“Over the past 15 years, the Hands On Children’s Museum has grown from a hometown start-up to the most-visited children’s museum in the Pacific Northwest.  Alissa Rupp is a core component of its success.  Alissa served as a crucial part of the senior planning team by providing strategic thinking, thoughtful exhibit design and insightful solutions to help Hands On navigate multiple expansion plans and major exhibit design projects. She recently counseled the Museum through a one-of-a-kind renovation to transform a vintage schooner into a unique children’s exhibit. She is a gifted place-based designer with a dedication to helping organizations at any stage of their development. Hands On is a regional treasure thanks in part, to Alissa’s innumerable contributions over many years. “

~ Patty Belmonte, Executive Director, Hands On Children’s Museum

ALISSA RUPP FAIA, LEED, NCARB

FRAME founder, Alissa Rupp, is a leader in the design of places for community building, informal education and lifelong learning. She works with the conviction that we can improve public life through the serious work of creating spaces where art, nature, culture and play intersect. Her values include interdisciplinary thinking, collaboration, co-creation and clarity. On the projects she is most passionate about, the visitor experience is key; her wide definition of “client,” includes an organization’s staff, visitors, stakeholders, volunteers, collections, and even the flora and fauna of the project site. 

Alissa’s early career was forged in children’s museums; her positions on staff at the Boston and Seattle Children’s Museums led her to pursue architecture and exhibit design so that she could work with more museums. Since then, her goal has been to serve the field of Informal Education through design, strategic planning and thoughtfully executed capital projects. Her priorities include bringing the client’s VISION to the forefront early in a project, on par with cost, schedule and construction priorities, so that design and creativity can benefit from both aspirational and practical goals.


Highlights

  • Acting Director of Seattle Children’s Museum from February 2021 to July of 2022, aiding the board and staff in refreshing, renewing and reopening the museum after its pandemic closure.

  • 21 years with The Portico Group (now an office of MIG Inc.) leading projects with mission-driven clients, connecting people to  nature and culture through design. (President and CEO of Portico, 2014-2017, Principal at MIG 2017-2019.)

  • Presentations at national and international conferences on a wide array of topics, such as Effective Pre-design Strategies, Inclusive Design Strategies, Design of Donor Recognition, and the Care and Feeding of your Design Team.

  • Visitor facing and administrative experience, as a young professional, at Seattle Children’s Museum and Boston Children’s Museum. 

  • Board service with AIA Seattle, including as president (2018-19) and as a member of two strategic planning task forces (2014 and 2019). 

  • Program Committee service with the Association of Children’s Museum.

  • Degrees and Certificates from Vassar College, University of Washington, and the NewSchool of Architecture and Design.

Milestones

  • Fellow, American Institute of Architects, inducted 2017

  • Registered Architect, Washington State

  • Reciprocal Registrations: CO, FL, HI, ID, MA, NY, NC, OR, TN (CA Pending)

  • LEED Accredited Professional (BD+C)