“Following an inspiring first season made possible by the extreme generosity of spirit of my colleagues Anik and Angelique and all of our volunteer mentors, this year we begin to shift our attention towards demonstrating how “normal” it is to see excellent design work done by women. Great design work is great design work. While we certainly want to point out examples of great work done by prominent women practitioners, our ultimate objective is to see women in leadership roles and significant women’s work represented everywhere, in equal measure, alongside any and all great design work, no matter the gender of the designer. We hope to make a big difference, supporting young women professionals and in so doing, bring this to fruition. ”

“I’ve also learned it’s not enough to put my head down, to work hard and to nurture my own employees. I now feel that in my position, I can seize the opportunity to reach out to women in their early careers who are considering leaving the field. I’ve learned that to truly have an effect on the numbers, I must deliberately raise my profile to become more visible, to change public attitudes and continue mentoring initiatives. I must meet those high-school students to encourage them to pursue STEM or STEAM careers. I must continue raising opportunities for advancement. This comes in many forms: by passing on work to other women-owned firms, by getting onto Boards creating more paths toward licensure, and through Award Committees nominating women for recognition. More importantly, through engagements with the architecture community, in schools, in offices or within the AIA, to get to those younger women before they drop out.
I encourage and urge other women in the profession to join me in these efforts. We can show through our own diverse and varied examples, that there is more than one way to forge ahead and improve our odds.”