Jane Rooney recognised for service to profession

Associate, Jane Rooney, has been made a Fellow of Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects – one of the first women to be made a Fellow in the Canterbury region. She is recognised by the Institute Board for her distinguished service to the architectural profession and community.

Jane has over 25 years of experience in architecture, working on a broad range of projects in the commercial, education, retail, and residential sectors in Aotearoa and the United Kingdom.  Her recent successes include the delivery of the St Andrew’s College Centennial Chapel, which gained the New Zealand Institute of Architects 2018 John Scott Award for Public Architecture.

Jane was instrumental in setting up the Architecture + Women New Zealand group in Ōtautahi and the staging of the RE-THINK Exhibition in September 2013. The aim of the exhibition was to promote and give visibility to women involved in architectural practice and to raise awareness of the importance of the built environment. These are both causes that Jane has continued to advocate for during her career.

Jane has also been a contributor to panel discussions, been an NZIA local award juror and is a member of the Open Christchurch Building Council for Te Pūtahi Christchurch. She is involved in formal and informal mentoring and maintains involvement with architectural education, being an industry advisor and visiting critic to the Ara Institute of Canterbury Architectural Studies programme and recently taking on the role of registration assessor for The New Zealand Registered Architects Board.

Jane has attained a high level of architectural design, while also contributing to the architectural community. She has worked to advocate for the importance of the built environment and champions diversity in the profession, consistently leading by example.