With interests in art, history, science, and math, Jane was headed for pre-med at the University of Virginia, until a fateful trip accompanying a friend to Virginia Tech changed her path."I walked all around the school of architecture, then went to admissions and applied that same day," Jane recalled. As a student traveling through Europe, Jane found youth hostels uninspiring and discovered an alternative: "There were always monasteries close to every town, they were cheap, they included a meal, and they were very safe places--and whether new or old, they were inspiring ." She pointed out that monasteries were the "first form of education, " and the hierarchy of collegiate campuses takes "all their cues from early monastic diagrams," using schools like Oxford and Cambridge as early examples. "I studied them and drew them--it was quite delightful." Her thesis focused on contemporary monastery design about a future sustainable education model. Before graduating from architecture school, Jane worked for a DC firm and had the opportunity to contribute to spaces at both Catholic and Georgetown Universities. "I believe that launched my interest in campus design and great spaces for students," Jane said.

At her current firm, Jane and two of her partners launched three legacy educational programs to "stretch our thinking." Jane has been engaged with the firm's design retreat , which "take us out of our comfort zone," and she and the dean of the architecture school travel abroad with a handful of students on a week-long adventure. "We take sketchbooks and cameras, study great architecture and spaces. Thinking creatively outside of project work is essential," she said. The students have been to Egypt, Barcelona, Finland, Switzerland, Japan, and Portugal, and there are tentative plans to take a group to Cuba next spring. "If your job is to create great spaces and places, then your tool kit n eeds to be full of experiences," Jane concluded. And she collects her own cache of experiences in her spare time, continuing to travel. She does volunteer work in Kenya and Nicaragua , where she helps communities have clean water . In South Africa , Jane and a team from her office worked with universities in creating a vision in defining their student experience and the sense of place on their campuses. Those trips, family, and her philanthropic work in the arts and community service are how "retirement" looks to Jane.

At home in Norfolk, VA , she loves any outdoor activity, tinkering in the kitchen , photography (she snaps nearly 500 photos a month), and exploring her home state. "I love Virginia. It's wonderfully connected to cities, mountains, oceans, and history," Jane said. She and her husband have four children between them and four small grandchildren. She gushed, "My children are the loves of my life, and I'm looking forward to spending more time with my family. "

Since the clouds cleared just ahead of game time, BOMA Indy executive director Sarah Kuester and ServiceMaster's Josh Law and Steve Bryan happily donned their shades.

Kevin Ryan and Summit Realty Group's Jordan Speckman , who's also chairman of the Emerging Leaders Committee, gave us their winning smiles (even though Indianapolis lost with five runs to Norfolk's nine).

It turned out to be a perfect summer night for baseball in Indy, and when we snapped Josh Richards with Zeller Carmel's Tom McKneight , the giant grin on Tom's face says it all!