MA (History and Theory of Architecture) University of Essex, 1973
Dipl. (Urban Design) Architectural Association, 1965
BArch University of Oregon, 1963

Registered Architect: England, Oregon, NCARB

Professor Donald Genasci explores the development of meaning in architecture and urbanism with a focus on dialogues framed by cultural context. In the work of his professional practice, Donald B. Genasci & Associates, this is seen in transformative sustainable urban design that retains a cultural identity in local forms. Genasci teaches courses in the history and theory of urban design and the architecture and urbanism of the Renaissance and Modern eras in addition to design studios.

The architecture and urban design practice Genasci founded in Eugene, Oregon, in 1983 moved north with him to Portland in 1991. He has produced urban design studies, master plans, and design guidelines for cities and towns throughout Oregon, including Beaverton, Corvallis, Eugene, Salem, Gresham, Grants Pass, Rainier, and many regions within Portland. He has worked extensively with neighborhood groups in Oregon to develop consensus on neighborhood design projects, developing designs for pedestrian-oriented town centers and higher-density housing with places for public activity located in close proximity to dwellings. His riverfront development in Eugene, Oregon, was awarded a Progressive Architecture Design Award in 1990.

Genasci's portfolio includes numerous single-family and multi-family housing projects as well as theaters and public buildings. In 1998 Genasci's work on the rehabilitation of the Kennedy School was honored with the Governor's Livability Award and the State of Oregon Historic Preservation Award. Genasci has also received recognition as a finalist in design competitions for a Native American school in Roswell, New Mexico; the West Hollywood City Hall and Cultural Center in West Hollywood, California; a city hall in Leesburg, Virginia; and planning for a new town of 30,000 in Espoo, Finland.

Genasci began his career in London, England. His work was featured in the Architectural Review in 1970 and he ran a private practice, Genasci & Livingston Architects, in London from 1973 to 1977. He served as the director of the undergraduate architecture program at the Polytechnic of Central London and taught part time at the Architectural Association between 1970 and 1977, when he returned to Eugene, Oregon, to take a position on the faculty at the University of Oregon. In 1980 Genasci created an exhibition and catalogue entitled, "W.R.B.Willcox: His Architectural and Educational Theory," on a transformative figure in architectural education who had served as head of the architecture department at the University of Oregon from 1922 to 1947. Genasci taught theory and studio courses at Princeton University from 1979 to 1981, at Harvard University in 1982, and rejoined the UO faculty in 1983.

An active member of the AIA Urban Design Committee and the Northwest District Association Planning Committee in Portland, Genasci has also served on the board of the NW Cultural Center, the Portland Community Land Trust, and the Inner West Side Community Development Corporation. He has served as an advisory committee member for the Burnside Street Revitalization and the NWDA Transitional Area Plan in Portland. In Eugene he served on the Downtown Commission and on the advisory committee for the Riverfront Industrial Park.