Elsa Ponce is a licensed architect, educator, and founder of Studio Elsa Ponce. Understanding her practice as an instrument of social justice, Studio Elsa Ponce utilizes participatory design and transdisciplinary approaches to co-design community centers with the immigrants they serve. Elsa’s fascination with the nuances of contrast and the power of interrelationships is fueled by her fifteen years of experience in designing cultural, institutional, and housing projects across North America, the Caribbean, and East Asia.

Her work has received support from NYSCA, the Architecture League of New York, FONCA, and Art Omi. She teaches at the Spitzer School of Architecture at City College and co-founded WIP Collaborative, a feminist practice focused on civic projects. She holds a master's in design management from Pratt Institute and graduated with honors from Universidad Iberoamericana with a bachelor's degree in architecture and urbanism.