City officials presented Scripps College with a 2013 Excellence in Design Award for distinguished work on the College’s iconic Margaret Fowler Garden at a May 14 public award presentation at Claremont City Hall. 
Scripps’ Director of Grounds Lola Trafecanty and Donna Ng, the College’s vice president for business affairs and treasurer, accepted the plaque at the ceremony.
“It was an honor to receive an award that affirms what we at Scripps have known for many years: our beautiful campus is a treasure,” said Trafecanty, who oversaw the renovation of the Margaret Fowler Garden. “The historic garden is not only valued by Scripps, but is also cherished by local residents who understand the value of this magical place within the city of Claremont.”
The three-month renovation project included repairing three original concrete columns, installing a new waterproof roof, and replacing the garden’s arbor above a mural painted by famed Mexican artist Alfredo Ramos MartÃnez. The College collaborated with a general contractor “who took meticulous care” to protect the mural and the wisteria that twists around the arbor and columns during the restorative work, Trafecanty said.
The project also links the present with the past, as the College added concealed wireless hubs so that students can access the campus network on laptops and mobile devices while in the garden.
The Margaret Fowler Garden, built in 1936, originally was designed as a European medieval-style cloister garden to be located east of a proposed campus chapel. However, the chapel was never built, and now the College cherishes this secret garden situated at the heart of the leafy campus.
In 1980, the city of Claremont’s Architectural Commission established the Excellence in Design Awards Program to recognize and encourage high-quality design projects.