Norma Merrick Sklarek
At PeopleDem property we believe in celebrating our community by spotlighting black excellence in property. Today we are celebrating Norma Merrick Sklarek 1926 – 2012.
Norma was the first Black woman licensed as an architect in both New York and California, the first Black woman admitted to the American Institute of Architects, and one of the most accomplished architects of her generation. Yet despite helping shape some of America's most recognisable buildings, including the United States Embassy in Tokyo and Terminal One at Los Angeles International Airport, her name has remained far less familiar than many of her contemporaries.
Born on 15 April 1926 in Harlem, New York, Norma was the daughter of Trinidadian immigrants Dr. Walter Ernest Merrick and Amy Merrick. Her parents encouraged curiosity, discipline and independence from an early age. While her mother, a talented seamstress, taught her practical skills and attention to detail, her father introduced her to carpentry, painting and home improvement projects activities rarely associated with girls during the 1930s. Those early lessons instilled a confidence that would prove invaluable throughout her life.
Norma's academic abilities quickly became impossible to ignore. She earned the highest mathematics score in New York City on the entrance examination for Hunter College High School, one of the city's most academically demanding schools. Although her parents initially hoped she would pursue medicine, they recognised that her passion lay at the intersection of mathematics and art. Architecture offered the perfect balance.
Even entering the profession required determination. At the time, Columbia University's School of Architecture had never admitted women directly, so a dean advised Norma to enrol at Barnard College before applying as a transfer student. The strategy succeeded. She transferred to Columbia during her sophomore year, becoming one of the first women admitted to the programme, and graduated in 1950 as the university's first Black woman architecture graduate. She then passed the New York State licensing examination on her first attempt.
Her qualifications, however, were not enough to overcome prejudice.
After graduation, 19 architectural firms rejected her applications before she secured a position as a junior draftsperson with the New York Department of Public Works. Rather than allowing discrimination to define her future, Norma continued building her experience while working towards professional licensure. In 1954, she became the first Black woman licensed as an architect in New York, a milestone that finally opened doors within the industry.
Soon afterwards, she joined Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, where she spent five years developing the technical expertise that would underpin the rest of her career. Alongside her professional work, she also taught architecture, sharing her knowledge with the next generation of designers.
In 1960, Norma relocated to Los Angeles to join Gruen and Associates as its first female vice president. Two years later, she once again made history by becoming the first Black woman licensed as an architect in California. Her responsibilities grew rapidly, and by 1966 she had been promoted to director, overseeing major developments including California Mart, Pacific Design Center, Fox Hills Mall, San Bernardino City Hall, Leo Baeck Temple and the United States Embassy in Tokyo.
Although Norma played an essential role in delivering many of these landmark projects, recognition often failed to reflect her contributions. Like many women architects of her era, she was frequently credited as the "project architect" rather than the "design architect", even when deeply involved in shaping the buildings themselves. One notable exception was the Embassy in Tokyo, where she shared design credit alongside César Pelli. In recent years, historians and architectural scholars have worked to restore the recognition that was long overdue.
Sklarek's influence reached far beyond the buildings she helped create. In 1959, she became the first Black woman admitted to the American Institute of Architects, and in 1980 she became the first Black woman elevated to its prestigious College of Fellows one of the profession's highest honours. That same year, she joined Welton Becket Associates, where she directed the $50 million Terminal One project at Los Angeles International Airport.
Following the death of her husband, fellow architect Rolf Sklarek, in 1984, Norma embraced a new challenge. The following year she co-founded Siegel Sklarek Diamond with Margot Siegel and Kate Diamond. The practice became one of the largest women-owned architectural firms in the United States, delivering projects for institutions including the University of California, Irvine, and the Los Angeles Metro Rail.
Still seeking fresh opportunities, she joined The Jerde Partnership in 1989 as a principal, where she oversaw the development of what would become her final major project the 4.2-million-square-foot Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. After helping complete the largest shopping mall in the United States, she retired in 1992.
Throughout her remarkable career, Norma never forgot how isolated she had once felt. She believed that success carried a responsibility to lift others along the way. In a 1975 letter to the vice chancellor at UCLA, she wrote, "As far as I know, I am the first and only Black woman architect licensed in California. I am not proud to be a unique statistic, but embarrassed by our system which has caused my dubious distinction."
Those words captured her philosophy perfectly. She did not want to be remembered simply for being "the first." She wanted to ensure she would not be the last.
She regularly opened her office to students, mentoring aspiring architects and helping young women and Black students develop the technical skills and confidence needed to enter a profession where they remained vastly underrepresented. Long before diversity became a priority across the industry, Norma was quietly creating opportunities for others.
Following her retirement, she continued serving the profession by joining the California Architects Board and later chairing the American Institute of Architects' National Ethics Council. Looking back on her career, a former AIA president summed up her legacy simply: "She was capable of doing anything. She was the complete architect."
Norma Merrick Sklarek's greatest achievement was never just the buildings she helped create. It was proving that talent can outlast prejudice, that perseverance can change an industry, and that every barrier broken makes it easier for the next generation to walk through the door. Her story deserves to be remembered not simply because she was a woman of many firsts, but because she transformed those firsts into lasting opportunities for countless others.
