Marianne Cusato

Marianne Cusato is Professor of the Practice and Director of the Housing & Community Regeneration Initiative in the School of Architecture at the University of Notre Dame. She earned a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Notre Dame School of Architecture in 1997 and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame Mendoza School of Business in 2017. Cusato's professional career includes roles as project architect at Fairfax & Sammons Architects in New York from 2000 to 2004 and associate at Grenfell Architecture in Charlotte from 1997 to 2000. In 2005, she founded Marianne Cusato Design, LLC, and currently serves as partner in charge of design and development at Cypress Community Development Corp., a not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating resilient, energy-efficient, dignified, and attainable homes. Cypress CDC has developed 450 Katrina Cottages in Louisiana through FEMA funding, as well as homes in the Florida Keys after Hurricane Irma, Sonoma County following the 2017 wildfires, Panama City after Hurricane Michael, and Baton Rouge after flooding.

Cusato gained prominence for designing the 308 sq. ft. Katrina Cottage in 2005 as an alternative to FEMA trailers post-Hurricane Katrina, which received the Smithsonian Institute’s Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum’s 2006 People’s Design Award. She is the author of two books: Get Your House Right: Architectural Elements to Use & Avoid, co-authored with Leon Krier, Ben Pentreath, and Richard Sammons (Sterling Publishing, 2008), and The Just Right Home: Buying, Renting, Moving...or Just Dreaming—Find Your Perfect Match!, with Daniel DiClerico (Workman Publishing, 2013). Her achievements include being ranked the No. 4 most influential person in the home building industry by Builder Magazine, named one of the Top Women in Real Estate by Fortune Magazine, and voted one of the 30 Most Influential Women in the Housing Economy by HousingWire Magazine. At Notre Dame, she teaches courses such as Charrette Lab (ARCH 41711), U.S. Housing & Social Justice (ARCH 43201/AMST 30922), and Why Are Buildings Ugly? (ARCH 53381). Cusato serves on the Board of Trustees of INTBAU and was appointed to the READI 2.0 Review Committee by the Indiana Economic Development Corp. in 2024.

Professional Email: mcusato@nd.edu