As household structures change and adapt, the trend toward multigenerational living has gained significant traction. This shift is driven by a combination of demographic changes, economic challenges, and shifting consumer preferences, according to the Urban Land Institute (ULI).
Research from the Pew Research Center shows that between 1971 and 2021, the number of people living in multigenerational household quadrupled. This dramatic increase is particularly relevant for senior housing, as older adults are choosing to move in with their children and grandchildren.
For senior housing developers and architects, this presents a question. How can living environments accommodate the diverse needs of multigenerational households while enhancing the quality of life for older adults?
Multigenerational Living
Multigenerational living offers a host of benefits for seniors. Enhanced relationships are a major advantage, and emotional support becomes readily available.
When it comes to finances, shared living arrangements can alleviate some of the economic burden that typically accompanies living alone. The findings of ULI show that older adults who live with family often have lower living expenses, which can be a major factor in maintaining a comfortable and secure lifestyle.
The health effects are also notable. Research shows that seniors living with family experience lower levels of stress and improved mental health. The presence of family members can offer practical assistance with health management and encourage healthier lifestyle choices, which are essential for maintaining quality of life as one ages.
A Shift to Intergenerational Communities
Family aside, the rise in multigenerational living reflects a broader societal trend that values inclusion over exclusion. With baby boomers reaching retirement age and seeking to remain active and engaged, there is a growing demand for communities that blend age groups.
Many older adults now view living among people of all generations as a healthier and more fulfilling alternative to traditional age-segregated models. This shift is prompting developers to create communities that foster intergenerational connections.
Such environments offer numerous benefits, including the chance for older adults to share experience and skills, as well as enhanced community health through walkable, accessible neighborhoods, reports the Council on Aging of Central Oregon.
Design
Creating effective senior housing requires a thoughtful approach to design, especially when catering to multigenerational residents. There are several key design considerations that include:
- Private and Communal Spaces: It is important to design amenities that cater to all ages, such as green spaces, community gardens and versatile community rooms for gatherings and classes. Both private and semi-private areas where residents can host small group gatherings or family events should be included.
- Flexible Layouts: Offering a range of floor-plans and unit sizes accommodates different needs. Rooms should be designed with multiple purposes in mind, and providing flexibility in every space facilitates intergenerational interaction.
- Accessibility Features: Applying universal design principles ensures that units and common areas are accessible to people of all ages and abilities. This includes step-free entrances, wide doorways, and accessible bathrooms. Features like grab bars, non-slip flooring and lever handles also enhance accessibility.
Case Study: Mirabella at Arizona State University
Mirabella at Arizona State University (ASU) stands out as a prime example of multigenerational living in senior housing. The 20-story tower, situated at the heart of the ASU campus, offers 298 units of senior housing and serves as a pioneering model of inclusive living.
The building’s amenities are intentionally located to promote connections among residents, families, visitors, students, and faculty. For instance, the Bistro, positioned on the corner of University Avenue with a separate public entrance, offers a youthful and energetic atmosphere that attracts a diverse crowd both day and night.
Directly adjacent to the main entrance, the Lifelong Learning Auditorium underscores the importance of intergenerational education with its own dedicated front-drive access, emphasizing inclusivity from the very entrance. The Art Gallery showcases artwork from residents, students, and alumni, and is visible to passersby on the sidewalk, which is also a key pathway to the campus art classrooms.
Mirabella at Arizona State University (ASU) stands out as a prime example of multigenerational living.
Additionally, Mirabella features three studio apartments reserved for a musician-in-residence program, wherein students live and perform within the building.
Together, these intentional design choices enable a vibrant, welcoming environment where residents of all ages can thrive. As the demand for these types of inclusive environments continue to grow, projects like Mirabella ASU exemplify a new standard for the future of senior living.
Architects can Seize the Day
The continued evolution of household dynamics and growing preference for intergenerational living present both challenges and opportunities for senior housing developers and architects. By embracing these trends and incorporating thoughtful design considerations, architects and designers can create living environments that meet the needs of multigenerational households and enhance the quality of life for all residents.
Moving forward, it is crucial to recognize, understand, and adapt to the growing demand for inclusive, flexible housing solutions that support diverse family structures and promote intergenerational harmony.
Employee Spotlight: 2025 Q1 Design Champion Kimberleigh Grimm
Recognized as 2025’s Q1 Design Champion, Kimberleigh Grimm knows just how to embrace her silly side, finding the fun in every project she’s involved in.
Coming to Ankrom Moisan a little over nine years ago, Kimberleigh had heard rumors that it would be a place she would enjoy working.
“One of my friends knew some people who worked here. He said that everyone had really great things to say about Ankrom Moisan,” she shared. “So, when he found out I was looking for a new place to work, he suggested that I come talk to the firm, and so I did.”
Since first starting at the firm and becoming a Senior Technical Designer, Kimberleigh has worn many hats and learned a lot in the process. “My involvement in our healthcare projects starts with talking to a client and finding out what they need,” she said. “I take a project all the way through to completion – of all the things to help me professionally, I think taking a project from start to finish was the biggest thing that gave me an understanding of how to make a successful project.”
Kimberleigh’s Reward and Recognition Nomination Video
Though she much prefers to do her work behind-the-scenes, Kimberleigh’s experiences with taking healthcare project designs from start to finish has led her into the spotlight. “I’ve had to step up and be the person in front of the client leading design meetings,” she said. Though it was something she had to adjust to, it benefited her client relationships in the long run. “I don’t think I would have ever actually connected with our clients if I hadn’t done that.”
She’s glad that she has grown more comfortable being visible at the forefront of project design efforts though, even if it was done out of necessity. “On a personal level, stepping into a more public role where I’m connecting with clients made me realize that it’s OK to be silly or goofy in a professional environment.”
In fact, it was that revelation, and the freedom that Ankrom Moisan provided to Kimberleigh that led her to that discovery, that she values the most about the firm. “I’ve stayed with Ankrom Moisan for nearly a decade because it’s a firm that embraces the positives of being an individual,” she shared. “It’s not something I’ve experienced at other firms. I’m valued as a person here, rather than just as a worker.”
“I love that it’s OK for me to be who I am – not just internally, but with my clients as well. It’s led me to develop great relationships with my clients, since they see I’m a real person and aren’t afraid to be real with me.”
Inspired by providing something better for her clients, and especially Swedish Medical Center, Kimberleigh admits that the projects she works on may not be the flashiest. However, they are critical to the facilities they’re located in.
“I mostly work on small projects that are problem focused,” she shared. In fact, that’s why she started the SPAKL Team – to focus on smaller projects that require more technically-oriented design solutions.
“Not a lot of people enjoy that work, since it can be dry and technical and not feel like there’s much of an opportunity for design,” she continued. “But there is – it’s just a different kind of design. You may not get flashy pictures for a portfolio, but there is absolutely a need for design creativity, in a technical sense.”
Because there isn’t much opportunity for design variation in these highly technical healthcare projects, Kimberleigh said that the best way her colleagues and coworkers can support her is by having a good attitude. In her view, there are opportunities in every project for a moment of delight.
The SPAKL Team likes to show off their sense of humor through fun image edits.
“What I like to do, and what the SPAKL team likes to do, is find the fun in every project – and there is fun in every project,” she said.
For the highly complex Cyberknife project, Kimberleigh admitted that the design team would put googly eyes and bunny ears on the machine. “It was sort of like Mr. Potato Head,” she joked. “It made the robot much less scary for end users.”
Kimberleigh’s rendition of the Cyberknife machine as a bunny with googly eyes.
“It’s silly, but I love finding those moments of delight in every project,” she added.
Adaptive Reuse Conversion Case Study: Warehouse to Residential
There are many unique buildings located along the West Coast. Built in the 1920s and 30s but now vying for a second chance at life, an existing turn-of-the-century warehouse in Seattle is one of them. After having been identified as a prime candidate for an adaptive reuse conversion, the former warehouse is being repositioned as a mid-rise apartment complex.
Leveraging the unique elements from the site’s previous use, adaptive reuse conversions aim to accomplish goals identified by the project’s owner. In this case, maximizing the yield and resident experience, and including amenities that attract and enhance resident life.
This is something that Ankrom Moisan has unique experience in; We embraced adaptive reuse to resurrect downtown Portland’s Pearl District, turning disused warehouses into coveted apartments.
Chown Pella Lofts, a disused factory warehouse that was converted to a multi-story residential condominium in Portland’s Pearl District.
Here’s how we do it:
Maximizing Yield and Resident Experience
Converting an old warehouse into an apartment building with modern luxuries means embracing the elements that made the structure a warehouse in the first place. Finding the design elements that are inherently aged and providing them with a new use is just one way to maximize the building yield, as well as the resident experience.
For example, warehouses typically have floor-to-floor heights that can reach 15 feet, something that’s not commonly found in contemporary housing. The additional space afforded by such heights allows for deeper floorplates and units than modern constructions, up to 120 feet wide, allowing the building to utilize the extra space afforded by the deeper floorplate to enable larger, light-filled units – something residential buildings typically don’t have.
Similarly, older warehouses that did not utilize electricity to the extent that modern buildings do have large windows with lots of glass to bring an abundance of natural light into the space. With an adaptive reuse conversion, what was one intended to bring daylight to hard-working warehouse laborers can be repositioned to provide residents with sweeping views of their surroundings.
Amenities that Attract and Enhance Resident Life
Comparing the resident experience found in an adaptive reuse project to that of modern housing, it’s plain to see that the bespoke qualities of a conversion add richness to a space. Unusual features become draws for potential residents, just as long-empty warehouses are converted into bedrooms and apartments full of life.
It all has to do with spotlighting a structure and emphasizing quirks rather than designing them out.
For this project, we saw the warehouse’s skeleton as an opportunity to create one-of-a-kind amenities that cannot be replicated in a new build. Turning the light well atrium into an internal amenity space, complete with a spa and garden, our design emphasizes resident wellness and provide a peaceful retreat from the city and the urban, hard-edged waterfront found nearby – something you won’t find next door.
Successful adaptive reuse conversions embrace the factors that make their buildings different, using those differentiators to become more desirable in the market. It’s our view that the unique history, location, and geometry of projects like the existing turn-of-the-century warehouse lends itself to the creation of amenities, and apartments, that surprise and delight residents.
Overall, warehouse to residential apartment adaptive reuse conversions are unique exactly because they’re not a unique situation. Older, underutilized, turn-of-the-century warehouses in a downtown core are a very common building typology that exists all across the West Coast. They usually have between five and seven stories, and massive footprints that are a lot larger than what would be expected to be adapted to marketable housing.
Chown Pella Lofts
The unique charm of these conversions comes from how you take a building and use the features that exist because it was designed to meet warehouse code at the time (of construction) to make impactful housing.
Buildings like these are often already landmarks in the cities they’re located in, being 100 years old, sometimes older. The question is, how do you reintroduce a historic landmark after it’s been given a new use? Embracing the existing exterior architecture to retain the site’s identity while adding new features to set it apart from the past will get people into your building.
This could be done by turning an old water tower into an art installation to act as a beacon and attract attention, for example. In most cases, it’s very exciting for passersby to notice an old building in a new light. If you can do this, your adaptive reuse conversion will continue to be a part of the fabric of the city that it’s in, revitalized and full of new life.
Promoting a New Vice President of Architecture
Michael great is stepping into the role of Vice President of Architecture, succeeding Murray Jenkins, who was recently named President. As part of the succession plan established by the firm’s founders, this milestone elevation reflects Ankrom Moisan’s commitment to inspiring and empowering people to explore beyond the expected.
Michael Great, Ankrom Moisan’s new Vice President of Architecture.
Starting at Ankrom Moisan as a summer intern in the year 2000, Michael Great has served in various positions throughout the firm and its many studios, including Project Designer, Managing Principal, and, most recently, Design Director of Architecture.
“I had no idea how transformative that first step as a summer intern would be,” he shared. “Each role I’ve had since then has deepened my understanding of design excellence, our various disciplines, and how our business strategy works best when they’re deeply connected. That’s the mindset I’m bringing into this next chapter.”
Knowing the ins and outs of all levels of the firm firsthand, Michael sees his new role as a rare and meaningful opportunity to influence how we design, lead, and evolve.
Empowering Future Design Leaders
Building on our integrated architecture and interiors model, Michael will enhance collaboration across the firm, deepen community engagement, and expand mentorship and professional development opportunities. Investing in people is central to his vision.
One of his first orders of business is to meet with every architect to discuss their hopes, dreams, and visions. He sees it as a way to actively pivot with the industry, moving forward positively while elevating design through our designers.
Michael chats with colleagues in the Ankrom Moisan Portland office.
“I want every team member to feel both creatively fulfilled and professionally empowered,” he said. “Trying to make work flows easier for our practice groups and designers is my priority. When people feel supported, they create their best work.”
Michael hopes to support the professional growth of both architects and designers at the firm through mentorship, training, and purpose-built career pathways. “We’re identifying emerging leaders, pairing them with the right guidance, and giving them room to grow. I want to create a culture where people feel inspired and supported every step of the way,” Michael said. “When we do that, great design becomes inevitable.”
“I’m excited to build new systems of support where studio leaders are empowered, mentorship is intentional, and design is consistently elevated,” he said. “What drives me most is shaping a firm culture that champions creativity, accountability, and innovation in equal measure. These values will be the foundation as we continue to grow and redefine the future of Ankrom Moisan.”
Nurturing a Great Design Firm
Michael’s vision for the future of Ankrom Moisan coincides with the firm’s goal of providing great design to our clients, while nurturing a great place to design for our staff. “That’s not just aspirational – it’s operational,” Michael emphasized. By reinforcing design principles, optimizing workflows, and embedding diversity and mentorship across teams, this transition is part of a long-term strategy to strengthen both our creative output and our internal culture.
“My immediate focus is optimizing how we work,” he revealed. “By aligning our project processes with real-time performance insights, we can clearly see where our time is going and how it’s influencing project deliverables. The aim is simple: free up more time for thoughtful, creative design and reduce the burden of repetitive tasks.”
Optimizing Housing Architecture: Leveraging Mass Timber & Sustainable Design
According to Michael, the largest opportunity for optimizing, innovating, and elevating our design work lies within the housing market. “We’re looking at developing a dual-track model that combines bespoke architecture with scalable solutions – leveraging mass timber, modular systems, and a kit-of-parts approach,” he shared. “This allows us to serve both high-design and high-efficiency markets, while maintaining our commitment to sustainability and regional impact to housing needs.”
Michael Great sits at his desk in the Portland office.
Michael’s vision – along with the firm’s vision – for the future is in-line with Murray’s efforts while he served as Vice President of Architecture.
“Murray set a powerful precedent for collaborative leadership and has established many of the foundational systems that the firm relies on today,” Michael reflected. “I plan to build on that legacy by scaling our impact – taking what he’s built and amplifying those systems to support small growth, enhanced creativity, and operational clarity. That’s what this role is about – leading with vision, building momentum, and inviting others to join in a future that’s bold and full of possibility.”
“This isn’t a handoff,” he added. “It’s a progression. And I’m proud to be part of it.”
Relationships are the Cornerstone of Designing Successful Public Projects
Unlike private development, public agency projects often require more time and thoughtful steps at the outset. It’s not that private projects skip these entirely, but the stakes are different: public projects are deeply tied to community trust, transparency, and long-term public value.
Over the years, we’ve found that a strong foundation makes all the difference. Here are three key focus areas we emphasize at the start of any public agency partnership – setting the tone for a collaborative, lasting relationship:
-Establishing Design Expectations & Building Trust
-Defining Guiding Principles
-Engaging the Community Early and Often
Design Expectations = Trust in Action
When kicking off a public agency project, one of the most valuable things you can do is establish trust early – between the ownership team and the design team. That trust starts with clarity around how the design process will unfold, including what’s expected in meetings, how feedback will be gathered, and when key decisions will be made.
A powerful tool in those early conversations? Precedent imagery.
Images of outdoor spaces, interior environments, furniture, building materials, and comparable projects for interiors and exteriors, can help teams express what resonates with them – and just as importantly, what doesn’t. These visual references spark honest conversations and surface values, priorities, and design preferences that might otherwise stay unspoken.
When teams feel comfortable telling us as designers “this doesn’t quite feel like us,” you know you’ve created the kind of collaborative environment where good design thrives.
Harnessing Stakeholder Input: Turning Insights into Actionable Guiding Principles
When our client invited over 800 employees to share their perspectives on project goals and values, it created a powerful opportunity – and a complex challenge:
How do you distill so many voices into a clear, actionable executive summary?
One highly effective method we recommend is the use of a word cloud.
By capturing the most frequently mentioned words and ideas, a word cloud surfaces the priorities that matter most to stakeholders. These guiding principles become a foundation for decision-making, aligning the owner, designer, and construction teams around a common vision.
In our experience, tools like word clouds are critical in early project stages. They translate complex input into focused design drivers, ensuring that stakeholder values are not just heard – they are built into the fabric of the project itself.
Survey responses, interviews, and meeting discussions all offer valuable language that can be mined to create clarity, consensus, and momentum. For SAIF, we started out with this world cloud, and this is how we ended up!
SAIF Headquarters
Community Voices: Designing and Inclusive Engagement Process
When working on publicly-funded projects, one thing is always true: you’re not just designing for a client – you’re designing for a community. That comes with both opportunity and responsibility.
Community engagement isn’t just a box to check. It’s a chance to build trust, reflect diverse needs, and ensure public dollars are spent in a way that truly benefits the people who live, work, and move through the community.
But engagement looks different for every client and every community. Some just need you to listen. Others want to inform after the first session or collaborate across several touchpoint. The key is meeting people where they are and providing tools that support informed dialogue.
What should you be prepared to provide the public?
-A clear project overview in everyday language (and possibly in multiple languages)
-Visuals or diagrams that communicate design intent
-A summary of what decisions have been made vs. what’s still open for input
-A way for people to respond – whether it’s in person, online, or through community partners
We’ve learned that when you design the process with care, you end up with stronger outcomes – and stronger relationships.
Passing the Torch
Marking a monumental shift in Ankrom Moisan’s leadership, Vice President of Architecture Murray Jenkins is appointed to become AM’s President, effective July 1st, 2025. As Murray steps into the role currently held by Dave Heater, Dave will transition into a new firm-wide business development role based out of our San Francisco office.
Murray Jenkins and Dave Heater stand outside of Ankrom Moisan’s Portland office.
Dave’s move, after a decade as President, fulfills a succession plan set in motion by founders Tom Moisan and Stewart Ankrom, who envisioned a firm built to evolve, empower future leaders, and thrive beyond their tenure.
“It is an incredible honor to be entrusted with leading this company,” says Murray. “As President, my goal is to create an environment where our staff feel inspired and empowered, so they can, in turn, inspire our clients through exceptional design and service.”
Bringing 25 years of experience with Ankrom Moisan, having served in every position from Architectural Intern to Vice President of Architecture and Secretary of the Board, Murray’s leadership is distinguished by deep institutional knowledge, a steady hand during transitions, and an unwavering commitment to the firm’s values. His appointment also underscores our employee-owned model – our Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) ensures that every employee has a meaningful stake in the company’s success.
“Murray’s leadership is rooted in our history, and his vision is focused on the future, positioning Ankrom Moisan to continue its track record of design excellence while embracing new opportunities,” said Dave Heater. “Murray’s appointment is the next natural step in our long-term strategy, and I’m confident in his ability to lead the firm into its next chapter.”
Murray along the Portland waterfront, in front of the Ankrom Moisan office
As President, Murray will lead the firm in deepening our expertise across all studios and continuing to expand our leadership in sustainability and mass timber, while exploring strategic opportunities in emerging markets. He also plans to champion innovation across the firm, including the integration of AI and other technologies that will enhance our creativity, efficiency, and impact.
The transition in leadership is centered in Ankrom Moisan’s mission to design places where people and communities thrive. Murray will carry forward Dave’s legacy, maintaining the team structures, operational continuity, and collaborative culture that have shaped the firm’s identity.
With fresh energy and focus, Murray aims to position Ankrom Moisan as a top design firm and model of what excellence, culture, and purpose-driven leadership can look like in the design industry.
“This transition is about community and momentum,” Murray said. “My goal is to grow a resilient firm – one that delivers meaningful design, invests inits people, and rises to meet the challenges of tomorrow. I’m incredibly grateful to Dave for his leadership and the strong foundation he’s built. As we navigate a complex and shifting market, that legacy gives us the clarity and confidence to move forward with purpose.”
Employee Spotlight: 2025 Q1 Employee Ownership Champion Justin Hunt
Recognized as 2025’s Q1 Employee Ownership Champion, Justin Hunt, Senior Technical Designer, is thoughtful, well-spoken, and devotes both his time and energy to supporting the firm however he can.
Coming to Ankrom Moisan 21 years ago (give or take the four years he spent as a part-time design consultant before being brought to the firm full-time), Justin Hunt has always looked out for his teammates.
In grad school at the time, Justin was enrolled at the University of Oregon’s Portland campus. Encountering a power advertising a model-building job, Justin decided to see what it was all about. “I was in the last quarter of grade school, and I love building models, so I thought it would be a good way to get some exposure to a firm I might want to work at, as well as a way to make some extra money before leaving grad school,” he said. “I ended up being the only person that was interviewed, so I got the job.”
“Dave Heater was actually the person who interviewed me – he was a project manager back then and had just made principal,” Justing added. “That was my first time meeting Dave and my first introduction to Ankrom Moisan.”
Justin Hunt in Ankrom Moisan’s Seattle office.
Since his first introduction to the firm, Justin has seen a lot of change, both within Ankrom Moisan and in the architecture industry at large. “Industry-wise, I think the biggest change has been the movement towards digital technologies,” Justin said. “It’s really changed the way we do our work. The way we document and think about projects now has all these digital tools in place to help us visualize them. We don’t make physical models the way we used to anymore, because they’re all digital now.”
“In terms of the office, I would say the biggest thing has been the expansion to multiple states, instead of all being in one location,” he added.
Through these changes, Justin has found the opportunity to grow as well. “I came in as an intern to build models, just a quarter away from finishing graduate school,” he said. “Since then, I’ve grown in basically every way – professionally, technically, and in terms of my presence, ideas, opinions, and maturity, as well.”
Still, Justin feels that there’s so much more to learn. “That’s what. I find so attractive about architecture,” he said. “It’s constantly working on new sites, new cities, new projects, with new clients and new consultants every day.”
Justin’s Reward & Recognition Banner.
Throughout all his time and experience with Ankrom Moisan, Justin has learned a few lessons along the way that he feels are worth sharing. His advice for young professionals just getting their start in the architecture. industry is ‘listen.’ “You can learn from everyone and everything that came before you,” Justin said. “Even though we have all this technology, we’re a profession built on wisdom and knowledge that has been passed down by word of mouth. The lessons learned are documented heavily and instilled in our processes, but listening to the people who experience them is where you can really learn.”
That advice goes to the rest of the firm, too, not just young professionals. “Everyone has something to teach,” Justin continued. “I think it’s just as important for us to hear what new staff have to say, because as soon as we stop listening to what younger people think, we start becoming more isolated and disconnected from what’s really happening in the world.”
Justin also sees a lesson to be had in fostering interpersonal connections and growing those relationships. “I encourage everyone to exercise more empathy in everything you do. Understand the needs of your colleagues, clients, consultants, and contractors, and really understand the factors that are driving them and their motivations,” he said. “As soon as you can empathize with that, you’ll be more successful in incorporating and creating the best project team – and project – possible and just be more successful in general.”
This outlook and consideration for those he works with is one of the reasons that Justin was honored as the first Employee Ownership Champion of 2025.
Justin’s Nomination Video
“To me, employee ownership means representing the firm through my work and doing the best possible job that I can. That’s the way I work every day. It’s just my attitude,” Justin said.
“Someone once told me ‘Do good work.’ I think it was George Signori. I have always listened to that,” Justin continued. “I always try to do good work while being true to the firm’s goals and parameters.”
Now, moving on to the next chapter of his life and career, Justin has had some time to reflect upon his time with Ankrom Moisan. “Most of my favorite memories center around relationships with people at the firm, like holiday parties, soccer games, bike rides, ski trips, cookie exchanges, and the Food Lifeline fundraising events,” he said.
However, the memory that’s most special to Justin comes from his early days with Ankrom Moisan, when he worked in the model shop in the lower annex of our old office. “It was a special crew down there; Jeff Hamilton’s team,” Justin said. “I sat next to Nancy Young and Tania Feliciano, looking out over Vince, Isaac Johnson, Jason Roberts, George Signori, Mike Klein, Jeff Hamilton, Michael Bonn, Dave Heater, and Marc Nordean. They were all dreaming up the future, designing what the city of Portland would look like.”
“It was a golden moment that was really, really special,” he said. “I will never forget what that was like. It inspired me to be the best I could be. I’m super nostalgic about that period of time. Everyone I’ve talked to that was part of that studio at that moment in time has the same feeling. We all knew it was really special.”
Celebrating Our Female Leaders
First kicked off in 2024, the AMasterClass series is an ongoing discussion dedicated to celebrating and sharing the knowledge, insight, and advice accumulated by the female leaders at our firm over the years. They are five-minute-long, miniature crash courses on valuable lessons learned throughout their careers, told in the format of a MasterClass lecture discussion.
An introduction to 2025’s AMasterClass, A Celebration of Female Leaders, shared by Stephanie Hollar.
This year, the three women who opened up to share their experiences with the rest of the firm were Bethanne Mikkelsen, Senior Principal and Office/Retail/Community Studio Co-Leader, Rachel Fazio, Vice President of People, and Alissa Brandt, Vice President of Interiors.
Bethanne, Alissa, and Rachel take part in the live AMasterClass panel in Ankrom Moisan’s Portland office.
Hosted and moderated by Sheana Hawes, HR Generalist, the three female thought leaders conducted a panel discussion in Ankrom Moisan’s Portland office, sharing their insights, knowledge, and experiences with a live audience, and discussing the similarities between the challenges they face and the lessons they’ve learned from overcoming those challenges.
The graphic from 2025’s AMasterClass event.
Bethanne discussed what it means to be an empathetic leader, sharing that “utilizing these techniques improves team collaboration, increases employee engagement, and enhances communication.”
Rachel shared her perspective on resilient leadership, declaring “you have to build the right mindset for leadership, lead with positivity and humor, and focus on solutions rather than the problem.”
Alissa enlightened us on design-forward leadership, reminding us that inspiration isn’t static – “take time to reflect on what drives you now versus what motivated you at the beginning,” she said. “Let inspiration evolve with your experiences.”
The wisdom shared by Bethanne, Rachel, and Alissa this year – as well as last year’s speakers’ thoughts on Harnessing Your Voice, Being Your Authentic Self, and Solving the Unsolvable – can be viewed in the playlist below.
A playlist of discussions from 2024 and 2025’s AMasterClass series.
Employee Spotlight: 2024 Q4 Employee Ownership Champion Allie Leaf
Having recently returned to work from maternity leave, Allie Leaf has had time to reflect on the wild ride that her career has taken her on so far.
Joining The Society in December 2019, on the cusp of the COVID-19 pandemic, she was encouraged to apply to the hospitality group by her best friend, Dani Richardson, who happened to be working at Ankrom Moisan. “Dani had heard about an opening with The Society and encouraged me to apply,” Allie said. “She said how great they were, and how they planned to grow their team.”
When Allie first started, The Society was in a much different place than it is today. “The team was really small,” she explained.
Allie Leaf
“In a way that was good,” Allie reflected. “It meant I got to be involved with every step and stage of a project, taking it from concept all the way to construction documents, into openings. That allowed me to experience different challenges and learn from each one of them.”
When Allie found out she was recognized as 2024’s Q4 Employee Ownership Champion, it was from the commendation of others. “People started messaging me, saying ‘Congrats, Allie!’ I was like ‘What are you talking about?’ Then I went and watched the nomination video on The Insider.”
Allie’s Nomination Video
“It’s really rewarding to be recognized for my efforts,” she shared. “It’s also so nice to know that some of the headache experiences I went through on certain projects was worth it, and that the challenges were overcome successfully where clients want to work with us again.”
Called out by teammate Alison Gilbo in the nomination video for her “signature attention to detail, patience, and grace,” Allie explains that a sense of humor helps her navigate difficult project challenges, emerging with her head held high. “When things don’t go as planned on a project and it’s out of your control, you could get mad about it, or you could roll with it. I think that having a sense of humor and a willingness to find the best solution, even if it’s not a problem that you created, leads to uncovering the best result for a project.”
Gina Leone, another Society member, also praised Allie’s work ethic and attitude, saying that her leadership, responsibility, and initiative make their team and office a better place to work.
“It’s so flattering that she said that,” Allie shared. “Everyone on our team works so hard; we all bring out the best and have a desire to collaborate and help each other out and help our studio be as great as possible. It’s just the most amazing team.”
Allie’s Society Member Headshot
To Allie, ‘Employee Ownership’ means contributing to the firm’s growth, and helping everyone within it prosper. “I try to own whatever role or task I’m given so that I can contribute the most that I possibly can to our team,” she said. “I’m so proud of the work that we do and how well we all work together, so helping the team any way I can is a great motivator.”
When asked if she had any advice for young professionals who may just be starting their careers, Allie had two pieces of advice to offer:
“Being solution-oriented and tapping into a different part of your creative side – the one that’s more technical and puts the puzzle pieces together – will lead to finding better solutions for the issues you face than dwelling on the negatives.”
The second piece of advice was that emerging design professionals “should explore their creativity and not be afraid to throw big ideas out there.” She added, “You never know if it’ll make it into a project or not, or if there will be something you can gleam from it that will lead to another idea.”
“For Moxy Asheville, I threw out some pretty wild ideas. One of them was this huge, suspended hanging bench in the lobby,” she said, explaining how it happened to her recently. “It’s an iconic moment as guests walk in, and it was all because I thought ‘Hey, this wacky idea just might work!'”
Moxy Asheville’s Suspended Bench
Now that Allie has returned to work, triumphant and celebrated by her teammates, she has gained a new perspective on her place within The Society. She knows that she is supported by her colleagues, that her projects are held in high regard both internally and externally, and she is very excited to continue designing fun, unique projects, seeing where her ‘wacky, wild’ ideas lead her next.
Celebrating AM’s Team Members
Held at the beginning of each year, our annual People Celebration is a time when the firm reflects, looking back at all we have accomplished in the last year and honoring those who have helped to get us where we are. As a part of that celebration, we aim to acknowledge and reward the hard work of the individuals who have really made a difference in the part year.
We are pleased to announce the promotion of 18 team members who have demonstrated a strong commitment to designing smarter and going beyond for their clients and communities.
2025’s Promotion Recipients
Promoted to Senior Director
- Emily Lamunyan – Senior Director of Marketing
Promoted to Studio Co-Leader
- Brad Bane – Affordable Housing Studio Co-Leader
Promoted to Principal
- Cara Godwin – Principal, Operational Excellence, Practice
- Jason Jones – Principal, Higher Education Studio Co-Leader
- Katie Lyslo – Principal, Affordable Housing Studio Co-Leader
- Ashlee Washington – Principal, Healthcare Studio Co-Leader
Promoted to Associate Principal
- Kimberly Gonzales – Associate Principal, Office/Retail/Community
Promoted to Senior Associate
- Aaren DeHaas – Senior Associate, Office/Retail/Community
- Richard Grimes – Senior Associate, Senior Communities
- Alex Kuzmin – Senior Associate, Higher Education
- Jenna Mogstad – Senior Associate, Higher Education
- Scott Soukup – Senior Associate, Senior Communities
- Elisa Zenk, LEED AP BD+C – Senior Associate, Affordable Housing
Promoted to Associate
- Angela Blechschmidt – Associate, The Society
- Sydney Ellison – Associate, Higher Education
- Mandy Housh – Associate, Senior Communities
- Anders O’Neill – Associate, Marketing
Celebrating a culture of leadership, collaboration, and innovation, these promotions recognize individuals who not only push the boundaries of design and expertise, but also foster an environment where mentorship, inclusivity, and creativity thrive.
“Their contributions strengthen our studios, enrich our firm, and shape the future of the communities we serve,” Dave Heater, President, said of the individuals who received promotions this year. “We look forward to the continued impact they will make – both within our teams and in the spaces we create.”
Congratulations to everybody who received a promotion – it is well-deserved, and your hard work is appreciated!