[5] At Andover, she also participated in the Dakar Project involving the renovation of an elementary school on Goree Island in Senegal, West Africa, which was formative to her later pursuit of architecture.
La received her professional degree of Master of Architecture from Harvard University Graduate School of Design; her thesis was granted the honor of distinction and her project won the Clifford Wong Housing Prize.
[note 5] La's design work for non-profit and mission based entities is rooted in the deep appreciation for service and civic engagement, which were instilled in her from her grandfather.
La is the younger sister of Elinor L. Hoover (Harvard Business School, ‘94), Global Co-Head of Consumer Products and Vice Chairman of Capital Markets Origination at Citigroup.
[9] Noted for their unusual ability in the design and execution of complex projects by the Architectural Record,[10] the firm has received numerous professional honors and exhibited and published widely.
[11] Grace La co-edited Skycar City [12] with Winy Maas, co-founded and edited UWM's Calibrations, and was a member of the design editorial board of the Journal of Architectural Education for two terms.
[18] Exploring matters and methods of practice, La has engaged podcast interviews with renowned designers such as Shohei Shigematsu, Jeanne Gang, Reinier de Graaf, Anna Heringer, Paul Nakazawa, Gary Hilderbrand, Preston Scott Cohen, and others.
La received four Faculty Design Awards from Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, honoring her for her projects that have "advance[d] the reflective nature of practice and teaching".
"[23] Grace La and James Dallman are the first North American practitioners to receive the prize, which was previously awarded to architects Antón García-Abril of Spain and Sou Fujimoto of Japan.
[31][32] Among others, La's completed projects co-authored with partner, James Dallman, include the Miller Brewing Company Meeting Center (headquarters originally designed by mid-century architect, Ulrich Franzen), permanent science exhibits for Discovery World, the Marsupial Bridge and Media Garden, the Kilbourn Tower, the UWM Hillel Student Center, and several prominent residences including the Levy House and the Pavilion House in Wisconsin.
LA DALLMAN completed the renovation of Wilson Theater at Vogel Hall and a new river entrance at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, originally designed by Harry Weese.