Career StagesNational Associates Committee

California Region

Alexander J. C. Tsai , Assoc. AIA, joined MEI Architects in 2009. He has been working as a project designer and planner on healthcare projects for the Department of Veterans Affairs and academic research projects for Stanford University.

A member of the AIA since 2002, Alex was elected as the first Publicity and Outreach Officer for the Bay Area Young Architects (BAYA), the Emerging Professionals Committee for the AIA San Francisco (AIASF) in 2004. A year later, BAYA members elected him to be the Chair. Under Alex's leadership, BAYA became the largest and the most active Emerging Professional Committee in the Nation. Alex went on to serve on the San Francisco Chapter’s Board of Directors. After California changed its by-laws in 2006, Alex got elected to become the first Associate Member to serve on the AIA California Council Board of Directors. AIA San Francisco bestowed its first Young Associate Award to Alex in 2007. He was a member of the Convention Steering Committee and was in-charge of the Dining by Design events for the 2009 AIA National Convention in San Francisco. Alex is one of the five original committee member to launch the Mentorship Program for the AIASF in 2007; the program currently has more than 300 active participants. He currently holds the co-chair position for the Mentorship Committee. Alex also volunteers for the National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park and KQED, the local PBS and NPR station.

Alex graduated from the California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Architecture. He is currently taking the AREs to achieve his architect registration in California.

Central States Region

April O. Trojniak, Assoc. AIA, is currently working as an intern at BCS Design, Inc. Throughout her career, she has had experience in the student sector. Designing universities, academic buildings, unions, dormitories, and master planning. Her job includes many diverse roles which has helped her in completing her IDP hours.

April officially became a member of the American Institute of Architects in September 2005. Her involvement with the AIA started during her college studies where she served as AIAS president, vice-president, and secretary. She has been very involved with the profession in many capacities.

April is also involved in her local Construction Specifications Institute (CSI). She served on the board for two years; during her time on the board she helped organize many events which included the annual Design Expo. April is also involved in the Women in Design chapter in Kansas City. She enjoys serving the youth by being a Youth Friend and also volunteers her time teaching at the local schools.

April studied at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. She had the privilege of learning in the historic Crown Hall. She took a year off to grow her family with the birth of her first child and finished her studies at the University of Kansas. Here she graduated from the five year Bachelors of Architecture program.

Born and raised in rural Idaho Falls, Idaho, her travels and life have brought her to settle down in Overland Park, KS. She has two beautiful children, Karolina, 6, and Zachary, 3. They keep her very busy with ballet, tap, music lessons, and sports. In her spare time, she enjoys outdoor sports which include skiing, fishing, and camping and also enjoys the fine arts in every capacity from Broadway plays to cooking.

Florida-Caribbean Region

Clarice Sollog, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, is an intern architect with the Maitland, Florida, office of CDM; a global, full-service consulting, engineering, construction,
and operations firm. She assists project architects throughout design and construction for a variety of project types and clients. She has played an integral part in the office’s pursuit of sustainable projects and is LEED Administrator on six LEED projects, including an Administration and Visitors Center for a Waste to Energy Facility pursuing LEED Platinum.

After relocating to Florida, she joined the AIA as an Associate Member in January of 2007, recognizing the importance of the organization’s role in the profession. As an active participant in her local Orlando Chapter, she helped establish the Committee on the Environment (COTE) and participates in the activities of the YAF group.

Clarice is currently serving as the Community and Communications Portfolio Director of the NAC and also serves as the NAC representative on the AIA Strategic Direction Group (SDG). In addition to her involvement in the AIA, she is active within the USGBC Central Florida Chapter, holding leadership positions at both the local and regional level.

Clarice graduated from Virginia Tech in 2004 with a Bachelor of Architecture and a minor in German. While in school she had the opportunity to live in Berlin, Germany, and work for Chestnutt_Niess Architekten as part of a co-op program. She is nearing completion of IDP and has started taking the ARE.

Gulf States Region

Patrick Weber, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, has been in the Nashville, Tennessee office of Looney Ricks Kiss Architects working on a variety of projects for the past four years, from single-family home additions to large-scale urban designs. Patrick joined AIA Middle Tennessee soon after moving to Nashville -he is currently serving on the Board of Directors as an Associate Director, assisting with the Emerging Professionals and Programs committees. He has also been involved in the steering committee initiating a local Committee on the Environment (COTE) chapter, the Tennessee chapter of the Institute for Classical Architecture (ICA) and served on a Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) committee addressing the LEED for Homes program. He has volunteered the past two years with Rebuilding Together Nashville as a house captain.

Patrick graduated from the University of Maryland in 2002 with a Bachelors of Science in Architecture. After working a year in Takoma Park, Maryland, he attended Graduate school at the University of Miami (FL), graduating in December, 2005 with a Masters in Architecture and a Masters in Architecture in Suburb & Town Design. His Intern Development Program (IDP) complete in 2008, Patrick is pursuing licensure in his home state of Missouri, and in the midst of taking the Architects Registration Exam (ARE).

Illinois Region

Douglas Milburn, Assoc. AIA, is an Associate at IGW Architecture (Architecture, Planning and Interior Design). He has been with the firm since October of 2004, working on a variety of athletic, commercial, educational, governmental, religious, residential and senior living projects.

Douglas has been a member of the AIA since 2006, serving as the AIA Central Illinois Young Architects Forum Director, Co-Chair and Chair of the Biennial Design Awards, Chair of the Biennial Service Awards, and President of the Champaign-Urbana Section. He joined the AIA for the opportunity to be involved in advancing the profession and its members while receiving peer mentoring and guidance. In addition to the AIA, Douglas is involved with 40 North | 88 West – Champaign County’s Arts, Culture and Entertainment Council, currently serving as Treasurer of the Board of Directors and Chair of the Boneyard Arts Festival; the International Federation for Housing and Planning, serving as a member of the Bureau (BOD); Chapter Coordinator for Architecture for Humanity Champaign-Urbana; Alpha Rho Chi Professional Architecture and Allied Arts Fraternity, serving as the Anthemios Chapter Advisor; a member of the City of Champaign Historic Preservation Commission; and is an Illinois Leadership Center Leadership Certificate Coach.

Douglas graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies and in 2004 with a Masters of Architecture. During his undergraduate education Douglas spent a year studying abroad in Versailles, France. He has completed the IDP and plans to begin the ARE soon.

Northwest & Pacific Region

Shawn Jenkins, Assoc. AIA, joined PIVOT Architecture following graduation from the University of Oregon in 2008 with a Bachelor of Architecture and a minor in Planning, Public Policy and Management. His current projects include a public utility operations center, targeting LEED Gold, Telecommunications Building and several State of Oregon projects.

He has been a member AIA-SWO since 2008. Shawn joined the AIA for the education and advocacy of the architectural profession. Other involvements in the AIA include the People’s Choice Awards Committee, AIA-SWO, and University of Oregon AIAS chapter V.P.

Shawn was born in Chico, California, and moved to Eugene, Oregon with his wife Julie Williams-Jenkins and they happily have two children—a boy (4 yrs.) and a daughter (2 yrs.)—as well as a Labrodoodle. He spends his free time.walking through landscaped terrain looking for a little dimpled ball, at BBQs with friends, snowboarding/skiing and realizing the “joys” of home-ownership.

Ohio Valley Region

Brian McAlexander, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Design Architecture Art and Planning with a Bachelors of Architecture. On co-op Brian was introduced to Historic Preservation on a building he considers his first official building project. While working on an historic rehabilitation project for the University of Cincinnati, he was introduced to the then new LEED sustainability metric. Brian is currently taking the ARE.

He joined the AIA in 1999 in order to help receive IDP credit. At his first meeting, he made a fateful “mistake” by asking a question about the High School Student Design Competition. This led to Brian being on the committee, then the board, then the state board, and now the NAC. During this time, he helped plan the 2009 regional convention and is currently helping to plan the 2011 regional convention with a twist; producing a joint but separate program, the Unconvention for Emerging Professionals. The Unconvention is conceived by, organized by, and targeted at Emerging Professionals and is hoped by AIA Ohio Valley to be used as a template for other regions.

Western Mountain Region

Sydney Hamilton, Assoc. AIA, Sydney has been with RNL since 2007.  She is currently the Project Coordinator for several projects at the Air Force Academy and Ball Aerospace.

She has been a member of the AIA since 2007 and has been active in the AIA Denver Committee on the Environment since joining. Other involvement includes volunteering for the Denver Architectural Foundation CAL Project and serving as Trustee to the Downtown Denver Partnership Leadership Program. She was recently featured in the Denver Business Journal for her involvement in RNL’s Green Team.

Sydney graduated from the University of Georgia in 2000 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.  She graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2003 with a Master of Architecture.

Sydney was born in Atlanta, GA, and resides in Denver, CO.

Michigan Region

Nicole M. Eisenmann, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, is a member of the Technical Staff at Quinn Evans Architects in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she is involved in historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects, primarily in southeast Michigan.

Nicole joined the AIA in 2010. While serving as AIAS Chapter Vice President at the University of Michigan, she learned the value of the AIA for networking, professional and leadership development and was eager to join the AIA following graduate school. She looks forward to representing the Michigan Region on the National Associates Committee.

Nicole holds a Master of Architecture and Master of Urban Planning dual degree and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Michigan. She is currently completing her IDP requirements and will begin taking the ARE in 2011.

Middle Atlantic Region

Amanda “Mandy” Palasik, Assoc. AIA, is an architectural intern at ArchPlan Inc., Philipsen Architects in her hometown of Baltimore. Mandy graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2009, with a Bachelor of Architecture and a Minor in Construction Management from Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Georgia.

Currently, Mandy serves as an active member of Baltimore’s Young Architects Forum, while also volunteering her free time to several local organizations such as One Less Car, Neighborhood Design Center, and BARCS Animal Rescue and Care Shelter. She resides in downtown Baltimore with her two rescued cats and a dog. She is in the process of completing the IDP and is preparing for the Architect Registration Examination.

New England Region

Casey Nicholson, Assoc. AIA, is a newly licensed architect with The S/L/A/M Collaborative in Boston, Massachusetts. While her primary focus is programming and planning for the Higher Education market, Casey previously worked as an intern architect in S/L/A/M’s Atlanta & Connecticut offices. Her current clients include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brown University. At the office, Casey frequently assists with in-house internship programs and various community outreach events, such as mentoring summer-time college interns or hosting Career Days for local high school students.

Casey earned her B.S. Architecture from Georgia Tech in 2003 (which included a year of studies at L'école Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Paris la Villette) and her Masters in Architecture from The University of Hartford in 2007.

New Jersey Region

Clair Wholean, Assoc. AIA, began her career at the New York office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and is currently a Project Manager at Kenny & Khan Architects PC. Kenny & Khan is a 5-person firm focused on K-12 education and other public projects. Clair works closely with the two partners and clients, juggling a wide variety of roles on a day to day basis, usually working on 3-7 projects at once. Clair professional portfolio includes healthcare, education, commercial projects, and freelance work. While not forgetting design, she is grateful to have had the opportunity to learn about the more technical aspects of design and construction within the past several years.

Clair joined both the New York and New Jersey Chapters of the AIA as an Associate member in early 2010. Her involvement began by attending events organized by the Emerging Professionals and YAF Committees in both states and the Health Facilities Committee in NY. Clair became a registered architect in New York in March 2011.

She became a LEED Green Associate in 2009, and hopes to become a LEED AP after having the opportunity to work on a registered project.

New York Region

Venesa Alicea, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, is the 2011-2012 NAC Regional Associate Director for the AIA New York Region.and Co-Chair of the AIANY Emerging New York Architects Committee. A Registered Architect in New York, she holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the City College of New York. She has worked at Dattner Architects for over three years working on a variety of projects, including a Community Center for the Salvation Army, a new Public School for Battery Park City, and the New Housing New York Legacy Project Via Verde, a sustainable affordable housing project currently under construction in the South Bronx. She is also the firm’s IDP Coordinator and serves an important role in the office wide professional development activities.

She has extended her involvement beyond the AIA by getting involved with the local USGBC chapter’s Emerging Professionals committee, and by serving on the board of directors for the City College of New York Architecture Alumni Association. She continues to nurture the future of the profession by teaching a co-op Internship course at the City College of New York Spitzer School of Architecture with a focus on the IDP process.

North Central Region

TBD

Pennsylvania Region

Melissa Bernstein, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, obtained a Bachelor of Architecture from Temple University in 2008. During school, she gained an interest in structural engineering and joined KlingStubbins’ Structural Engineering department as an intern in the summer of 2006. After spending a semester abroad in Rome, Melissa joined KlingStubbins’ architecture department where she continues to work. At KlingStubbins, her experience includes working on office towers, laboratory buildings, hotels, and various other commercial projects. Melissa is currently enrolled in IDP and has begun taking the AREs.

In the past, Melissa served as Temple University’s AIAS Chapter Secretary and President. During the last two years, she has served as the AIA PA Associate Director. In this role, she visited the six universities in Pennsylvania with accredited architecture degrees to present to the students about IDP, the AREs, and the path to licensure. Melissa ran the AIA PA Associate’s Committee and served on several committees through the State Board. She also attended AIA National Convention and AIA Grassroots, events which led her to her current efforts to begin a group mentoring program. The purpose of the program is to create a dialogue and network for aspiring and licensed architects in Philadelphia. Each group brings together a college student, a graduate on the path to licensure, a young architect, and an experienced architect. This program is nearing the end of its first round in Philadelphia.

South Atlantic Region

Matthew Hart, Assoc. AIA, has been with IPG Architects in Valdosta, Georgia, since 2005. He is currently engaged in the Education Studio of the firm and is project manager for Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, The Technical College System of Georgia, and K-12 projects.

Matt has been actively involved in the AIA since joining in 2007. He has served on his local Chapter’s Board (Southwest Georgia) as the Communication/Education Chair (2007-2008) and is currently serving as Secretary (2009-Present). His responsibilities include publishing the bimonthly AIA SWGA Angle, scheduling chapter meetings, and advocating for AIA SWGA and AIA Georgia on the local and state level.

Texas Region

Cesar Gallegos, Assoc. AIA, serves as project manager in a medical and ADA accessibility specialized firm. Based in El Paso, Texas, Fokus on Architecture, Inc. (FoA) serves the far west Texas region and the immediate New Mexico vicinity.

Cesar performs work as a Registered Accessibility Specialist specializing in ADA issues as well as a designer in all areas of medical planning including multidisciplinary fields pertaining to everyday architecture. From 2009 through 2010, he served as the El Paso AIA Chapter Associate Director expanding the knowledgebase and aiding all those seeking to become registered architects reach their goal of completing IDP and preparing them for the ARE.

Mr. Gallegos has been a Registered Accessibility Specialist in the State of Texas since February 2009, and is currently taking the ARE to achieve his architect registration in Texas. He studied at the University of Washington and received a Masters Degrees in Architecture in 2004.

The Virginias Region

Michael Haslam, Assoc. AIA, is a skilled and dedicated designer. His work is driven by a desire to see every person benefit from thoughtful design. He believes in the pursuit of a better world through development that is at once careful, healthy, positive, and sustainable. Michael’s architectural practice endeavors to create environments that provide catalysts for resonant experiences. To Michael, the successful design is one that improves the human condition and challenges individuals to care for, engage in, and be proud of their communities.

A graduate of Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies, Michael considers himself a lifelong student of design and the arts. He completed his Master’s degree abroad as an exchange student at the Università della Svizzera Italiana’s Accademia di Architettura in Mendrisio Switzerland, where he studied under the direct supervision of Pritzker Prize-winning architect, Peter Zumthor.

He is very proud to be a part of the team at Peyton Boyd Architect, a diversified practice in religious, institutional, commercial and residential architecture.

Kevin A. Fitzgerald, AIA, PMP, has over ten years experience as a practicing architect. Prior to joining AIA National, Mr. Fitzgerald was an Associate at Robert A.M. Stern Architects in New York, where he worked as a project manager, staff coordinator and team leader on a variety of building and planning projects. For the past six years he has been mentoring interns and teaching seminars on the Intern Development Program and Architect Registration Exam.

 As Director for Emerging Professionals at AIA National Mr. Fitzgerald works with the Young Architects Forum, the National Associates Committee, the American Institute of Architects Students, AIA components and collateral organizations to advance emerging professionals issues and initiatives. He is also developing the AIA’s new Center for Emerging Professionals.