From All Angles: Rich Rodovalho’s Story

Rich Rodovalho started working in construction when he was 19 years old building homes and other developments for national builders like Toll Brothers and Ryan Homes. After he felt like he had a strong understanding of the development side of the AEC industry, he wanted to see how far he could expand his knowledge. Now, Rich is graduating from CCP with an associate degree in Architecture and is set to attend Columbia University to complete a 4+1 program, where he will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Architecture and a master’s degree in Real Estate Development.

Once Rich started taking classes in CCP’s Architecture program, he realized how many different directions you could take within the field. “[My professors] started talking about more real estate development and the finance that goes behind everything,” Rich said. “And I was like, ‘well, that's perfect! Now I'll know how to build it, design it and how to package the whole finance to be able to grow with the project.’”

Rich has found his experience at CCP rewarding and beneficial to his future. “[Our professors] are registered architects and being able to communicate with them just like on the human scale, not just as professors, and being able to ask questions...I feel like they guided us directly the way we're supposed to go,” Rich said. “Especially with transferring.” He is grateful for the support of all his professors and values that many of them are or have been working professionals in the field.

When it came to choosing where to continue his education after CCP, Rich was determined to go the distance. He told his friends he was aiming for an Ivy League, and they doubted him. “I was like, ‘watch,’” Rich said. “So...I didn't sleep, doing classwork, maintained a 4.0 GPA.” he said. But he wasn’t doing it just to prove his friends wrong. Rich knew what he was capable of. “I did it, not to prove to anybody else, but to prove to myself that if I was going to do this, I could get into the best schools. I could get into the best programs and see how far I can push in this career path.”

After graduating from Columbia, Rich is interested in coming back to Philadelphia to work to build a better city, after living most of his life here and watching neighborhood after neighborhood become gentrified. “I want to be able to design, develop these neighborhoods that are forgotten, but do something for the people living there,” Rich said. Rich may consider working for a global team to be able to go back to South America, where he is originally from.

Rich is grateful for his time here at CCP and to his professors for guiding him through the program and his next steps. In addition to the wonderful accomplishments he has made at CCP, he is also a semifinalist for a Jack Kent Cooke scholarship, which would cover a significant amount of his tuition for Columbia University.