How The Program Works

Our Day of Service program is built as a model to be replicated. We want the process of setting up a program at your own firm to be as easy as possible. Here's the general rundown of how this typically works:

1. Requests for Proposals (RFPs)
Design firms invite local nonprofits to submit project ideas through a short proposal process.

2. Project Selection
Selected organizations are matched with design teams based on project scope, mission alignment, and potential impact.

3. Planning Meetings
Teams meet with their nonprofit partners in the weeks leading up to the event to define goals and deliverables.

4. Day of Service
On the designated day (EskewDumezRipple often hosts it on the Friday before Martin Luther King, Jr. Day), teams dedicate their time to developing creative, actionable solutions—ranging from visioning and renderings to signage, branding, and planning strategies.

5. Final Presentations
Each design team shares their work with the organizations, providing design materials to help move their mission forward. We like to host an event for everyone to share and learn together at once; it makes it fun and allows the organizations to connect with each other.

For Organizations Interested in Participating

We partner with nonprofits, schools, and community groups to provide pro-bono design services through our annual Day of Service. The Request for Proposals is OPEN NOW until September 5th, 2025.

If you’re interested in submitting a project proposal for consideration, click here to learn more or reach out to our Day of Service Coordinator at doscoordinator@eskewdumezripple.com.

For Firms Looking to Host Their Own

We are currently creating a guide to help other firms plan and launch their own Day of Service. Check back soon!

For additional information, feel free to contact our Day of Service Coordinator at: doscoordinator@eskewdumezripple.com.

Building a Culture of Service:
Our Program's History

Since 2015, we’ve partnered with incredible organizations and community leaders through our annual Day of Service, an initiative rooted in collaboration, care, and design for the public good. Over the years, these efforts have supported a wide range of impactful projects across our communities. To celebrate the legacy and growth of this program, we invite you to explore a brief history of its evolution and the people who have helped bring it to life.

2015 – Sparked by a Research Fellowship focused on Community Engagement, our team launched the inaugural Day of Service—a full day dedicated to supporting four local organizations on projects ranging from a summer camp planning study to civic pavilions for public art throughout New Orleans.

José Alvarez, a longtime advocate for industry support through his work with the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) in Louisiana, championed the effort within firm leadership. His early involvement was instrumental in ensuring the program’s success and establishing a strong foundation for its continued impact. Read an interview with Jose about our program here.

2015 & 2016 – In the program’s earliest years, our team partnered with Live Oak Camp to help launch a bold new model for youth leadership in New Orleans. We created a series of design tools to support the camp’s inaugural session—a citywide network of 10–12-year-olds united by a shared experience of adventure, community, and personal growth.

With no permanent site selected in 2015, our team worked closely with camp founders to visualize the camper journey and daily schedule, producing a set of graphics and planning documents that helped communicate the camp’s mission to stakeholders, donors, and families. In 2016, we expanded the collaboration to include a site-specific design study for a temporary home at Holiday Lake, helping guide programming, layout, and logistical planning for the growing initiative.

These early contributions helped shape the identity of Live Oak Camp and laid the foundation for its growth into a fully ACA-accredited, mission-driven summer experience—building lasting bonds among New Orleans’ future leaders.

2018 – Our team partnered with unCommon Construction (uCC) to help develop a new resource aimed at expanding access to hands-on, career-connected learning for students across New Orleans. Together, we co-created The unCommon Class Project Portfolio—a flexible design-build toolkit that supports uCC’s efforts to bring construction-based learning into schools, community centers, and beyond.

The Portfolio functions as an a-la-carte menu of small-scale construction projects—picnic tables, planters, outdoor classrooms, and more—each with clear instructions, materials lists, team sizes, and cost estimates. Our team helped shape the visual and structural identity of this resource, ensuring it would be easy for educators, school leaders, and community members to engage with and implement.

By helping demystify the design and construction process, this collaboration empowered uCC’s student apprentices to take on leadership roles as they guided younger participants through real-world build events. It also gave community partners a user-friendly roadmap for creating meaningful learning spaces, furthering uCC’s mission to prepare youth for high-wage, high-demand jobs through collaborative construction experiences.

2020 – In collaboration with the Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), our team created a concept design for the transformation of a historic structure on Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard into a dynamic community hub. The Phase 1 renovation introduced flexible classrooms, multipurpose gathering space, a kitchen, laundry, and supportive offices—designed to accommodate the organization’s expanding youth programs in education, enrichment, and workforce development.

Working closely with YEP staff, we created a plan that balanced preservation goals with modern functionality, reinforcing the building’s role as a safe, welcoming space for New Orleans youth. The design also incorporated upgrades to accessibility, infrastructure, and circulation, laying the groundwork for a future expansion next door.

2023 – Our team collaborated with Community Book Center and Broad Community Connections to develop a visioning study for the long-standing cultural hub on Bayou Road. A cornerstone of the neighborhood since 1983, the Center promotes African-centered literature, art, and education, and also serves as a gathering space and short-term residence for visiting authors and community members in need.

The design package assessed existing conditions and proposed improvements to both the ground-floor bookstore and second-floor apartment. It included new floor plans to support future uses such as a café, gallery, flexible event space, and upgraded residential accommodations. Scope areas addressed space planning, ADA compliance, life safety, insulation, water infiltration, and other key building systems.

The resulting vision supports Community Book Center’s continued evolution as a resilient, welcoming, and culturally vital neighborhood institution.

2023 – In collaboration with the Algiers Economic Development Foundation and Woodward Design & Build, our team developed a master planning vision for the redevelopment of the DeGaulle Manor site and surrounding areas in Mid-Algiers. The project was part of our annual Day of Service and aimed to support equitable, community-driven revitalization in a historically disinvested neighborhood.

The plan reimagines the site as a mixed-use, transit-connected community that blends new housing, healthcare, childcare, and commercial spaces with park-like landscapes and preserved architectural character. A phased redevelopment strategy was created to guide future investment—starting with zoning and density recommendations and extending through environmental resilience, stormwater management, and infrastructure improvements.

By building on the neighborhood’s assets and responding to local priorities, the vision lays the groundwork for a more connected, livable, and inclusive Mid-Algiers.