I have enjoyed multiple careers; all interconnected and complimentary. Following the path of ‘do what you know’, as an architect I applied the knowledge acquired in earlier careers in medical research and education to design health care, research laboratory and education facilities. I worked mostly for regional, national, and international public sector organizations and government agencies, providing both facility design and research services. Some of the most interesting projects have taken me abroad to work at the equator in summer, the artic in winter, down jungle rivers, and up technology mountains. I have been blessed to have worked with amazing colleagues in architect, engineering, and health system planning.
As a young technologist in medical research, I was given the advice (or mandate) that to be a professional you must practice and teach. For my early mentor, these two activities were inseparable. Along with being a practicing architect, I have spent the past 25 years teaching project and practice management in post-secondary, continuing education, and professional development workshops, in face-to-face, online, and hybrid modalities. I lead a team of practitioner-instructors in flipped classroom teaching long before it was fashionable.
I became a curriculum developer and instructional designer, building education programs for institutional and not-for-profit clients. A Master of Distance Education degree complimented my professional architecture degree and project management certification. I was able to apply a project management discipline to the processes of educational program development.
I continue to teach and volunteer in my retirement from architectural practice. My volunteer work in the profession is focused on supporting those who want to become licensed to practice architecture in Canada and those who, following an absence from practice, want to return to the profession. I also devote time and energy to Camp Kee-Mo-Kee, Komoka, Ontario, a United Church of Canada children’s camp.