MLA Student Jeida Brooks Joins Landscape Architecture Foundation’s Ignite Program
Image
UVA School of Architecture congratulates Jeida Brooks (BS Arch ’24, MLA ’26) on her selection to the fourth cohort of the Landscape Architecture Foundation’s Ignite Program.
LAF Ignite is a comprehensive scholarship, internship, and mentorship program created to support BIPOC students pursuing a degree in landscape architecture. Each year, 4–7 students are selected for the program, which provides an annual $10,000 scholarship, paid summer internships, and one-on-one professional mentorship until participants complete their degrees. In addition, Ignite fosters peer-to-peer mentorship across cohorts through monthly workshops, virtual meetings, and summer gatherings.
This year, seven new students were chosen to join the Ignite community, which now includes four continuing students from previous cohorts. The 2025–26 cycle begins in September, with programming designed to connect participants to mentors, peers, and professional experiences that will shape their academic and career trajectories.
Brooks, who was born in Brooklyn and raised in Crozet, Virginia, completed her BS in Architecture at UVA before pursuing her Master of Landscape Architecture. Her past research explored the ways sound and architecture sustain human and non-human relationships and how history and memory are embedded in the landscape. As a graduate student, she continues this line of inquiry through a landscape lens, with interests in biophilic design and therapeutic landscapes.
Image
Image
Reflecting on the opportunity to join Ignite, Brooks shared:
Joining a network of emerging designers who are passionate about using landscape architecture to create meaningful change is very inspiring. I look forward to learning from mentors, connecting with peers across the country, and gaining new perspectives. These experiences will help shape the kind of designer I want to become after grad school.
Image
Brooks also emphasized the role of mentorship in her journey at the School of Architecture:
The faculty have been incredibly supportive throughout my time here, offering not just guidance but also encouragement and inspiration. The landscape architecture department has such a strong sense of community—people are helpful, fun, and genuinely talented. Being in this supportive and creative environment has made me even more excited to pay that mentorship forward.
Jeida Brooks' selection to the Ignite Program reflects her commitment to design as a practice rooted in care, creativity, and connection, and her future as a leader in the field of landscape architecture.
