Update 10:30 a.m.: NAAB president Judith Kinnard, FAIA, declined to comment on Rutledge's reasons for departing and future plans. Ellen Cathey, AIA, has been appointed as acting associate director to manage NAAB's day-to-day operations until a permanent replacement is determined.

The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) released a statement today announcing that longtime executive director, Andrea Rutledge, Hon. AIA, will step down in July. Rutledge has served as CEO of the architectural program accrediting body since 2007 and was previously a managing director at the AIA.

"The Board of Directors of the NAAB, together with her many friends in education and the profession, will miss her, and we wish her well as she engages the next chapter in her career,” said NAAB president, Judith Kinnard, FAIA, in the release.

NAAB did not responded to inquiries on the reason for Rutledge's departure or future plans prior to publishing.

Read the full release below: The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) announced today that Andrea S. Rutledge, CAE, Hon. AIA, who has guided the NAAB with extraordinary skill over the last decade, will step down in July.

She is a consummate professional and is recognized by her peers both in architecture organizations, schools, and among association executives for her work to advance architectural accreditation both nationally and internationally.

During her tenure with the NAAB, Ms. Rutledge oversaw two successful Accreditation Review Conferences, the creation of an annual statistical reporting system that is now cited as the premier source of information on students in NAAB-accredited programs, the development of new tools to make candidacy for initial accreditation more focused on program development, and the establishment of new training programs both for teams and programs in order to promote transparency, consistency, and understanding in the process. In addition, she established the NAAB as the Secretariat for the Canberra Accord and has worked with other, emerging accreditation systems as they seek to improve their practices.

“The Board of Directors of the NAAB, together with her many friends in education and the profession, will miss her, and we wish her well as she engages the next chapter in her career,” said NAAB President, Judith Kinnard, FAIA, in announcing Ms. Rutledge’s departure.

The NAAB congratulates Ms. Rutledge on her nearly ten years’ commitment to the success of the organization and wishes her the best in her next endeavors.