Amanda Wojtasiak, Graduate Architect

In this episode of the WGI Unleashed Podcast, hosts Dan and Katie sit down with Amanda Wojtasiak, a Graduate Architect in our Tampa office, whose path into the profession is anything but ordinary. Amanda brings a spark of creativity, a global childhood, and a love of learning to everything she touches, and this episode shines a light on the personality behind her growing design career at WGI.

From living overseas to mastering artistic crafts to racing sailboats under the moonlight, Amanda's story is filled with movement, energy, and curiosity. This episode offers a fun, vibrant look at one of the many talented young professionals shaping WGI's future.

A Childhood Filled with Culture, Curiosity, and Lots of Moving Around

Amanda may have been born in Maryland, but she grew up across two continents. After her family relocated to Orlando, FL, while Amanda was still in diapers, they later moved to a small town in Germany, where she attended an international school surrounded by classmates from all over the world. Her "core memories" include biking through town, weekend visits to local beer gardens, and neighborhood block parties where every family represented a different country.

She bounced between English, Spanish, and German as a child, picking up languages much like she picked up hobbies. Those early experiences taught her how to connect with others, adapt quickly, and appreciate the world through different cultural lenses.

Growing Up Creative

Creativity was always central in Amanda's home. She spent years sketching, painting, sculpting, and playing piano. With architects sprinkled throughout her mother's side of the family, she was constantly surrounded by blueprints, model homes, and design conversations. By the time she was old enough to imagine a career, the idea of designing meaningful spaces already felt familiar and exciting.

She balanced that artistic side with academics and athletics. In high school, she ran cross-country, took AP classes, and excelled in art studios, laying the groundwork for an early foundation of discipline, curiosity, and hands-on exploration.

Choosing Miami and Diving Into Architecture

When it came time for college, Amanda chose Florida International University for its accelerated five-year master's program. Miami felt like the perfect place to study design. The city's cultural energy, vibrant architecture, and global influence mirrored the environment she thrived in as a kid.

While there, Amanda found her way into the Robotics and Digital Fabrication Lab, a hands-on hub where students worked with 3D printers, industrial robotic arms, laser cutters, and more. She helped create a large-scale replica of an underwater research lab, a months-long project that combined engineering precision with artistic detail. It solidified her love of the technical side of design and introduced her to fabrication techniques that would later influence her professional work.

Launching Her Career and Landing at WGI

After graduation, Amanda completed a short-term role with a large A&E firm, but she quickly realized she wanted a place where she could learn, contribute, and participate in design conversations earlier in her career.

When she discovered an opening in WGI's Tampa architecture group, the timing felt perfect. Within weeks, she interviewed, joined the team, and began working across a variety of project types. What she found was exactly what she hoped for: supportive mentors, collaborative teammates, and an environment where questions, sketches, and curiosity are encouraged.

Seeing Ideas Come to Life in Real Projects

One of Amanda's defining experiences at WGI has been contributing to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority's Autonomous Innovation Center. She supported floor plan development and construction drawings, then later toured the completed building during the ribbon-cutting. Seeing her work translated into a real-world facility was both surreal and motivating, and it helped fuel her confidence as a young architect.

She is also part of a project in Miami that will incorporate 3D-printed concrete components. The connection between her academic fabrication work and her current design res