Gensler Chicago, headed by WashU alum, receives award from AIA Chicago

Architecture firm Gensler Chicago, led by Co-Managing Director Brian Vitale, MArch ’95, received the 2025 Firm Award from AIA Chicago. The award is the highest honor a firm can receive from its local chapter.

Vitale, who serves on the Sam Fox School’s National Council, has worked at the firm since 2006 and was named a principal in 2017. He’s seen the firm through such projects as the reimagining of the Willis Tower, Columbia College Chicago Student Center, Gratz Center at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago, Cadillac House Shanghai, and more. He is a previous honoree of the school’s Awards for Distinction and was named one of the 50 people shaping Chicago’s design culture.

AIA Chicago’s Executive Director Jen Masenberg said that “Gensler’s impact in Chicago reaches beyond individual projects, often extending to multi-year collaborations with institutions and companies working to strengthen our city. This award recognizes not only Gensler’s design expertise, but their dedication to fostering the next generation of architects who are shaping both design decisions at the firm and the future of the profession.”