Honoring Marvin Malecha's Impact on RODE and The Design Community

We, at RODE Architects, are saddened by the recent passing of Dean Marvin Malecha. We wish to offer our condolences to Marvin’s family and his friends and colleagues whom he touched. Marv had a profound impact on so many people and we pause here to remember that our tenure on land is brief, but what we do carries on. Marvin was an apostle of the design education and its many benefits.

As many know, RODE can trace its origins to a ‘Fundamentals’ studio at NC State’s College of Design, pictured here at Leazar Hall. Fundamentals meant we started with basic principles and took up design learning through a variety of media types--color, light, drawing, graphics, and the environment. Eric and I met in that studio and in many ways, carry on with a spirit of integration and collaboration across many disciplines. Dean Malecha was a perfect steward for this pedagogy.

Marvin took over just as we were finishing, but I knew him as my connection to the school as an alumni. He was always curious, passionate, and proud of the NC State grads making it in Boston. Thanks Marv, you will be missed.

- Kevin Deabler, AIA,

Principal, RODE Architects