Category: Spotlight Content

What was a pivotal point in your career? In 2012, after Hurricane Sandy devastated NYC, I was assigned to the city’s rebuilding efforts at the mayor’s Housing Recovery Office. I had never worked in housing recovery, let alone been involved with disaster response at this level.

In the past year, what project or accomplishment are you most proud of? Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to work on a variety of projects with talented engineers. Each of these projects has challenged my engineering knowledge and molded my leadership skills.

What is your favorite building in New York? I don’t know that I could pick just one. I have quite a few, for different reasons but I will say that my favorite ‘skyline’ view is always flying past the city at night. All of the buildings lit up and twinkling still gives me goose bumps to this day. 

In the past year, what project or accomplishment are you most proud of? The accomplishment I am most proud of is obtaining my Enrolled Agent (EA) license, the highest credential issued by the IRS. I challenged myself to pass the exam and obtain the certification before the busy tax season began, and I reached that goal.

What was a pivotal point in your career?  My most pivotal point work-wise was launching Eastman Cooke & Associates in 2009 with business partner Peter Morandi! At the time, I was a special education teacher working with students on the autism spectrum.

Which professional associations or organizations would you recommend to women who are starting out in the AEC industry? I highly recommend joining your local Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) chapter. For six years now, I have been a proud member of CREWNY, and currently, as the Communications Chair, I serve on the Board of Directors.