At architecture, art, and advisory firm Svigals + Partners, the culture of discovery and collaboration means that team members are encouraged to explore the profession and related fields, forming new relationships and acquiring new skills and credentials to help themselves and the firm grow. 

To wit, the firm’s leadership have announced the recent accomplishments of four team members, including a principal, two associates, and a staff designer — demonstrating Svigals + Partners’ commitment to supporting career development and professional growth at every level.

• Associate principal Julia McFadden, AIA, ALEP has added Accredited Learning Environment Planner (ALEP) to her growing list of credentials. Known for her work on the designs of such innovative and noteworthy K-12 facilities as Sandy Hook School and the Engineering & Science University Magnet School, the new designation from the Association for Learning Environments signifies a high level of achievement and expertise in the practice of planning, designing, equipping and maintaining educational environments. 
   
• Alana Konefal, Assoc. AIA,has been elected Vice President of the Connecticut Building Congress (CBC), an organization whose mission is to foster the growth and success of the construction industry in Connecticut and beyond. Elevated in 2018 to the role of Associate at Svigals + Partners, Konefal is serving in her second year on the CBC Board having been active with the organization in both Membership and Programming capacities.  Konefal says her work with the group has “vastly increased my appreciation for the industry,” and values CBC for offering opportunities to grow her leadership and communication skills in the company of other talented professionals.
   
• Omarys Vasquez, AIA, LEED AP, NOMA — named an Associate with the firm in 2019 — is one of three CT architects to spearhead the establishment of a National Organization of Minority Architects Connecticut chapter. Now up and running, NOMA CT advocates for "equity, diversity, and inclusion in the architectural profession.” In addition to her role as a founding member, Vasquez was also recently named to the University of Hartford Department of Architecture Advisory Board and serves on the committee for the AIA-Connecticut Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion Community.
   
• Architectural designer Katie Scanlon, Assoc. AIA, has been honored with the Emerging Professional Award by the Connecticut chapter of the AIA, which recognizes emerging graduate architects for "outstanding contributions to their profession or have rendered distinguished service in the public realm.” In Scanlon’s case, the award acknowledges her excellence and continued growth as a designer, her involvement with the Ledyard Planning and Zoning Board as a regional planning representative, and her work teaching at Three Rivers Community College.

While the firm’s designers have been racking up honors and accreditations, Svigals + Partners has also been designated an Emerging Professional-Friendly Firm by AIA-New England — for the third year in a row — a welcome reaffirmation of the firm’s commitment to the development of individual architectural careers, and the evolution of the profession as a whole.

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