The Boston studio of Perkins and Will has strengthened its leadership team through two key internal promotions. Yanel de Angel and Stephen Sefton have been named principals following years of valuable contributions to the Higher Education and Sports, Recreation, and Entertainment practices, respectively.

“We’re committed to cultivating our talent from within,” said Robert Brown, principal and managing director of the Boston studio. “Yanel and Stephen exemplify how individual growth enables us to better serve our clients, and in that way, strengthen the Boston studio and the firm as a whole.”

Yanel de Angel

Yanel joined Perkins and Will early in her career as a designer and project manager and quickly established herself as vital to the firm’s regional and international Higher Education practice. She’s a founding member of the Perkins and Will Project Delivery Board, and plays an active role on the firm’s Diversity Council. She’s also a member of the Boston Society of Architects’ Women in Design group. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, Yanel co-founded ResilientSEE, a global platform of design professionals, nonprofits, and academic institutions that provides pro bono resilient planning and design services to Puerto Rico, with the goal of eventually providing them to communities worldwide.

“I am thankful for my many growth opportunities since joining Perkins and Will,” she says. “In this role, I will continue to cultivate our Higher Education practice with a renewed focus on equity, sustainability, and resilience.”

Stephen Sefton

Stephen is a senior designer who has successfully led international design competitions and award-winning project teams, including the acclaimed Snyder Center at Phillips Academy Andover. His leadership has been essential to the Boston studio’s robust design culture as well as the continued development of our regional and national Sports, Recreation, and Entertainment practice. Stephen lectures on professional and intercollegiate athletics and regularly presents at conferences throughout the country.

“As principal, I can continue to cultivate the talent of young designers, raising the bar of design excellence in our studio,” he says. “I look forward to providing our clients with exceptionally designed facilities that exceed expectations.”

About Perkins and Will

Perkins and Will, an interdisciplinary, research-based architecture and design firm, was founded in 1935 on the belief that design has the power to transform lives. Guided by its core values—design excellence, diversity and inclusion, research, resilience, social purpose, sustainability, and well-being—the firm is committed to designing a better, more beautiful world. Fast Company named Perkins and Will one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies in Architecture, and industry rankings consistently place Perkins and Will among the world’s top design practices. With an international team of more than 2,700 professionals, the firm has over 20 studios worldwide, providing integrated services in architecture, interior design, branded environments, urban design, and landscape architecture. Partners include Danish architects Schmidt Hammer Lassen; retail strategy and design consultancy Portland; sustainable transportation planning consultancy Nelson\Nygaard; and luxury hospitality design firm Pierre-Yves Rochon (PYR). For more information, visit www.perkinswill.com.