Austin Teague Ferguson ’15, M’17

Austin Teague Ferguson ’15, M’17 Receives the 2024 Roaring10 Award

Austin Ferguson is a Greer native with two Clemson degrees, including a 2015 bachelor’s degree in architecture. After earning a master’s degree in the Architecture + Health program in 2017, he joined ZGF Architects in New York City. As a member of ZGF’s healthcare design team, he collaborated on projects across the country. In 2019, he received Healthcare Design magazine’s Rising Star award, which celebrates young industry professionals whose meaningful contributions help establish them as future leaders.

In 2020, Austin moved to Germany to accept a position in the Berlin office of the architecture firm heinlewischer and was soon tasked with planning and coordinating the construction of six COVID-19 mass vaccination centers in that city. The initial project was completed in six weeks and then expanded to include smaller booster vaccination sites.

A year after the vaccination centers closed, Austin and project consultants were asked to plan and construct a new arrival center at the former Tegel airport in Berlin to serve as a central hub for Ukrainian war refugees fleeing to Germany. The center was operational within one week and was able to accommodate up to 2,500 guests by the end of the second week.

While living in New York, Austin volunteered in the ACE Mentor Program of America, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preparing high school students for higher education and careers in design and construction by connecting them with industry experts. For Clemson, he participates in presentations and discussions with current students and is a guest critic for the Architecture + Health program, providing feedback as students prepare their projects for final reviews. He actively works to connect Clemson architecture students and recent graduates with internship and career opportunities.