A Passion for Compassion

Susan Feeney is an architect with Steele Group Architects, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Steele Group is primarily focused on multi-family housing and senior living, doing work throughout the Southeastern United States.

Susan’s dream as a child was to become a residential architect. She would tour model homes for fun with her mom to feel inspired and dream of her own designs. These early dreams eventually paved the way to a career path in architecture, which began with the University of Texas at Arlington, which she attended for her undergrad and graduate degrees. After the completion of her undergraduate degree, she worked at a medium-sized firm in Dallas briefly. At this firm, she gained experience in the field, primarily working on Class A business and office campuses. It was shortly after this time that she went back to graduate school. 

Due to a change in her husband’s job in 2001, Susan relocated to Winston-Salem and took a position with CJMW Architecture, working primarily in their healthcare and senior living studios. Her interest in senior living was influenced in part by a respected leader in the senior living studio she was working with at that time, who she considered somewhat of a mentor. She was with CJMW for nine years, however, as a casualty of the recession, she was laid off and became a sole practitioner for 4 years doing small projects and consulting for other firms in the area. In 2014, she went back to CJMW briefly as a consultant, and in 2016, joined Steele Group, where she proudly works today.

Susan continues to find joy in design for senior living, as it marries her original love for residential design with her healthcare experience, in addition to the unique amenities and hospitality aspect which are part of the senior living experience. She shares, “Senior living is an amazing environment to work in and our clients are wonderful to work with. They are in the caring for elderly business and are very compassionate about what they do. It’s really inspiring and it’s easy to want to do this.” She has been excited for dining trends as well as emerging well-being experiences, such as pickleball courts and wellness centers. Throughout the design process, she enjoys problem solving for things that may change during the life of a project, as many of these projects take place over a long period of time, creating moments in which they must pivot. Through this process, she has formed strong relationships with the clients she serves.

As a female in the field of architecture, Susan’s interactions and circumstances have been overwhelmingly positive. She believes her life experiences as a mother and a woman have given her an edge in understanding how to address certain challenges in design. “Women bring a different perspective than men and [we] make a good team for that reason.”  

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Collaboration

Megan Crites, Senior Associate, MKM architecture + design, interviewer 

Jenn Storey, Marketing Manager, MKM architecture + design, author  

Part of the Design for Aging Knowledge Community – Women in Architecture Series

What is Design for Aging? And who is designing these spaces? The AIA Design for Aging Knowledge Community shares knowledge in the design community aimed at improving the built environment for those in our society who are aging. That’s the short answer; a lot more research and practice goes into improving the spaces we design. And who is designing these spaces? Over the years, the architecture profession has been male-dominated. However, that fabric is changing. Female architects have been growing in numbers across the board, from technical designers, project managers, project architects, design architects, studio leaders, and business owners.

How does this growth in female design professionals reflect in senior living and care environments? The fabric is also changing in their industry. More females are Executive Directors, CEO’s, COO’s, and CFO’s of senior living campuses and care communities. The impact of this shift creates a transformation in dialogue and who’s voice is being heard.

So, the question came up, how can we highlight the growing voices of female architects who are focusing on Design for Aging? Interviews, for a start, and writing articles that highlight the architects and their work.

Several questions were posed to female architects across the United States. Where did you grow up? Where did you go to college? What does your career path look like? How or when did you start designing spaces for aging? What are you the most excited about in the work you are doing? What are you losing sleep over? What advise do you have for other female architects? And so on.

The experiences and conversations varied from interview to interview. Which is an important piece of the narrative for every Architect to hear. There were also some common threads that should not be ignored. What is our industry doing right? What do we need to stop doing? And more over, how can architects continue to positively impact Design for Aging?