The renovation and addition to the historic Scotland AME Zion Church in Potomac earned a 2026 Faith and Form International Award for Religious Architecture and Art.
“This achievement offers a firsthand example of how sacred spaces in Potomac are being reimagined to serve both congregations and the broader community,” said officials from Partners for Sacred Spaces, the group that administered the awards.
The church, which was originally built by formerly enslaved African Americans, was among 75 entries from nine countries. It was one of four buildings to be recognized in the Religious Architecture: Renovation category and one of only 12 religious institutions to be honored.
“This project preserves and elevates a historically significant African-American church site. It reinforces cultural memory while providing updated space for worship and community engagement,” said Partners for Sacred Places officials.
The chair of the award program’s five-person jury said Scotland AME Zion Church, along with the other winners, hold a special stature in the competition.
“This year’s entries represented a cross-section of place and spiritual connection and were significant for the remarkable solutions they offered their congregations,” Joshua Zinder, AIA, said. “From the smallest entryway to the reinvention of city-scaled interventions, the projects address critical issues of our time through adaptive reuse, historic restoration and thoughtful insertions that create new and transcendent spaces.”
Photo Credit: Desmond Monet Grimball
