Allen works both as a historic preservation practitioner and a scholar whose work engages historic preservation, social impacts of urban planning and American architectural history. Allen founded the Preservation Research Office, a consulting firm that he directs, in 2009 and began appointment as University College Coordinator and Lecturer in AMCS in 2014. Both outlets allow Allen to both interrogate the normative practice of American historic preservation while theorizing approaches to interpreting and commemorating historic architecture that address inequity and urban rightsizing.
Michael Allen
Lecturer, American Culture Studies
Contact Information
- Phone: 314-935-6086
- Email: allen.m@wustl.edu
- Website: Website
Media Contact
In the media
As ‘flash floods are getting flashier,’ communities worry about aging infrastructure
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture
Preserving the Past, Shaping the Future
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture and landscape architecture; and lecturer in American culture studies
‘Black Lives do matter, even after death’: Billboards in historic, Black cemetery coming down after activist’s fight
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture and landscape architecture; and lecturer in American culture studies
Parson Tells Trump He Won’t Rename St. Louis
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture and landscape architecture; and lecturer in American culture studies
A call to remove the Saint Louis statue in Forest Park
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture and landscape architecture; and lecturer in American culture studies
Sam Moore’s legacy should be change in North St. Louis
We must change the way we treat people, writes Michael Allen. On the cusp of a mayoral election, Moore’s legacy urges us to remember that St. Louis won’t be a whole city until North St. Louis is a record of equity and justice.
Opinion: Confederate Memorial belongs to history of Jim Crow, not Civil War
Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture and landscape architecture; and lecturer in American culture studies
Stories
Design Schools, Now Is the Time to Answer: Who Are We For?
Design and architecture schools have been far slower to make commitments than they were to offer sweeping public statements. In this void, students are reclaiming the political, visionary legacy of design schools in years past.
Sam Moore’s legacy should be change in North St. Louis
We must change the way we treat people. On the cusp of a mayoral election, Moore’s legacy urges us to remember that St. Louis won’t be a whole city until North St. Louis is a record of equity and justice.
Downtown St. Louis Is Rising; Black St. Louis Is Being Razed
Imagine if St. Louis and Detroit counted progress in some other way than number of vacant buildings demolished and number of downtown jobs added this year.
A historian from the future reminds an audience of city leaders about the past that haunts them
We now face a moment of decision, St. Louis. Before us lies a choice between continued decline, economic stagnation, and state oppression—and a yet unrealized moment of human liberation, ecological vitality and resurgent metropolitan urbanism.
WashU Expert: Housing Syrian refugees
In response to the Syrian crisis, many in St. Louis have called for the city to increase its acceptance of refugees. Architectural historian Michael Allen says existing housing stock could easily accommodate thousands of new residents.