Jane M. Jacobsen

Apart from being one of the founding members of CWA, Jane Jacobsen had over 36 years of federal service when she retired in 1992.  She worked with the Federal Aviation Administration for 18 1/2 years and with the U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers for 16 1/2 years.  She also worked with the EPA and Federal Highway Administration as well as in private industry.  Her experience ranged from preliminary planning through development of complete contract drawings and documents for building and air traffic control towers.  She did master planning/site planning for individual buildings up through full military bases the size of small communities.  She also worked in reviewing environmental assessments/impact statement, processing construction grant applications and consulted on architectural and environmental issues.  She worked on air traffic control towers and base buildings for O’Hare Field, Miday, Dupage, Minneapolis, Detroit, Pontiac, Ypsilanti and Carbondale.

Jane was an active member of CWA for many years and participated in two CWA exhibits: “Chicago Women Architects: Contemporary Directions” and “Women’s Voices, Women’s Choices.”  She encourages women entering the profession to work hard, become licensed as soon as possible, and join and actively participate in CWA and other professional organization.  She feels that, for her, CWA provided women with a group where they could meet socially, promote the profession, and encourage younger women to follow their lead.