopkins & Partners in London.

Chow’s tenure as dean ends on June 30, 2026. De Monchaux will start on July 1, 2027; in the interim, professor Daniel G. Chatman, chair of the Department of City & Regional Planning, will serve as dean beginning July 1, 2026.