Founder of the Month: Erin Olson-Douglas, AIA

 

Q:  Where do you work and what is your current role?

A:  I work for the City of Des Moines as an economic development coordinator. There are four of us that hold this position. We each bring a different set of experiences to a job that promotes development in the City and negotiates public incentives for private development. My role is to ensure that individual projects adhere to larger visions that we have for the city and that we get the best possible design and building quality in projects that receive public subsidy. I also have a family – I am married to a landscape architect that has his own small business and we have 3 young children.

Q:  Why did you choose the field of architecture?

A:  I chose architecture in high school. “Architect” showed up in a career exploration exercise w/ our guidance counselor. It seemed like a good combination of interests in arts and creative pursuits and more rigorous academics. I continue to choose architecture because it feels like a field where I can make a difference in the place where I live. Every day presents an opportunity to work on improving our place in the world in a real, tangible way.

Q:  How do you balance it all?

A:  Ha Ha! I don’t! I show up at work with snot on my shoulder and there are many nights that I fall asleep with my laptop still humming. I try to live in each moment and be present where ever I am – I try not to work on the weekends and I don’t live on my phone when I am at home. Conversely, I try to get totally absorbed in work when I am at the office. So, in one sense, I try to separate my home and work life. Yet, I do have a fair amount of flexibility at work. I often catch up on work in the early mornings and late evenings. I have always been a morning person and, now more than ever, I cherish early mornings – a time where I can squeeze in a workout or some personal emails or attend to a little work, (usually) uninterrupted.

Q:  What is the best advice you have received?

A:  You don’t regret the things you’ve done, you regret the things you didn’t do when you had the chance. This works for many situations – decisions big and small. It was influential in my decision to move halfway across the country and go to graduate school.

Q:  How has [the founding of] Iowa Women in Architecture influenced you?

A:  I have been surprised by the size of the iaWia community. I had no idea that there would be so many of us. And, I am impressed by the quality of the dialogue in our community. There is a wonderful camaraderie among new and old friends around the lofty goal that we are working to make long-term change for women in design fields and for the relevance of the profession …and that many of us have (or will) shown up at work with snot on our shoulder.

Q:  What would you like to see from Iowa Women in Architecture in the future?

A:  Sustained attention to issues that will keep more women in the design fields and grow meaningful careers for women. This will mean continually analyzing and evaluating what iaWia can do to help foster a better design culture. iaWia celebrations for new female firm principals and partners in firms around the state are something I would love to attend!

iaWia has already done a magnificent job of attracting females practicing in the design fields to our membership and to a number of the events and activities it has sponsored. I have been pleasantly surprised by our numbers; I hope others have been, too! I would like to see informal relationships grow from this network -- this takes time, but I think it's one of incredibly important byproducts of being active in iaWia. I know there have been times when career (and career-impacting) decision-making has felt a little lonely. The number of women involved with iaWia shows that there is really no reason for this. I would like to see the networking, mentoring, and friendships continue to grow over time so that when where we approach important junctures in our careers, we know there are others we can call upon to share experiences and glean from each other's wisdom.

Founder of the Month: Ann Sobiech Munson, AIA CSI CCS

 

Q:  Where do you work and what is your current role?

A:  Substance Architecture; architect and specifier; I write/coordinate all the specifications in the office.

Q:  Why did you choose the field of architecture?

A:  Long story. I earned my undergraduate degree at a liberal arts college, Central College in Pella, with a double major in English and Spanish. I spent a third of my undergraduate education studying outside the US, in Mexico, the UK, and Spain. Right after graduation, I entered an MA/PhD program in English at Emory University, where I began to specialize in medieval and Renaissance literature. About halfway through that program, I become unsure whether I wanted to complete a PhD in English or not, so I left. I moved back to Iowa, did an internship in writing assessment at ACT, weathered the floods of 1993, and spent a few years working in higher education as an admission counselor when I heard Cynthia Weese, then Dean of the School of Architecture at Washington University-St. Louis, speak about their architecture program. I thought, “That’s what I should be doing!” I spent another year or two researching programs and taking a few classes in preparation for a first-professional MArch. I ended up at Iowa State at a time when there were several faculty members (lots of strong women!) interested in relationships between architecture and text, so it seemed to be a logical progression of my education and interests.

It turns out that much earlier in life, around middle school, I had been encouraged by family and teachers to explore a career in architecture, since I had a brain that seemed to work at the intersection of art and science. At one point, I attended a career exploration meeting for middle school kids interested in architecture and landscape architecture – this was probably the early 1980s. When I got there, the teachers were men, and I was the only girl in a room full of boys. I never went back, and I didn’t think much about architecture as a potential career option again until a dozen years later, when I heard Dean Weese give that talk.

Q:  How do you balance it all?

A:  Hmm. I am not sure “balance” is the word. At any given time, I have adapted parts of my daily life on all fronts to accommodate the demands I faced at that moment. One great thing about architecture is that it lets you engage in a number of ways, or at least has the possibility of doing so. I’ve learned to be efficient, and I am much better at prioritizing, at understanding the stakes of each activity or decision, than I was when I had less to juggle.

Q:  What is the best advice you have received?

A:  Once, when I was overwhelmed, someone told me “Architecture is not rocket science. Maybe you just don’t want to be like most architects.” Or something like that. It sticks in my head. My current interpretation is that some of what we do may not incredibly difficult or special or exclusive. On the other hand, the part of what we do that is specialized deserves utmost care, and it is in your power to define the kind of architect you want to be, from a constellation of possibilities. When you understand that, you develop an armature for decision-making that can help you for the rest of your career.

Q:  How has [the founding of] Iowa Women in Architecture influenced you?

A:  I have been constantly surprised at the positive feedback and the number of people and organizations engaged in and supportive of our mission and vision. We (the co-founders) had been discussing something like this for years – no exaggeration – but I am not sure the same group founded even ten years ago would have had this response. It makes me optimistic about the future of the profession, that the possibility for change lies within reach.

Q:  What would you like to see from Iowa Women in Architecture in the future?

A:  We have accomplished much in a short time, but there are additional tasks we could undertake. One initiative that I can see developing in the near future is a mid-career mentoring program, for those already out of school and facing decisions about next steps in their career paths. Case studies and additional research related to the Best Practice Recommendations are another possible growth area. Finally, I love to see new leadership and more people getting involved with our board and committees.