SmithGroup Promotes 11 to Vice President

SmithGroup, one of the nation’s leading integrated design firms, has promoted 11 to vice president.

Tricia Beck, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB, is promoted to vice president, continuing in her role as the Higher Education studio leader for the firm’s Detroit office. In this position she serves as a leader on a variety of the firm’s higher education projects, including serving as the senior project manager for the award-winning, LEED Gold Valley Dining Center at Western Michigan University and theUniversity of Michigan School of Dentistry expansion and renovation that broke ground in late 2018. She also currently serves as the principal in charge for the firm’s University of Tennessee at Martin Latimer Engineering & Science Building project. In each of these roles she demonstrates her passion for creating places that inspire higher learning, are equitable for a diverse tapestry of students and are strategic in their design vision.

Beck has been with the firm since 2012, and is a graduate of Lawrence Technological University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in architecture as well as a Master of Architecture. She is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Michigan chapter and AIA Detroit and a graduate of Leadership Oakland. Beck, a native of Holland, Michigan, now resides in Clarkston, Michigan.

Patty Boyle, AIA, LEED AP, is promoted to vice president and continues in her role as SmithGroup’s corporate director of architecture. In this role, she is responsible for driving strategies for innovation in project delivery. Among the firmwide initiatives she leads is an interdisciplinary effort to establish processes and tools that guide and reinforce a culture of quality and technical design excellence. Additionally, she is creating a “career roadmap” for the firm’s staff. This interactive platform clarifies roles, career paths and the expectations for development and leadership. Boyle also serves as a senior project architect for some of the firm’s most complex work, including the award-winning Stephen A. Levin Neural & Behavioral Sciences Building at the University of Pennsylvania and multiple projects for Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering.

Boyle joined SmithGroup in 1998 and is an active member of AIA Detroit, serving as the organization’s vice president and president-elect in 2019. She is a graduate of Illinois Institute of Technology where she received a Bachelor of Architecture degree. Boyle currently resides in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan.

John Crump, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB, is promoted to vice president, continuing in his role as the Workplace studio leader for the firm’s Washington, DC office. Crump, who joined the firm in 1997, has brought a unique design vision to several of the firm’s prominent corporate commercial and hospitality projects in the DC area, including serving as the principal in charge for the Canopy by Hilton and Hyatt House hotels at The Wharf, a $2 billion mixed-use development that is changing the face of the Southwest Waterfront. He was also the principal in charge for the Class A office building at 1700 New York Avenue NW, a location that serves as SmithGroup’s home in the District of Columbia.

Crump is actively involved with the AIA DC chapter and holds a position on their board of directors. He earned a Bachelor of Architecture, followed by a Master of Architecture degree, both from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Originally from Portland, Maine, Crump now lives in Washington, DC.

Mark Jussaume, PE, LEED AP, who joined the firm in 2018 as part of SmithGroup’s acquisition of TRO, continues in his current role as office director the firm’s Boston office. He joined TRO in 1990 and served as the firms’ CEO prior to the acquisition. In his current position, he played a critical role in leading the integration of TRO SmithGroup. Additionally, he has led the expansion of the office’s expertise through the development of Higher Education and Science & Technology studios. All of these efforts have contributed to a significant increase in the firm’s visibility in the New England market.

Jussaume’s leadership skills go beyond his technical expertise. He is focused on creating a purpose driven culture that invites staff to learn, grow and thrive in ways that create value for the firm’s clients in the context of doing meaningful work. He is also trained in executive coaching through the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (IPEC).

Jussaume is a graduate of Wentworth Institute of Technology where he earned a Bachelor of Science in engineering technology. He is a member of the Lean Construction Institute and has been active in sharing lean principles across the firm. A native of New Bedford, Massachusetts, he now lives in North Easton, Massachusetts.

Ann Kenyon, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, is promoted to vice president, continuing as the Health studio leader at the firm’s Detroit office. Her expertise is centered on strategic planning for health systems as well as designing facilities to serve the specialized needs of oncology, acute care and ambulatory care. Her project experience includes serving as the principal in charge for a variety of the firm’s healthcare projects across the region, including the Detroit Medical Center Sinai Grace Hospital expansion, Karmanos Cancer Institute and South Tower expansion at McLaren Port Huron and the Beaumont Health System Proton Therapy Center.

Kenyon has been with SmithGroup since 2008 and is a member of AIA Huron Valley chapter. She holds a Bachelor of Science in architecture and a Master of Architecture, both from the University of Michigan. Originally from Rosebush, Michigan, Kenyon currently lives in Wixom, Michigan.

John Kretschman, PE, who joined the firm in 1999, continues in his current role as director of operations for the firm’s Madison office. In this role, he is part of a leadership group that has sparked tremendous growth in the office, including the expansion from a focus solely on planning and engineering services to a team that now includes a staff of ten architects. In addition to his operations responsibilities, Kretschman has over 20 years of experience in project management and waterfront engineering, which includes his current role as the principal in charge for one of the firm’s most prominent international projects, the Ayia Napa Marina, a premier resort destination currently under construction in Cyprus. 

Kretschman is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering. A native of Verona, Wisconsin, he now lives in Oregon, Wisconsin.

ZY Liu, PhD,PE, LEED AP, is promoted to vice president and continues to serve as chief structural engineer. In this role, he strives to find safe, economical and creative structural solutions to address the challenges from his design partners. His recent work includes the expansive Wanxiang Innova City in Hangzhou China as well as multiple projects at the University of Michigan, including the recently completed Biological Sciences Building and the renovation and expansion of the Literature, Science and the Arts building.

Liu is a member of Structural Engineers Association of Michigan and has been with SmithGroup since 1991. He holds a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from Tongji University, a Master of Science in structural engineering from the University of Michigan and a PhD in structural engineering from the University of Michigan. Originally from Xiangshan, Zhejiang in China, Liu currently lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Lori Singleton, PLA, ASLA, is promoted to vice president and continues to serve as a corporate design director for the firm. Singleton’s work for the firm includes her role as the lead site designer for The District Detroit and Little Caesars Arena, a 50-block mixed-use development in the heart of the city. Additional project highlights include the University of Michigan Biological Sciences Buildingand the United States Consulate in Porto Alegre, Brazil. In all of her project work, Lori demonstrates her passion for how design can create places of inspiration and foster experiences that allow people to connect to the space and each other.

Singleton joined SmithGroup in 2013 and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects. She is a graduate of Michigan State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in landscape architecture. She is originally from Livonia, Michigan and currently lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

John Tran, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB, is promoted to vice president and continues to serve as a design principal for the firm’s Phoenix office. Tran joined SmithGroup in 2014 and has over 20 years of experience designing projects throughout the world. His work covers various markets including mixed-use, retail, entertainment, aviation and civic projects. In his current role, he is leading the design work for a wide range of the firm’s projects including the south concourse development at Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport Terminal 4 and the Hines Collier Center residential tower in downtown Phoenix.

Tran is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He is originally from Saigon, Vietnam and currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona.

David Vernellis, PE, LEED AP is promoted to vice president, continuing in his role as director of operations for SmithGroup’s Phoenix office. In this position, he is involved with a wide variety of firmwide operational tasks including developing protocols to better utilize the firm’s expertise and specialty services, overseeing financial and operational aspects of the Shanghai office and serving as the operations liaison to the Healthcare practice. Vernellis joined the firm’s Detroit office in 2000 and worked on many projects across a wide variety of market areas including the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago-Detroit branch, Visteon Village headquarters and the Western Michigan University College of Health and Human Sciences building. In 2006, he relocated to Phoenix as a project manager and took on his current role shortly thereafter.

Vernellis is a graduate of the University of Michigan, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering as well as a Master of Science in structural engineering. Raised in Lansing, Michigan, Vernellis currently lives in Phoenix, Arizona.  

Chris Wood, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, is promoted to vice president, continuing in his dual roles as the Cultural practice director for the firm, as well as the Cultural studio leader for the Washington, DC office. In these roles, Wood guides the firm’s work across a wide range of projects to create custom design solutions for museums and cultural institutions. Wood is a hands-on leader, serving as the project manager for the Franklin Institute Science Center Master Plan and the principal in charge for the New York location of the Museum of Pop Culture. Additionally, he managed the design of the David and Fela Shapell Collections and Conservation and Research Center for the US Holocaust Memorial Museum .

Wood has been with SmithGroup since 1999. He is actively engaged in a variety of industry organizations tied to the Cultural market including the American Alliance of Museums, Society of American Archivists and International Association of Museum Facility Administrators. He is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute, where he received a Bachelor of Architecture degree. Wood, a native of Annandale, Virginia, now resides in Waterford, Virginia.

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