Feature Photo: American YouthWorks volunteers engaging in environmental conservation efforts in San Antonio. Image: American YouthWorks
Posted: 6-29-2025
Austin (Travis County) — Texas-based architecture and interior design firm Michael Hsu Office of Architecture (MHOA) has announced a partnership with American YouthWorks (AYW) for the fourth annual Design for All initiative.
As AYW’s demand for services increases, the Austin nonprofit will receive a $20,000 grant for pro bono design and consultation services. MHOA will help enhance the functionality of AYW’s existing spaces through its award-winning design expertise, with the potential for future expansion.
“American YouthWorks is a unique organization that serves the community at large while focusing on helping youth meet their potential. Through service projects, environmental preservation and education and career training, their programming has an impressively far reach,” says MHOA founder and principal Michael Hsu. “We’re looking forward to partnering with them this year and supporting their mission through the design of an expanded and more efficient space for their headquarters.”
Due to the recent rapid growth and expansion of programs serving rural and urban communities, AYW has outgrown its current education and career training facilities in Austin. To support its growing community of young adults, AYW will partner with MHOA to reimagine a space that feels safe, comfortable and inspiring. The goal is to create an environment that fosters accomplishment and a strong sense of belonging for all participating young adults. MHOA will provide a range of design services, including a programming exercise, conceptual site and floor plans, a comprehensive design narrative and detailed renderings. These materials will help communicate the project’s vision and progress to the public, supporters and stakeholders.
AYW Conservation Corps crew members.
“We are honored and excited to be selected for this opportunity, which will allow us to collaborate with the visionary and community-minded designers of Michael Hsu Office of Architecture to imagine a workforce development center that reflects both the ambition of our mission and the needs and potential of the young people, staff members and communities we serve.” says American YouthWorks CEO Parc Smith.
Founded in 1975 as a GED and literacy program for court-involved youth in East Austin, AYW has grown into a workforce development center that serves the entire Austin community through its YouthBuild and Conservation Corps programs. Through these education and career training programs, AYW provides opportunities for certifications, professional development and personal growth that young adults can build upon as they start careers or postsecondary education.
Conservation Corps crew members conserve natural landscapes and recreation areas across the Central Southern United States. In the YouthBuild Pre-Apprenticeship program, young adults complete their high school education while simultaneously serving the Greater Austin community through valuable vocational training in high-demand fields like health care, IT, manufacturing and construction. AYW participants have access to wrap-around support services and a network of resources. They also receive post-graduation college and career guidance to help them make a positive impact in the lives of others and the communities served.
For the inaugural Design for All in 2022, MHOA partnered with Austin Angels to design a welcoming community center that will support children and families in foster care, located within a 2.5-acre former church facility in Buda. Austin Angels is slated to break ground on June 27, and project renderings can be viewed here.
In 2023, MHOA partnered with The Women’s Home in Houston to design a behavioral wellness and workforce development space for low-income families. It will provide services that support financial and computer literacy, workforce training, and a community of safety and trust for undocumented immigrants. The project is currently in its early stages, and renderings of The Women’s Home can be viewed here.
Last year, MHOA partnered with Central Texas Table of Grace to design a new campus in Round Rock, Texas, to support vulnerable youth in foster care. As a result of Design for All’s high demand, MHOA has also provided past pro bono design services to The Children’s Assessment Center in Houston and Abigail E. Keller Foundation in Austin.
To be considered for the grant, Design for All applicants must have registered as 501(c)(3) and be located within a 50-mile radius of either the Houston or Austin metropolitan area, where MHOA is headquartered. Founded in 2005 and celebrating 20 years of business, MHOA has operated on the belief that good design is for everyone, having worked with several nonprofits in the past including Austin’s Habitat for Humanity’s affordable townhomes, Mobile Loaves and Fishes’ Community First Tiny Victories tiny home subdivision and a vital 61-unit housing facility for Project Transitions.
AYW Conservation Corps crew members.
Edited from news release.
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