2026 Historic Preservation 101/201 Seminar for Realtors & Appraisers
2026-05-08 09:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW, Washington, DC, 20001
DC Real Estate Agents and Appraisers can earn three continuing education credits in one of these free, three-hour, in-person courses focused on historic preservation in the District of Columbia.
**Please note these courses run at the same time and you may only register for one.**
Join DCPL at the MLK Jr. Memorial Library (901 G Street NW) on Friday, May 8th from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. HP 101 will provide an overview of historic preservation and architectural styles in the District. HP 201 will explore related topics, like the benefits of designating a property and how to do so.
Please note all participants are required to take 101 before 201.
Free to all!
REGISTER HERE
Contact Kelli at the DC Preservation League with any questions: kelli@dcpreservation.org | (202) 783-5144

Panel: Yes, In Your Backyard: How Accessory Dwelling Units are Compatible in Historic Districts
2026-05-19 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
A virtual presentation hosted by the Cleveland Park Historical Society and DC Preservation League
Join us for a Zoom presentation exploring how Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), including basement apartments, backyard cottages, and garage conversions, can be thoughtfully integrated into historic districts. This program will focus on the idea that preservation and change can work together to support a more inclusive and sustainable city.
Architect Ileana Schinder will begin by defining what qualifies as an ADU and explaining the different types homeowners might consider. Drawing on her expertise navigating zoning and working with the Historic Preservation Office (HPO), she will walk through the process of designing and gaining approval for ADUs.
Todd Jones of the Historic Preservation Office at the DC Office of Planning will provide an overview of the common ways that ADUs appear in historic districts, how preservation guidelines apply, and how HPO evaluates proposals to ensure compatibility with existing historic resources.
Whether you’re a homeowner considering an ADU, a preservation advocate, or interested in how DC can grow thoughtfully, this conversation will offer valuable guidance and a fresh perspective on how we can say “yes” to both history and housing.
REGISTER HERE

Ileana Schinder is an architect in Washington, DC. She graduated with a Bachelor’s in Architecture from Universidad Nacional de Cordoba (Argentina, 2000) and an M.A. in Communications from the American University (Washington DC, 2006).
Inspired to become an architect at the age of four by playing with Legos on the floor, she remains motivated to design houses of all sizes 40 years later. Since opening her architecture studio in 2014, with creativity and innovation, she has designed additional dwelling units that create new spaces for clients and their families to thrive.
As part of her efforts to educate the public on housing issues, Ileana has also written in blogs and held sessions to inspire and promote innovative models of home. Ileana is the author of “Housing for Humans: A Book to Imagine, Create and Design a New Housing Model in America” (Panoma Press, 2021).
Ileana was born and raised in Argentina. She lives in Washington, DC, with her family and her dog, Colette.

Todd Jones has worked at the DC Historic Preservation Office since 2020, where he has conducted project reviews, historical research, and preservation planning. He previously worked as a historical researcher and as a Historic Preservation Specialist with the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the New England region. He is originally from Connecticut and earned a master’s degree in public history from Central Connecticut State University.

Public Meeting: Housing Black Washington Multiple Property Document
2026-05-21 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Please join the DC Historic Preservation Office, the DC Preservation League, and Architectural Historian Heather McMahon for this public presentation about the Housing Black Washington Multiple Property Document. This project is funded by an Underrepresented Communities Grant from the National Park Service.
This study looks closely at the places Black Washingtonians have called home over time. It especially explores housing considered “affordable,” meaning it was intended for working-class residents, since African Americans have always made up a significant portion of the District of Columbia’s working class since racial restrictions kept many in lower-wage, blue-collar or service-sector jobs. Since the District of Columbia’s founding, housing for African Americans had often been relegated to rear yards, back alleys, isolated neighborhoods, and undesirable locations. Their homes were hidden although their work was salient: Black Washingtonians helped build the White House, the U.S. Capitol, Washington’s grand avenues, and national monuments.
This meeting is free to attend!
REGISTER HERE

Book Talk: Georgetown University: An Architectural History
2026-05-28 19:00 - 20:00 | Zoom
Spanning the university’s genesis in 1789 through to today, the new book, Georgetown University: An Architectural History, provides the reader with a close look at over fifty campus buildings.
This book presentation will explore the Georgetown University campus over time with highlights of its historical and modern architecture, from the Old North building (1795) to its twenty-first-century development. With modern photographs as well as historical images drawn from the university archives, we will discuss the background of Georgetown’s buildings. The talk will highlight multiple periods in the university’s history including its entanglement with slavery, the presidencies of Patrick Healy, SJ and W. Coleman Nevils, SJ as well as its mid-twentieth century and later university leadership.
The Georgetown campus includes architecture by leading historical and contemporary designers such as John Smithmeyer and Paul Pelz, Emile Perrot, John Carl Warnecke, Hugh Hardy, Hugh Newell Jacobsen, and Robert A.M. Stern Architects. The buildings exemplify a host of architectural styles including Federal, Romanesque and Gothic Revival, International Style, Brutalist and Postmodern. Changes in the university landscape and connections to broader trends in American campus development will be highlighted. Lastly, we will also discuss the book’s curriculum connected development.
You can buy the book here or on Amazon.
This book talk is free to attend!
REGISTER HERE

Stephanie Rufino is an architectural and art historian and has published on the decoration and architecture of both the Washington National Cathedral and historic American banks from the 1920s. Dr. Rufino holds a PhD in American art and architectural history from the University of Virginia and an MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. She graduated cum laude from Smith College and also earned a master’s degree in art history. Dr. Rufino taught architectural history at Georgetown for over a decade, where she also served in multiple university leadership roles. She currently serves as Director of Undergraduate Design Programs and Associate Professor at Wentworth’s School of Architecture & Design in Boston.

Public Meeting: Black Women Suffrage Movement in Washington, DC (1848-1973)
2026-06-24 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
In 2020, the DC Preservation League partnered with the DC State Historic Preservation Office to implement grant funding from the National Park Service to produce a context study on Women’s Suffrage in Washington, DC.
Adding on to that project, in 2022, DCPL received a competitive grant from the National Park Service to underwrite development of a Historic Context Statement on the Black Women’s Suffrage Movement in Washington, DC.
This June, join researchers Dr. Portia Hopkins and Dr. Synatra Smith to learn more about their findings for the Black Women’s Suffrage Movement in Washington, DC (1848-1973) Historic Context Study.
This event is free and open to the public. Your feedback and questions are welcome and encouraged at this presentation!
REGISTER HERE
Photo Credit: Ida B. Wells and the Alpha Suffrage Club marching in the Women’s Suffrage Parade in Washington, DC on March 3, 1913. Photo from the Chicago Daily Tribune, March 5, 1913.

Walking Tour: Founding Fathers Madison and Monroe
2026-06-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Foggy Bottom, Washington, DC, United States
Join DCPL for this exciting tour offered in partnership with Washington Walks!
Discover an overlooked aspect of DC’s Foggy Bottom neighborhood: a collection of Federal era mansions hiding in plain sight that were homes to men such as Founding Fathers James Madison and James Monroe.
In the early 1800s wealthy, influential politicians and officials built substantial residences in Foggy Bottom, lending an elite presence to the area located immediately west of the White House. The walking tour will include stops at:

The Octagon (1799), one of the oldest, most historically important homes in Washington, and a former residence of President Madison.
Ringgold-Carroll House, built in 1825, and known today as the DACOR-Bacon House, an organization for foreign affairs professionals.
Maxwell Woodhull House, built in 1854 and current home of the Textile Museum.
And more!

An Exclusive Interior Tour of the James Monroe House
The walk will conclude at the Arts Club of Washington, built in 1802, and from 1811 to 1817 home to future U.S. president James Monroe. Participants will receive an interior tour of the mansion and hear about how this important historic building transitioned from being a family residence to housing the oldest nonprofit arts organization in the nation’s capital.
Tickets for this event are $35 per person. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 or more days in advance. Administrative fees may apply.
REGISTER HERE
Photo Credit: Arts Club of Washington (2017 I Street NW); Image courtesy of Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress.

Walking Tour: LGBTQIA+ History in Washington, DC
2026-06-27 11:00 - 12:30 | Dupont Circle
This tour, presented by the DC Preservation League and the DC Office of Planning, will visit several LGBTQ+ historic sites in the Dupont Circle neighborhood — long seen as the historic center of DC’s queer community.
This history is local, but by nature of being in the nation’s capital, ties into larger stories of the queer community and the American experience.
Join us to celebrate pride and learn more about the resilience, tenacity, diversity, and joy of the queer community in Washington, DC.
Tickets for this event are $15 per person. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 or more days in advance. Administrative fees may apply.
REGISTER HERE

Guided Tour + Happy Hour: DACOR Bacon House
2026-07-16 16:00 - 18:00 | DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F Street NW, Washington, DC, 20006, United States
Join the DC Preservation League for a tour of the 200 year-old DACOR Bacon House, a Federal-era, four-story brick mansion that is located at 801 F Street, NW, two blocks from the White House. DACOR, an organization of Foreign Affairs professionals, is kindly hosting.
The House is a beautiful historic space that serves as a living testament to America’s diplomatic heritage. It is also a museum that honors the nation’s diplomatic history and showcases both art and artifacts from around the world.
The House also serves as a center for international dialogue and hosts numerous events each week, including discussions, lectures, receptions, musical performances, and reunions for United States Foreign Service professionals who served together overseas.
This tour will be led by the DACOR Bacon House curator TJ Holland.
The house tour will take one hour. Then participants are invited to attend an onsite happy hour. The bar serves beer, wine, liquor and soft drinks and is cash only; some snacks will be provided. Happy Hour is not required for tour participants!
The ticket price for this tour is $20 for general public and $15 for DCPL members. Happy Hour access is included in your ticket, but not required. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 days or more in advance.
REGISTER HERE

Site Visit: Notre Dame Chapel, Trinity Washington University
2026-08-06 12:00 - 13:00 | Notre Dame Chapel, Trinity Washington University, 111 Michigan Avenue NE, Washington, DC, 20017, United States
Join the DC Preservation League for a tour of Notre Dame Chapel on the Campus of Trinity Washington University. On this tour, led by University Archivist Mark S. Greek, attendees will learn more about the chapel, which was designed by Maginnis and Walsh and opened in 1924. Notably, the chapel’s interior features stained glass windows by Charles Connick and a mosaic by Bancel LaFarge entitled the “Coronation of the Virgin.”
The ticket price for this tour is $20 for general public and $15 for DCPL members. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 days or more in advance.
REGISTER HERE

Site Tour: House of the Temple ﻿Headquarters for the Scottish Rite Freemasonry
2026-08-19 12:00 - 13:30 | House of the Temple Headquarters for the Scottish Rite Freemasonry, 1733 16th Street NW, Washington, DC, 20009, United States
The House of the Temple is the headquarters for the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, one of the largest Masonic Organizations in the Country. The House of the Temple was built in 1915 by acclaimed architect John Russell Pope and is one of the Neoclassical gems of DC Architecture. The 90 minute tour will showcase the main ceremonial rooms, artifacts from Masonic and American History as well as the main library which was the first library open to the public in DC and contains over 200,000 volumes. Photography and questions are welcome and encouraged.
The ticket price for this tour is $20 for general public and $15 for DCPL members. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 days or more in advance.
REGISTER HERE

Site Visit: Shrine of the Sacred Heart
2026-08-21 16:00 - 17:00 | Shrine of the Sacred Heart, 3211 Sacred Heart Way NW, Washington, DC, 20010, United States
Join the DC Preservation League for a tour of the Shrine of the Sacred Heart, home of DC’s newest interior designation. In February 2026, the DC Historic Preservation Review Board approved DCPL’s landmark nomination amendment, which protects the church’s interior sanctuary (the exterior was already designated). The 1922 church was designed by Frederick V. Murphy of Murphy & Olmsted (with Maginnis & Walsh as associate architects) in a Northern Italian Romanesque Revival and Byzantine-Romanesque style. The church’s interior sanctuary features concrete mosaics and murals, which are the work of “architectural sculptor” John J. Earley — who lived nearby in Mount Pleasant.
The ticket price for this tour is $20 for general public and $15 for DCPL members. Refunds for cancellations will only be considered 7 days or more in advance.
REGISTER HERE

Online Membership Meeting (August 2026)
2026-08-26 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
REGISTER HERE
