Bringing fresh perspectives to our studios in 2024
We have a smart and skilled group of interns at OPN this year! Each one enhances their respective studio and we endeavor to bolster their experience similarly. Welcome to OPN …
Lucas Lowder
Cedar Rapids Studio
What school are you attending/did you graduate from? University of Miami
Degree and graduation year? Bachelor of Architecture, 2026
Past experience/notable projects/senior thesis? I am a Spanish double major.
Where are you originally from? Cedar Rapids, Iowa
What do you like about your industry? I love the ability to design and create something that has the potential to impact and change lives for many years.
What inspires your design? The way natural light interacts with form and space.
What’s a fun fact about you? I’m in an A Cappella group at UM called Phoenyx A Cappella.
Ethan Pulvermacher
Iowa City Studio
What school are you attending/did you graduate from? Illinois Institute of Technology
Degree and graduation year? Bachelor of Architecture, 2025
What’s a fun fact about you? I’ve played electric bass for a few years, and I’m now starting to build my own from scratch.
Where are you originally from? Naperville, Illinois
What do you like about your industry? I like making things. As I’ve gone through my education, I’ve come to really appreciate the permanence of architecture and its impact on people and communities.
What inspires your work? Most often it’s the things I can’t see. I try to be inspired by my other senses, like sound and feel.
If there was a movie about your life, who would star as you? Jack Black
Pooja Agarwal
Cedar Rapids Studio
What school are you attending/did you graduate from? Iowa State University
Where are you originally from? Lucknow, India
Degree and graduation year? Bachelor of Architecture, 2021; Master of Architecture, 2025
What do you like about your industry? Creativity, innovation, and problem solving with unique designs
Past experience/notable projects/senior thesis? B.Arch thesis was on a stadium & sports complex, experience in designing a railway station during my job at ARINEM Consultancy Services in India.
What inspires your work? Nature and travel
Jackson Myers
Des Moines Studio
What school are you attending/did you graduate from? University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Degree and graduation year? Architectural Design, 2025
What’s a fun fact about you? I play the Viola
Where are you originally from? Eden Prairie, Minnesota
What do you like about your industry? The permanency our work has in addition to physically changing and affecting the world.
What inspires your design? The correlation between art, music, fashion, and architecture. Also, how the design world as a whole has a physical, mental, and environmental impact.
What are you reading right now? The Egyptian Book of the Dead
Emily Kloostra
Des Moines Studio
What school are you attending/did you graduate from? University of Arkansas
Degree and graduation year? Bachelor of Architecture, 2025
Past experience/notable projects/senior thesis? I work in the woodshop as a Teaching Assistant for the Structures courses as well as interning with OPN last year.
Where are you originally from? Edwardsville, Illinois
What do you like about your industry? There are so many different avenues you can pursue.
What inspires your design? It always goes back to making a building that works for its inhabitants, not just a building that is pretty to look at.
One fun fact? During my study abroad I took a four hour roundtrip into a German field to go see Peter Zumthor’s Bruder Klaus Chapel.