Jill Swensen

  • Jill Swensen Architecture Higher Education SmithGroup Pittsburgh
  • Jill Swensen Architecture Higher Education SmithGroup Pittsburgh

Jill feels fortunate to have been born a Gen Xer. “We are the generational bridge between analog and digital,” she suggests. “We were raised with the head-down, work-hard values of the Greatest Generation and the Boomers but understand and value the technological innovative younger generations. It gives us flexibility and perspective to be open-minded and adaptable to change.” Jill uses those traits on Science & Technology, Healthcare, and Higher Education projects, which she describes as “complex environments that demand good future-proofing strategies.” She seeks to understand trends in learning and research, and is a frequent speaker at conferences across the country, leading teams on multiple award-winning projects. Playing it safe is not Jill’s style. She relishes the opportunity to travel “somewhere completely new and foreign—that type of experience ‘wakes me up’ and gives me a heightened awareness,” she explains. And she offers a telling quote from one of her favorite books, The Art of Racing in the Rain: “There’s no dishonor in losing the race. There’s only dishonor in not racing because you’re afraid to lose.”