Ellen McAmis moves mountains. Or rather, she climbs mountains – but after you’ve done that, is moving one all that difficult? Climbing gives Ellen the confidence to tackle most things, whether it’s organizing a survey of 1,200 libraries in California, compiling four proposals and two interviews in one week, or coordinating a 3am architectural photo shoot.

Ellen likes variety in her work. She’s proud of the part she plays in bringing in interesting projects for the architects to work on. She inhales free food and will cut you in the office “Game of Thrones” betting pool.

While her years of studying Arabic aren’t very useful in her job, the research skills she gained getting a master’s in Middle Eastern History come in handy every day. She can find a meme for any occasion. When not at work, Ellen spends hours gazing deeply into the eyes of her tiny and not-very-bright dog. It’s her happy place.