For more than 22 years, Lisa Gomperts has been the kind of project leader clients remember. Not just because their projects finished on time and on budget, but because she made the entire process feel like a genuine partnership.

Her 2017 elevation to the AIA College of Fellows, one of the profession’s highest honors, reflects what colleagues and clients have known for years: Lisa brings a rare combination of precision, systematic thinking, and quiet tenacity to every project she touches.

Her work has shaped some of Schmidt Associates’ most meaningful client relationships, built a culture of lifelong learning from the inside out, and helped define what servant leadership looks like in practice. The throughline of her career is consistent: she sees a gap, builds a system to address it, and then asks who else could benefit.

Building a Career on Precision and Care

Lisa’s path to architecture began with a simple love of building things. She grew up constructing dollhouses with her mother and became the family’s go-to assembler for anything requiring careful construction. That instinct for building things with care and purpose never left her.

“I have always enjoyed building things. I just enjoy putting things together.”

LISA GOMPERTS

That passion has defined her approach at Schmidt Associates. What truly sets Lisa apart is not just her ability to deliver projects on time and on budget, but her instinct for building the systems, relationships, and teams that make better outcomes possible, for clients and colleagues alike.

Signature projects across communities

Lisa has served as project manager on some of Schmidt Associates’ most defining work in education, civic, sustainability, and community design:

• Hoosier Energy Headquarters: A LEED Gold Certified headquarters that reduced water usage by 40%, cut energy costs by $10,000 annually despite a 40% increase in square footage, and improved occupant productivity by 10-15%. A robust public education program on sustainable design, including building tours and interactive kiosks, set a new standard for responsible workplace design.
• PR Mallory Redevelopment: An adaptive reuse of the historic PR Mallory factory, transformed into innovative learning spaces for Paramount School of Excellence and Purdue Polytechnic High School. Exposed trusses, original brick, and large steel doors were preserved alongside modern design, anchoring a larger neighborhood revitalization effort.
• Scott College of Business, Indiana State University: A two-phase renovation of a historic federal courthouse into a modern College of Business. The project balanced historic character—plaster-arched ceilings, marble wainscoting, and decorative finishes—with high-tech flexible classrooms, a trading lab, and a student-run café.
• Regenstrief Institute Headquarters: A workplace transformation built on deep stakeholder engagement, delivering a collaborative, light-filled headquarters with high-end office space, fitness areas, a green roof, a roof patio, and an art-filled entry plaza—all designed to inspire cultural change.
• Marian University, Allison Mansion Addition and Renovation: A historically sensitive renovation that expanded accessibility and created a dedicated alumni home on campus for the first time, complete with an accessible entrance, enclosed event space, and an accessible lift—all while honoring the Mansion’s 1911 architectural heritage.

Building a Culture of Lifelong Learning

Shortly after joining Schmidt Associates in 2004, Lisa identified a gap most firms would have overlooked. Staff training existed, but it was scattered, vendor-driven, and disconnected from the firm’s strategic goals. She responded by developing a business plan and launching Schmidt Academy in 2005, transforming ad-hoc learning sessions into a comprehensive, curriculum-driven training program aligned with the firm’s values and strategic objectives.

The impact has been measurable and lasting:

• More than 350 courses developed, equating to nearly 5,000 learning units
• Construction supplements reduced by more than 300%
• Voluntary turnover reduced from 14% to 9% or less, 8 out of 11 years
• Named a “Best Places to Work” by the Indiana Chamber for 17 consecutive years, earning a place in the Best Places to Work Hall of Fame

Those numbers tell a story about staff development, but they also tell a story about clients. Fewer construction errors mean smoother projects. Lower turnover means clients work with experienced, familiar teams. Schmidt Academy was never just an internal investment, it was a commitment to better outcomes for everyone the firm serves.

True to form, Lisa did not stop there. Seeing Schmidt Academy’s impact firsthand, she helped the Indiana Chapter of the American Red Cross develop its own in-house training program, Red Cross University. A system built for one firm became a model others could follow.

Creating Partnerships, Not Just Projects

Lisa creates an environment where owners can articulate their vision and watch it come to life. Her clients consistently praise not just her technical expertise, but her collaborative spirit and grace under pressure.

“Working with Lisa Gomperts as a mentor has been the most transformative experience for my professional growth.”

Cheryl Wendholt, Schmidt Associates

“Every day is different,” Lisa notes. “I have different types of projects, different clients, and different challenges. I enjoy being able to take data and information to help owners find an effective solution to their challenges.”

Shaping the Profession

That same pattern, seeing what is broken, building something better, and extending its reach, has defined Lisa’s contributions to the AIA. While many firm-level practitioners focus inward, Lisa has worked at the national, regional, and local levels to raise the quality of architectural education and strengthen the profession’s infrastructure, work that is uncommon for someone also leading complex projects and running a firmwide training program simultaneously.

As chair of the AIA Continuing Education Committee in 2014, Lisa overhauled how the organization selects and evaluates convention programming, implementing a peer review process that more than doubled presentation submissions in four years. She took that same framework to the regional level, co-chairing the 2015 Ohio Valley Region Convention and achieving a 10% increase in session quality ratings over three years. Locally, she led the financial consolidation of five Indiana AIA chapters into a single unified organization, work so effective that three other states sought guidance from AIA Indiana afterward.

Putting Indianapolis on the Map

The same instinct showed up in 2012, when more than 150,000 visitors descended on Indianapolis for Super Bowl XLVI. Lisa saw a chance to introduce the city’s architectural heritage to a national audience and build something that would last long after the game was over. As president of AIA Indianapolis, she led the development of an expanded online, self-guided architectural walking tour, recruiting local architects as narrators for 12 significant structures surrounding the stadium. The result was an expansion of walkindianapolis.com, a free public resource that has generated more than 100,000 page views since its launch and continues to be actively promoted by Visit Indy.

A Commitment to Growth and Collaboration

One of Lisa’s greatest strengths is her willingness to seek outside perspectives. “I felt like asking questions was a sign of weakness when I was younger,” she admits. “The older I have gotten, the more I have realized outside opinions and perspectives only strengthen what I am doing.”

That openness extends to the way she invests in the people around her.

“She consistently challenges me to expand my capabilities, not only in areas where I already feel confident, but also in the spaces that initially feel intimidating. Those daunting tasks have ultimately become my greatest opportunities for growth.”

Cheryl Wendholt

Wendholt also notes that Lisa “demonstrates what it looks like to lead by action,” adding that her persistence and success serve as a powerful model for women in the profession.

Service Beyond the Drawing Board

Lisa’s commitment to others extends well beyond her professional work, and in ways that are deeply personal. She has volunteered with the Red Cross and currently with Firefly Children and Family Alliance (formerly Children’s Bureau), driven by a genuine investment in youth and a desire to support those facing the hardest moments of their lives.

That connection between her professional work and her values runs deeper than volunteerism. When Schmidt Associates designed the Children’s Bureau Family Support Center, the first public service nonprofit facility in Indiana to earn LEED Gold certification, Lisa did not stop at the building. She helped create educational materials so the children served by the facility could learn about its environmental features. The project reflects something consistent in Lisa’s approach: she designs for people, not just programs.

She also mentors young people with limited exposure to careers in architecture, engineering, and construction, giving them the kind of access and guidance that can change the trajectory of a life.

“I have an inherent interest in our youth and a soft spot when I see kids struggling. From little guys to young adults, Firefly does so much to support them.”

LISA GOMPERTS

Her dedication to service earned her the Mallon Award from Firefly Children and Family Alliance in 2023, recognizing her outstanding contributions to the organization.

A Lasting Impact

Lisa’s legacy at Schmidt Associates is one of principled project leadership, deep commitment to client success, and meaningful service to the community. That pattern runs through everything she has built, every team she has shaped, and every organization she has touched throughout her career.

As Schmidt Associates marks its 50th anniversary, we are privileged to celebrate someone who has spent more than two decades making the whole far greater than the sum of its parts, for her clients, her colleagues, and her profession.