Thomas Roszak: College of Architecture Graduate Program Lecturer

Since graduating from Illinois Institute of Technology in 1989, Thomas Roszak has left an astounding imprint on Chicago’s built environment, from the welcome center at Adler Planetarium to recently completed high-rise office building at 145 South Wells. In the years since founding his practice in the mid-’90s, Roszak was honored to be in the special 2005 Architectural Digest Architecture Issue, being named among the best residential architects, and won an American Institute of Architects award in 2008 for the interior design of Glasshouse, his personal residence in Northfield, Illinois.

Roszak’s expertise as an architect extends beyond his design acumen, practicing “integrated project delivery,” in which architects fold together the design, construction, financing, marketing, branding, and development process from the very beginning, rather than through the traditional method of design-bid-build. 

“Being an architect and a construction manager and doing real estate development at the same time adds benefit to your shareholders because you have a total understanding of the process beyond just design,” says Roszak. “It allows you to make intelligent decisions based on that total approach.”

On March 4 Roszak will be at S. R. Crown Hall to speak more about his experience in integrated project delivery and how young architects can excel by having a complete understanding of the building delivery process beyond design.