The firm won the chapter's top award, the Excellence in Design award, for the University of North Florida Student Wellness Complex in Jacksonville. The three-story facility offers fitness space, a three-lane track, a 32-foot climbing wall, and a fitness and nutrition assessment center. Dewberry designed the LEED Silver^® building in joint venture with Orlando-based Borrelli + Partners.

Jurors noted that the building was a "signature structure" on the campus and that the "overall building form is unified through careful manipulation of solids and voids." The jury also credited the "iconic design with playful and impressive incorporation of the canopy cantilever" as well as the "interplay between the interior spaces and the overall connectivity."

The student wellness complex was previously recognized nationally for design excellence by American School & University magazine.

Dewberry's design of the new offices for Heinold Banwart, Ltd., in East Peoria, Illinois, received a Merit Award, which was the chapter's only award for interior design. The largest accounting firm in the Peoria area, Heinold Banwart sought a transformation of its office environment that would optimize work flow, connectivity, and productivity.

Jurors noted that the office design is a "truly sophisticated yet inviting interior," providing an "elegant circulation flow" with "unique visual connections."

The renovation of the RLI corporate headquarters in Peoria received an Honorable Mention in the adaptive reuse and preservation category. Objectives for the modernization including creating a progressive work environment that would help enhance employee retention, productivity, and recruiting.

Originally constructed in 1971, the building was renovated in phases to allow for continuous use during construction. The jury stated that "this is an impressive transformation of a classic mid-century vocabulary into a progressive architectural expression," and cited the extensive daylighting now permeating the building.

For the Peoria Public School District 150, Dewberry designed an addition and renovation for Lincoln K-8 that earned an Honorable Mention in the architectural design category (second to the UNF Student Wellness Complex). The modernization increased natural light and views to the outdoors; and added 68,000 square feet of classrooms, a media center, a courtyard, and new common areas. Classrooms were also equipped with voice amplification systems.

Jurors commended the project, stating, "The addition is well organized and efficient... a playful and complete design with grand spaces yet incorporating intimate spaces as well. It appears to be a wonderful learning environment."