Sedef Doganer

Wentworth Institute of Technology / Dean of the School of Architecture and Design

Dr. Sedef Doganer joined Wentworth Institute of Technology in September 2021 as the dean of the School of Architecture and Design. Prior to Wentworth, she was a professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio (2008– 2021), where she served as Department Chair and Associate Dean of Design, Inclusion and Engaged Scholarship.

Dr. Sedef Doganer believes higher education is about transformation. She is passionate about student success and positively impacting students’ lives, as well as design education enriching quality of life in communities. She advocates for preparing students as global professionals, and resourceful, self-directed, strong leaders who are ready for the challenging future of our world, society, and profession.

Dr. Sedef Doganer studies the nexus of architecture and tourism, and her recent research focuses on heritage tourism, historic preservation, cultural heritage management, and community-based, sustainable tourism development in an interdisciplinary fashion. Dr. Doganer’s most recent projects include an assessment of San Antonio’s heritage resources and an analysis of heritage tourism potential of the recently designated World Heritage Site, San Antonio Missions. She is the author/coauthor of numerous papers in journals, books and conference proceedings, and recipient of a total of more than $900K research and instructional funds as PI, co-PI, and co-leading instructor.

Dr. Sedef Doganer received bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in architecture from Istanbul Technical University and is a registered architect in Turkey. She is currently a member of the ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee and serves on the board of Docomomo/NE.