Building Ideas

Amber Wasinski is an Interior & Project Designer with MSA Design and part time adjunct faculty member for the School of Architecture and Interior Design, DAAP, at the University of Cincinnati. She completed her undergraduate BS Interior Design and Masters of Architecture + International Business Certificate at UC. Her work spans a wide range of content and scales including domestic and international hospitality / entertainment projects to work exhibited in Two Sides of the Border: Reimagining the Mexico-United States Region. She is an NCIDQ Certified Interior Designer, currently working towards architectural licensure, and in her free time she enjoys any opportunity for outdoor adventures.

Laila Ammar is a Project Architect & Designer with MSA Design and a part time adjunct faculty for the School of Architecture and Interior Design, DAAP, at the University of Cincinnati – where she also completed her undergraduate BS Arch. She received her Masters of Architecture at the Knowlton School of Architecture at The Ohio State University where she was a part of the research and fabrication team for the 2014 US Pavilion, “OFFICE US” at the Venice Architecture Biennale. She spends her “free” time as a citizen Architect doing advocacy work with The Architecture Lobby and on the board of her neighborhood’s community development corporation, NEST.

www.msaarch.com

www.daap.uc.edu

Mike Snyder begins his seventh year as the athletic director of Illinois College in 2020-21. In addition to his responsibilities as athletic director, Snyder was the president of the Collegiate Event and Facility Management Association (CEFMA) in 2016-17 and was named to the Executive Committee of the National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators (NADIIIAA) starting with the 2018-19 academic year.

Snyder has helped accomplish a number of impressive feats during his six years at Illinois College. Some of those highlights include the construction of new homes for the IC baseball and softball programs plus a new throws area for the track & field teams, the addition of lights to England Stadium and the Bellatti Tennis Complex, a weight room renovation, a video board at England Stadium, the addition of the Chi Alpha Sigma fraternity to honor student-athletes with excellent academics, and the expansion of varsity sports to include esports and competitive cheer & dance. Under his watch, Illinois College has also seen upgrades to its playing surfaces, including a new court design in Sherman Gymnasium, new turf at England Stadium, and a resurfacing of the track in King Fieldhouse.

The 2016-17 academic year was a particularly impressive one for the athletic programs of Illinois College. The women's programs at IC combined for their highest-ever finish in the MWC All-Sports standings in fourth place. The men's programs combined for the second-highest finish in history. At the same time, the 20 athletic programs at Illinois College combined for 40 all-conference athletes, the highest total in the past six years.

In 2017-18, the men's programs at Illinois College finished tied for its highest-ever finish in the MWC All-Sports Standings in fourth place and the 20 programs once again produced 40 All-MWC selections. Success in competition carried over to the classroom, where IC student-athletes combined for a cumulative G.P.A. of higher than 3.00 for the year and 128 were named to the Academic All-MWC teams. Snyder also served on the "Gameday the DIII Way" working group in conjunction with the NCAA.

The 2018-19 school year provided a massive upgrade to the Bruner Center and IC's athletic facilities. A total of $1.7 million was spent on capital projects including the installation of new turf at England Stadium, the construction of new weight rooms and a cardio room, renovations to locker rooms and branding on every level of the Bruner Center. The Illinois College programs set an institutional record by having 51 student-athletes earn All-MWC honors during the year.

Prior to Illinois College, Snyder was at Oberlin College, a member of the North Coast Athletic Conference, located in Oberlin, Ohio. Snyder served in a variety of progressive leadership roles, most recently as Associate Director of Athletics for Internal Operations. During his time at Oberlin, Snyder supervised and coordinated capital facility projects, negotiated sponsorships, hired and supervised coaches and managed a multi-million dollar budget across 22 varsity programs and 10 administrative departments. He has previously served as Oberlin's Assistant Athletic Director for Internal Operations, and Director of Facilities.

Prior to his time at Oberlin, Snyder served as Operations Manager and Events Supervisor for Southeast Missouri State University's Show Me Center.

Snyder is an active member of several professional organizations, including CEFMA. He is also active in the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), and NADIIIAA. Currently, Snyder is a part of a NCAA group for Sportsmanship and Gameday Environment called "Gameday the DIII Way" and is the NADIIIAA Executive Board Representative to the Division III FAR Advisory Group.

Snyder earned a bachelor's degree in education from Bowling Green State University, and a master's degree in public administration from Southeast Missouri State.

Snyder, his wife and three children reside in Jacksonville, Illinois. www.ic.edu

Chris Patek is a Principal and Architect at MSA Design, a nationally renowned design practice based in the Midwest. As a senior leader in MSA's Education and Transportation markets, Chris has led teams on many of the firms' award winning design projects including recent work with the Great Oaks Career Campus System, Mariemont City Schools, and Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority.

He is passionate about work that elevates and engages the community. In addition to his project roles, he is instrumental in elevating the firms' level of design and project execution and also integral in the onboarding of new team members. Chris was raised just outside of Toledo, and has practiced in firms across the world including both coasts of the United States and in Zimbabwe.

Chris is active in his community having previously served as President the American Institute of Architects Cincinnati Chapter and as a Scoutmaster and youth sports coach. He resides on the east side of Greater Cincinnati with his wife Kelly and sons Ben & Owen. www.msaarch.com

Deanna Brant is currently the Executive Director of the Delaware Morrow Mental Health and Recovery Services Board. The Board is comprised of 7 staff and 14 volunteer Board members who oversee the planning, funding, monitoring and evaluation of a comprehensive continuum of behavioral health care in Delaware and Morrow Counties, just outside of Columbus Ohio. Her focus has been on collaboration with community partners, supporting housing capacity, crisis services and building the infrastructure to support behavioral health care services locally.

Ms. Brant came to Central Ohio from Northeast Ohio where she was the Chief Operating Officer of Intensive Services at Ravenwood Health in Geauga County. She is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor with a Supervisory endorsement, and was a Certified Trauma Specialist and Trainer. She specialized in suicide and violence/homicide risk assessment, pre-hospital screening, and crisis intervention. She is the co-chair of the Geauga County Suicide Prevention Coalition. She had been the Mental Health Coordinator of the Geauga County CIT Program since its inception in 2004 and has a lead role in the CIT Program in Delaware and Morrow Counties.

Ms. Brant received her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Human Services from Hiram College and her Master’s Degree in Community Counseling from Kent State University. Ms. Brant was the recipient of the 2010 Professional Contribution Award from the Geauga County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board. She has 30 years of experience working in the behavioral health field, particularly with individuals in crisis.

Ms. Brant has four adult daughters and four grandsons. https://www.dmmhrsb.org/

Nate Stewart is the Director of Athletics for Carthage College, heading a department that supports nearly 800 student-athletes across 27 teams.

He was hired from Division-III Centre College, where he was the Deputy Director of Athletics for three years. During his time in Danville, Ky., he led many of the department's development and fundraising efforts, and led the External Relations Committee which was responsible for marketing and promotions at Centre Athletics.

Prior to his time with Centre, Stewart spent one year as Athletic Director at Valley City State University in North Dakota. While there, Stewart helped eliminate a $75,000 deficit in athletics and produced a positive return in department revenue. Stewart negotiated Valley City's first department-wide apparel deal with Under Armour and also oversaw the construction of new baseball and softball locker rooms, new scoreboards for baseball and volleyball and a rebranding of the gymnasium lobby.

Stewart spent six years at Eastern University in Pennsylvania, first as head men's basketball coach and then as assistant athletic director for advancement, then becoming Athletic Director.

At Eastern, Stewart's first administrative project was organizing and directing the Eagle Classic golf tournament, increasing revenue for that event by 150 percent. As Athletic Director at Eastern, Stewart led a massive reconstruction and rebranding of the school's fitness center, created a position for a full-time strength and conditioning coach, oversaw the implementation of men's and women's track and field programs, and negotiated a two-year extension with Under Armour on an apparel deal. As a coach, Stewart's 2011-12 team posted the second highest win total in Eastern basketball history, and his final team in 2014-15 led the Middle Atlantic conference in scoring.

Stewart graduated from Roanoke College in 2003 as a four-year letter winner in basketball and earned his master's degree from Marshall University in 2005.

Stewart and his wife Lauren have two sons. www.carthage.edu

Michael Collins is Senior Vice President of global consulting practice JS Held. Michael has worked as a Principal in Charge, Project Executive, Pre-Construction Manager, Project Manager, Project Engineer, and designer for local, regional, and national Ownership Groups.

Michael Collins has nearly 20 years of experience in the design and construction industry. At J.S. Held, Michael leads the Owner’s Representation and Project Support Services practice service markets such as healthcare, mixed-use development, multi-family, commercial office and retail, educational, private, and public works engagements. His practice area provides services include estimating, budgeting and budget management, scheduling, project representation, construction monitoring as well as quality control throughout the project.

A proud 6th generation West Side Cincinnatian, he graduated from the Great Oaks Career Campus System, Cincinnati State Technical & Community College, and the University of Cincinnati. He's a husband and father of three and engaged in his community as a youth sports coach. www.jsheld.com

Sarah Eingle is Director of Interior Design and Associate Principal at MSA Design, a nationally renowned architecture+interior design+graphics practice based in the Midwest. As the leader of MSA's Interior Design team, Sarah has set the direction and influenced the design of award winning interior environments on projects across all of the firms seven market practices.

Sarah, a native of the small college town of Tiffin, Ohio has previously practiced in San Francisco with an internationally-renowned clientele including leading Silicon Valley firms. She is a leading voice in the Midwest on Interior design, and is currently renovating an historic home in the heart of Covington, Kentucky just across from Downtown Cincinnati. www.msaarch.com

Jason Wilson’s life might best be paralleled with the Disney movie Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. A military brat, his father took tours of duty that took the family from Ohio to the East Coast, the Gulf shores of Texas, Cincinnati and two stints in Alaska. Professionally, he began his career in Architecture and "felt the call" to go into Construction. In 2009, he founded Marathon Construction Consultants, initially operating as a general contractor and finally morphing into offering Owner’s Representative services to numerous national and international clients primarily in the aviation industry.

Outside of work, Jason lives in Fort Thomas, Kentucky with Sarah, his wife of 21 years, and their 3 children, Katie, Jack and Nick. From early childhood, sports have been an integral and formative part of his life. He has coached track at Covington Catholic High School, select baseball for the Cincinnati Titans and is currently in his 7th season as a head coach for the Kentucky Warriors AAU basketball program. He has run 14 marathons - 15 if you count the one he ran on his 31st birthday on his father’s cattle ranch in Montana. He is an avid college basketball fan and lives and dies with the Cincinnati Bearcats. [email protected]

Blake Lane is a Senior Design Researcher at Thrive in Atlanta, Georgia, where he specializes in healthcare innovation. Blake received his BFA in interior design from Valdosta State University in South Georgia and went on to earn his master’s of science degree in architecture from the University of Cincinnati, where he is also a PhD candidate. It was while doing theoretical research on spatial design for his doctoral degree that Blake homed in on his interest in user-centered research and design thinking.

In 2014 Blake began working for the Live Well Collaborative, a design and product innovation consultancy in Cincinnati, as a design researcher and strategist. At Live Well, Blake worked on projects with Fortune 500 companies like Procter & Gamble, Pfizer and Boeing, as well as top-ranked healthcare institutions including Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC). For CCHMC, he worked across all spectrums of the hospital, from creating the most comfortable cancer patient journey to developing an ideal anesthesia induction experience for children, which has resulted in a patent filing and multiple publications.

After leaving Live Well, Blake worked at GE Aviation as a user experience researcher, focusing on ways to improve how airlines and engineers assess jet engine health. Eventually, he made his way to Thrive and back to his passion of doing design research for healthcare. www.thrivethinking.com

Dan McNally born in Darwen, England (1978) is the Director of Soccer Operations for MLS franchise, FC Cincinnati. McNally has been with FC Cincinnati since the club formed in 2015 and he holds the distinction of being the clubs first full time employee. During his tenure at FC Cincinnati McNally’s primary role has been to establish the clubs Soccer Operation and to oversee the Gameday Operation during the clubs historic 5 year run at Nippert Stadium. In addition McNally played a lead role during the planning and design process of the Mercy Health Training Center. FC Cincinnati’s state of the art training facility is widely recognized as one of the best soccer facilities in North America. Before he joined FC Cincinnati McNally enjoyed a soccer career as a youth player in the academy of the Blackburn Rovers, an apprentice professional player with Bury FC, a Collegiate Head Coach (MSU-Billings) and an All-American college player (ERAU). McNally holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications (ERAU) and a Master’s degree in Counseling (MSU-Billings). Growing up in his native England, McNally played in the soccer academy at Blackburn Rovers and he was an apprentice professional player at Bury FC. He currently resides in Florence, KY with his wife Jenny and sons Liam & Kellan. www.fccincinnati.com