AEC Advisors
Grimanesa Amorós
Grimanesa is an interdisciplinary American artist, born in Lima, Peru, globally known for her large-scale light sculpture installations that focus on concepts of personal identity and community. Her works incorporate elements from sculpture, video, lighting, and technology to create site-specific installations to engage architecture and create community. Grimanesa was a guest speaker at TEDGlobal 2014. She was granted the Visionary Art Show: Lifetime Achievement Award (Italy), Bronx Museum of the Arts: AIM Alumni Artist Award (NY), The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Visual Artist Fellowship, the ‘NEA Artist Travel Grant’, and is part of the ‘Art In Embassies Program of the U.S.’ Grimanesa frequently gives talks at museums and universities, and her art has been displayed in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America.
Cheryl McKissack Daniel
Cheryl is President and CEO of McKissack & McKissack. She is a civil engineer with more than 25 years of experience in all phases of the construction industry. Cheryl’s grandfather, Moses McKissack, founded the family business in 1905. McKissack & McKissack, the oldest minority and woman-owned professional design and construction firm in the nation which has contracted more than $50BN in construction over the past decade. Cheryl serves on various boards, including the New York Building Congress, New York Women’s Forum, Greater New York ACE Mentor Program and Women’s Builders Council. She serves on Mayor de Blasio’s OneNYC Advisory Board, Jobs for New Yorkers Task Force and the MWBE Advisory Council Cheryl earned both a bachelor and master’s degree in civil engineering from Howard University.
Sarah Williams Goldhagen
Former Harvard professor, prizewinning critic, and pathbreaking author, Sarah is one of nation’s leading thinkers on the present and future of the built environment. Her most recent book, Welcome to Your World: How the Built Environment Shapes Our Lives (HarperCollins, 2017), draws on the latest scientific findings to demonstrate that excellent built environmental design profoundly affects how people think, feel, and act, both as individuals and in groups. Sarah coordinates with clients, policymakers, designers, and users to build a shared vision and devise actionable strategies to create enriching, sociable, economically vibrant and equitable environments. She lectures nationally and internationally at major universities, industry conferences, and to the general public.
Mikyoung Kim
Mikyoung Kim is a landscape architect and founding principal of Mikyoung Kim Design. For over two decades, Mikyoung Kim has crafted an exceptional body of work that explores the intersection of art and science, defining the art of ecology and restorative experience. Her firm functions as an idea lab: a think tank of innovative landscape architects, architects, graphic designers, and artists. Mikyoung has been awarded over fifty national and regional design excellence awards. She is an Olmsted Scholar, was named an AD Innovator by Architectural Digest and is a recipient of the Jacob Weidenman Prize and the Veronica Rudge Green Prize from Harvard. Her body of work is part of the Smithsonian Museum’s “American Voices” Collection. Mikyoung is a Professor Emerita at the Rhode Island School of Design and has taught at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Samantha Magistro
Samantha is Chief Executive Officer at Bronx Pro, a neighborhood-based firm dedicated to community development through affordable housing investments since 1988. Bronx Pro’s mission is to develop quality housing that is affordable, sustainable and builds communities. The company is engaged in Real Estate Development, Construction, Building Management and Resident Services. Samantha spearheads larger scale development projects and new business development. While pursuing her graduate studies, she worked at the Manhattan Borough President’s Office as well as at Enterprise Community Partners. Samantha has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Studies from Barnard College and a Master’s of Science in Urban Planning from Columbia University. She is a board member of Women in Housing and Finance and The DreamYard Project.
Vincent Salvatoriello
Vincent is a seasoned design and construction professional who is currently the President and CEO of Strategix as well as a Professor in the Civil Engineering departments at Cooper Union and Stevens Institute of Technology. Over the course of his 25+ year career, he has commanded increasing levels of responsibility and accountability, allowing him to manage very large projects, in excess of $400M in construction value. Vincent has safety certifications from OSHA and the US Army Corps of Engineers. He holds degrees in Mechanical Engineering Technology (BS, New Jersey Institute of Technology), Engineering Management (MS, New Jersey Institute of Technology) and Construction Management (Ph.D., Stevens Institute of Technology) as well as an Executive degree from the Wharton School of Business.
Nader Tehrani
Nader Tehrani is Dean of The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at Cooper Union as well as a professor. He is principal of NADAAA, a practice dedicated to the advancement of design innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and an intensive dialogue with construction practices. He has been recognized with numerous notable awards such as the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Architecture, and his work has been exhibited at venues such as the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. Prior to Cooper Union, Nader has taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD), the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), Georgia Tech, and University of Toronto. Nader received a B.F.A. and a B.Arch from RISD and an M.A.U.D. from Harvard’s GSD in 1991.