Kari Nystrom’s exceptional design and project administration expertise drives Altieri’s success on large-scale multiphase projects with complex needs and significant design challenges.
Kari joined Altieri after receiving her Bachelor of Architectural Engineering in 1988. The firm’s first woman principal, Kari excels in large-scale, multiphase programs such as The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, as well as masterplanning and infrastructure projects including the many she has directed at the American Museum of Natural History over the past 24 years. Kari’s expertise is widely admired in the industry and is the underpinning of her long-standing client relationships. She is particularly known for her comprehensive focus on the details of a project throughout its life. In addition to leading one of Altieri’s six design studios, Kari performs electrical engineering for the firm’s most technical, challenging, and high-profile projects, and undertakes special assignments in architectural lighting design and control. She has lectured on systems integration at Yale University Graduate School of Architecture and regularly serves as a critic for review of Penn State Architectural Engineering Senior lighting and electrical theses. She volunteers with the Penn State Architectural Engineering Mentor program and NCEES, leads Altieri’s community educational outreach program, and is a member of Altieri’s Women in Engineering employee resource group.
