Wendel welcomes Pietkiewicz as director of project development

Buffalo, NY Wendel, a nationally recognized architectural, engineering, energy efficiency and construction management firm, welcomed Michael Pietkiewicz as director of project development. Pietkiewicz’s focus will be on the firm’s national higher education client sector. 

An executive who comes to Wendel with over 20 years in higher education experience at both Erie Community College (ECC) and the State University of New York at Buffalo (UB), Pietkiewicz brings a wealth of knowledge and past expertise with him. 

Pietkiewicz is currently a board member of the Thurman Thomas Family Foundation and the Amherst Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and had previously served as a member of the Erie Community College Foundation Board of Directors (ex-officio), the Buffalo Niagara Partnership Employ Buffalo Niagara Coalition Steering Committee, Association of American Universities (AAU) Council on Federal Relations, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities Council on Governmental Affairs and many others. 

Pietkiewicz received his BA, Political Science and History, Canisius College and his MBA, University at Buffalo and he was an Honoree of Buffalo Business First’s 40 Under Forty in 2008. 

Some of Pietkiewicz’s accomplishments include: 

• Played a critical role in the planning and execution of a new $30 million STEM building, a major capital project, co-funded by state, county and ECC to build new instructional space for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programs. 

• Served as team leader and strategist on UB 2020 public and government relations components including approval for $275 million UB School of Medicine and acceptance of multi-year rational tuition plan. 

• Created and executed a five-year strategic plan to obtain $25 million in Federal contributions for the UB Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, establishing UB’s presence on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. Raised a total of $27.75 million in four years, one year earlier than planned and exceeding the goal by $2.75 million.