By Dante Clemons
Issue 8 Summer 2011
Ashley Bellavia works as a Facilities Planning Consultant on a myriad of commercial and governmental projects in the Washington, DC area. A native of New Jersey, Ashley began her career in the residential sector, as a kitchen and bath designer. She has since worked as an Interior Designer for international banking clients in the commercial sector and most recently, in the public sector as a federal consultant.
Ashley graduated from Pratt Institute’s Design Management program in 2008, as the economic climate of the U.S. was massively changing. When the market for Interior Design jobs shrunk, Ashley utilized tools she developed in the Design Management curriculum to secure her next position. She relocated to Washington, DC to accept a position as a Facilities Planning Consultant. In this role, Ashley develops space-planning solutions, analyzes long-term real estate strategies and investigates the evolving sustainability requirements of federal agencies.
Ashley credits her degree in Design Management with enabling her to realize her professional worth, as the triple-bottom-line is now ingrained in her design approach in an industry where sustainability is becoming increasingly important. As the U.S. federal government and commercial companies
shift to place a high priority on sustainable building, Ashley is positioned to take advantage of the emerging opportunity for strategic, business-minded designers. She utilizes her skill set and expertise to develop strategic solutions to divest old buildings, retrofit existing structures, and streamline program requirements for new construction. In the future, she hopes to become a leader in facilities planning.
In addition to her M.P.S. in Design Management from Pratt Institute, Ashley holds a B.A. in Interior Design from Marymount University.