Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Rossomando.
Hi Michelle, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I discovered my interest in design during college when I attended a summer introduction to architecture program at Cornell University. I was studying Computer Science at Tufts University near Boston and charted a path to graduate school by completing a ‘double major’ in History of Art & Architecture. I took classes in figure drawing, stone carving sculpture, and watercolor painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and completed an internship in an architect’s office to be sure this was the right career path for me. What drew me to architecture was the collaborative relationship between the practical precision of construction and the art of design. After graduation from college, I moved to Austin and entered the University of Texas at Austin as a candidate in the Master of Architecture graduate program.
During my graduate degree work, I served as a teaching assistant for a core class in site design, studied in Castigliano, Italy, and worked at Deborah Berke Partners in New York City on interior renovations for private residential clients and retail clients like Club Monaco. Upon completing the Master of Architecture program in the spring of 1998, I was hired on as an architectural intern for McKinney Architects, Inc., now McKinney York Architects. One of my very first projects, the Adams Residence, received considerable press attention – in the Austin American-Statesman newspaper, Residential Architect magazine, and selected to be featured on the 2001 AIA Austin Homes Tour. I knew then, that both architecture and Austin, were the right fit.
In 2003, I became a licensed architect and was promoted to Associate in the firm. I served as both Project Manager and Project Architect for residential and institutional commissions in the office. Early on, I excelled in the design and management of large and complex institutional renovations. This would become an area of continued focus and leadership for my career – defining clear, attainable objectives for the project team to provide a smooth path for design excellence.
At this early stage in my career, I also became active in my professional association, AIA Austin. I served as Chair of the Design Awards Committee, a group that organizes and implements the annual competition and celebration of awards for design for its members. In recognition of my efforts to transform the popular awards program from traditional slide media to digital submissions, I received the “Young Architectural Professional of the Year” award that recognizes an emerging professional as a role model who goes beyond the call of duty in service to the profession; influences improvement in the organization at the local level; encourages participation among fellow members and nonmembers; and exemplifies qualities of leadership and of professional practice. Through volunteering, I developed my leadership skills, served my professional community, met peers in other architectural firms, and had a lot of fun!
In 2006, I became a partner in the firm and one of three principals alongside Heather McKinney, FAIA, RID, LEED AP BD+C and Al York, FAIA, RID. As Principal-in-Charge, I was responsible for leading design and management on projects as well as pursuing a shared vision for firm success with the other firm leaders. After completing the Professional Services Management Journal (PSMJ) Project Manager Boot Camp training program, I implemented a next-level project management plan across the firm. I established a weekly office-wide Project Manager meeting to review staffing, secure project resources, and monitor profitability. As a direct result, office-wide project management policies and procedures were put in place for the entire firm and had a significant positive impact on project outcomes for clients.
Outside of the office, I continued to give my time in service to the profession and in the community. I began participating in the AIA Emerging Professionals Mentoring Program and mentored a young architectural intern who went on to attend graduate school at Columbia University. Since that time, I have mentored architectural students attending the University of Texas at Austin, architectural interns through various AIA Austin programs, and architectural interns that work at McKinney York Architects. I enjoyed working with these young professionals so much that I became an Intern Development Program (IDP) Auxiliary Coordinator to better serve the interns in the firm. I initiated a program in the office that includes monthly reviews with the registration-track employees, including bi-annual reviews with a firm partner, to check in on progress. The firm financially supports employees by paying exam fees and allowing time off for studying as well as providing study materials. McKinney York Architects was awarded the 2012-2015 AIA/NCARB National IDP Award due to the quality of this program.
I settled in with my family in Hyde Park, a local historic district that has an active neighborhood association. I volunteered in both my neighborhood and my children’s schools. After involving the firm in pro-bono design services for a shaded playground structure for my children’s preschool, I became a board member for YouthLaunch, a non-profit focusing on youth empowerment. For two years, I served as Chair of the Service Awards Luncheon, which raised more than $25,000 each year for college scholarships. I also served on the Scholarship Selection Committee that reviewed the incredible applications submitted by high school students to receive scholarships for community service. YouthLaunch is most recognized in Austin for its collaborative partnerships with AISD PALS and Urban Roots.
I was fortunate to work on many notable projects in the office after becoming a principal with wonderful clients and consultant team members. These include The University of Texas at Austin Texas Union Courtyard Renovation which received a Texas ASLA Honor Award in 2010, The University of Texas at Austin Jackson School of Geosciences Holland Family Student Center, the McGarrah Jessee Building which received design awards from AIA Austin in 2011, Texas Society of Architects in 2012, and Preservation Texas in 2012, and the Briscoe Center for American History Renovation. In 2013, I was recognized by Engineering News-Record as one of the Top “20 Under 40” construction industry leaders in the combined states of Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas for mentorship within the office, commitment to the community and “creation of landmark projects” for the region. And in 2019, I was selected as the Austin LUNA Award recipient for Outstanding Professional of the Year from the Regional Hispanic Contractors Association.
In 2020, I was named President of McKinney York Architects, the second president in the firm’s 37-year history taking the reins from the firm founder Heather McKinney, FAIA, RID, LEED AP BD+C. In this new role, I now oversee business development and marketing for the firm. Along with firm founder McKinney and partners Al York, FAIA, RID, Will Wood, AIA, RID, and Brian Carlson, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, we laid out an ambitious strategic plan for the next chapter of the firm including opening an office in San Antonio. At McKinney York Architects, we believe everyone is enriched when they are connected to the people and places that surround them. As a recipient of both the AIA Austin and Texas Society of Architects Firm Awards, our goal is to connect people to each other and the world around them by creating architecture that engages, inspires and belongs.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Traditionally, architects work in freehand sketching and perspective drawing to communicate design concepts and their vision for what the building will look like to clients. Coming from a background in computer science, I had to work hard to develop these artistic skills as I did not have a natural ability in this area. Fortunately for me, computer-aided design and three-dimensional modeling software was in its early stages at the same time I entered graduate school. During my career, I have been able to utilize computer software programs to convey my design ideas to clients and provide enhanced communication tools for successful project outcomes.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As Principal-in-Charge, I lead design on a diverse array of projects and champion the firm’s proactive client-oriented project management philosophy. I truly believe that good design cannot be achieved without good project management. Within the McKinney York studio, we practice concept-driven design. This means we develop a foundational concept for every project that becomes an axiom from which design decisions are made. It is the project manager’s job to protect that concept, integrate and carry it through from the beginning of the project to the end, turning challenges into opportunities, and ensuring it is not lost along the way.
One of my favorite projects is The University of Texas at Austin William C. Powers, Jr. Student Activity Center South Courtyard which received a design award from Texas ASLA in 2020 and AIA Austin in 2021. I am also very proud of two recently completed projects that opened this past year – the Austin ISD Sánchez Elementary School Modernization and the Texas School for the Deaf Administration and Welcome Center and Early Learning Center. All three of these fulfill our firm mission to create architecture that engages, inspires, and belongs.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
In the past five years, I have expanded the firm to include new market sectors such as interior design and exhibit design. The firm has provided transformational renovations and new construction for many of our institutional and commercial clients that include furnishings and exhibits to create branded environments that speak to the mission and values of the organization. It has been a wonderful learning experience working in these new market sectors and I enjoy providing these services to our clients to create a more cohesive and successful end product.
Contact Info:
- Email: mross@mckinneyyork.com
- Website: https://mckinneyyork.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mckinneyyorkarchitects/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/McKinneyYorkArchitects
Image Credits
Thomas McConnell, Leonid Furmansky
