Meet our Newest Team Member

WSA introduces our newest team member in the Columbus Studio. Melissa Folzenlogen joins WSA as a Design Specialist. Melissa holds both a Bachelor and Master of Architecture from The Ohio State University. She is currently part of the team working with WSA’s partners at Converse Electric, Lakeshore Cryotronics, and The Islamic Society of East Columbus.

Melissa isn’t a stranger to WSA. The firm sponsored her graduate studies, and her mentor was WSA Principal and Vice President, R. Todd Boyer.

“Learning from Todd was a great opportunity, he really took his time explaining design and construction processes when we went on site visits. He was transparent about project timelines from start to finish and explained how to remediate any hiccups that arise during that timeline.” Folzenlogen said.

As a Design Specialist, Melissa’s expertise is applied to space planning. She also works within project teams to develop designs for presentations. These designs ensure solutions and programming meet clients’ goals and are clearly communicated. Melissa is drawn to detailing, and making sure that design choices are intentional at every level. She is also working to develop her knowledge of construction processes.

Melissa’s passion is for interior architecture, especially adaptive reuse.

“There’s an interesting creative challenge in blending existing architecture with new pieces – a challenge both from a design perspective, but also from the planning side in understanding how space can be used,” Folzenlogen said.

The studio culture is a big part of what drew Melissa to WSA. Alongside her design expertise she brings skills in cornhole that she plans to put to use at WSA’s annual cornhole tournament fundraiser.

“There is a huge emphasis on community. Joining the team you look forward to those experiences like seeing a place you designed come to life at an event, or interacting with clients and partners outside of a work setting, and of course having fun with the team,” Melissa said.

As a recent graduate, Melissa is one of the many young professionals that make up the WSA team. Working alongside experts in the field, Melissa brings a fresh perspective and looks forward to expanding her skillsets in architectural design.

Learn more about Melissa and the rest of the #WSAquacksquad here