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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 19 J U LY 2 3 , 2 0 1 8 F O C U S R E A L E S TAT E / C O N S T R U C T I O N / D E S I G N employees can critique presentations before they go to clients, and starting a nine-month leadership development program last year. "I get my energy from helping people grow," Belknap says of the fi rst class that just graduated. " e way those 10 came together as a group," she adds, "they'll be friends for life." Nicole Rogers, who co-leads SMRT's architecture department with Dennis Morin and became an associate principal this year, took part in the fi rst class. She says the group did indeed bond and plans to meet quarterly. Back in high school, when Rogers's fi rst job was at an architectural fi rm, the only other woman in the offi ce was her boss, who told her not to go into the fi eld because it was challeng- ing for women. "I was like, 'I don't care,'" Rogers says. "I saw that as a challenge." Today, she has no regrets about sticking with it, and says that if she weren't an architect she could imagine herself as an artist or mathematician. At SMRT, where she gets to use those skills and more on a daily basis, "it doesn't matter what you are or who you are, it's who's right for the job." She also says that until it's pointed out, no one really thinks about the fact that the fi rm is run by a woman. Others, like architectural designer Alyssa Phanitdasack, say it matters a lot even though "I wish we lived in a world where it didn't make a diff erence." e 2010 Bowdoin College gradu- ate, who joined SMRT in November 2017, remembers when a male colleague in Los Angeles questioned her ambi- tion of becoming a design lead one day because she's a woman. "I don't intend to trail-blaze," she says. "It's just what I want to do." A visual arts and biology major in college, she blends both interests through projects such as STEM Center addition for the Hebron Academy and medical offi ce buildings in New Hampshire she's now designing. Other career paths Like Phanitdasack, Becca White was an undergraduate biology major before turning to architecture. e 1-year-old started at Carol A. Wilson Architect in Falmouth this June and says she's not experienced any gender bias from contractors in Maine despite it also being a male- dominated profession. "Part of that is Carol's passionate attitude," she says. Both she and her boss laugh about the fact that they both enjoy wood- working as a hobby, while the male in their offi ce has other skills. "It's a small team and we work well together," Wilson says during an interview outside the Gilsland Farm Maine Audubon Center that she co-designed, a modern shingle-style eco-friendly building before going green became trendy. Wilson, who's been in the pro- fession since 1982, has come a long way since her college admission interview at North Carolina State University, whose dean caught her off guard by asking if she wanted to marry an architect. Wilson chose it as a major a week into freshman year and has been going strong ever since, earning several honors over the years including Maine's fi rst AIA Fellow. ( ere are now two other women and three men.) "It basically says you're on the right path," she says, adding: " e beauty of architecture, and why I love it so much, is that it's right brain and left brain." Fellow industry veterans Nancy Barba and Cynthia Wheelock, of Portland's Barba + Wheelock Archi- tects, relish that aspect as well. "I don't know if women are better suited to it," Wheelock says, "but we have great women designers and leaders in the architectural profession." Bright future Women of all experience levels inter- viewed for this article see a bright future for younger peers starting out today. "Maine has a strong design com- munity and we are always looking for people to get involved and share new ideas," says Kathryn Wise, manager of architectural services at L.L.Bean and chair of AIA Maine's Emerging Professionals Committee. "It is never too early or late to get involved in the profession." R C , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e r e a c h e d a t @ . a n d @ » C O N T I N U E D F RO M PA G E 1 7 Choose the best plan for your budget. Prebuy, SmartPay/Downside Price Protec on or Commercial Fixed Price Program. We will work with your needs! Comprehensive hea ng fuel op ons for your business C O N TA C T T H E O F F I C E N E A R E S T TO YO U : cnbrownenergy.com Backed by superior service and reliability! > Hea ng Oil > Kerosine > Propane > Natural Gas > Gasoline > Ultra-low Sulfur Diesel > Off-road Diesel I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to I don't intend to trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just trail-blaze. It's just what I want to do. — Alyssa Phanitdasack Architectural designer, SMRT

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