People

Design Firm Appoints New Leadership

Glastonbury, CT – The S/L/A/M Collaborative (SLAM) has announced leadership changes within its education and healthcare practices, including a new appointment, leadership promotions, and retirement.

Luis Vildostegui

SLAM has appointed Luis Vildostegui, AIA as a principal and higher education practice leader, signaling an expansion of the firm’s Midwest and Mid-Atlantic presence and adding to the firm’s national expertise around higher education design. Based in the firm’s Philadelphia studio, Vildostegui brings over 30 years of experience designing and building educational facilities across the mid-Atlantic and abroad. He will oversee several of the firm’s key projects, including a new health information center for Northern Illinois University.

Amy Mund Christmas

Amy Mund Christmas is the newly named national market leader of the Higher Education practice with SLAM. Serving over 26 years with the firm, Christmas was one of the first accredited learning environment planners in Connecticut and has played a critical role in establishing SLAM’s innovative and future-proof approach to programming student-centered academic environments. In her role, Christmas will work across SLAM’s nine studios to apply a results-driven approach to campuses across the United States.

Marc Clear

SLAM has also appointed Marc Clear as principal and shareholder. Trained as an architect with robust experience managing a variety of project types, Clear has led the development of stadia, arenas, team facilities, and master plans nationwide. In his role, Clear will apply his expertise and diligent design efforts to the U.S. collegiate sports facility market.

After more than 40 years at the firm, SLAM announces the retirement of Richard Connell, FAIA, principal and long-standing leader of its Independent Education practice. The Independent Education practice will continue to be led by Geoffrey Gaunt, associate principal and national market leader of independent education with SLAM, who worked alongside Connell over the last 21 years of his career and co-leading the practice together for the last four.

Richard Connell (l) and Geoffrey Gaunt

As practice leader, Gaunt will continue to expand the firm’s national portfolio in campus master planning and innovative facility design with projects underway at Avon Old Farms, Friends Academy, Brunswick School, and Millbrook School.

The firm also announced new associate principals, Steve Martocchio, Christopher Ford, and Steve Murray.