About Us

Potomac 2009/2010 Officers

Lisa Siri, President

Lisa Siri, ASLA

Lisa Siriamnuaypas received her Masters in Landscape Architecture from the University of Michigan. Her consulting skills are crafted through 10 years of client service experience. As a registered Landscape Architect, she thrives on the creative generation of visual and physical experiences. She managed and designed significant projects such as waterfront and urban revitalization while working at EDAW, Inc. and Sasaki Associates. She designed and managed rooftop gardens with bioremediation and Silver LEED certification while at Oehme van Sweden and Associates. Lisa also volunteered and participated in the Green Urbanism Conference 2007 and has been the Potomac Chapters Treasurer in 2007/2008.

Karen Kumm Morris, Past President

Karen Kumm Morris, ASLA
Karen.Kumm@mncppc-mc.org

Karen has 30 years experience in landscape architecture, planning and urban design working for the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, Montgomery County. She has received awards for her urban design and planning work in areas such as the Chevy Chase Metro station, Bethesda’s downtown Central Business District and a variety of projects in the I-270 Corridor. She received her BLA from University of Arizona and MLA from University of Massachusetts. Prior to working for the M-NCPPC, she worked for EDAW, Inc’s Alexandria office and the Partners For Livable Places. Most recently, she received the Maryland APA Chapter award for Outstanding Community Plan in 2006 for her Shady Grove Sector Plan, a 2,000 acre metro served planning area, cited for its smart growth land use plan, urban park network and pedestrian friendly street system. She chaired the Potomac Chapter’s awards jury in 1997 and has been an invited juror to design studios at the George Washington University’s Landscape Design Program and Virginia Tech. She also enjoyed collaborating on product design with Victor Stanley, Inc for the Bethesda Trash Receptacle and Smith Midland for the I-270 noise walls.

Bethany Carton, President-Elect

Bethany Carton, ASLA
Bethany.carton@alexandriava.gov

Beth Carton graduated from Iowa State University with a Bachelors in Landscape Architecture. She has worked for the Office of James Burnett in California and is currently working as a Park Planner for the City of Alexandria's Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities. Ms. Carton has been on the faculty at George Washington University since 2008 where she teaches in the Landscape Design Program. She has been a guest lecturer at the University of Maryland and involved in student outreach for Iowa State University.

Ms. Carton has been on the Chapter's Time:Space Project committee since 2007, preparing for the 2010 National Meeting in Washington, D.C. She has served on the Executive Committee as Chapter Sectretary in 2008-2009 and looks forward to continueing to serve the chapter and expanding member outreach.

Ron Kagawa, Trustee

Ron Kagawa, ASLA
Ron.Kagawa@alexandriava.gov

Ron M. Kagawa, ASLA served as Potomac Chapter President in 2000-2001, on the Chapter Executive Committee 1999-2001, and as invited juror for the Great Plains Chapter Annual Awards Program in 2005. He holds an undergraduate degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Texas-Arlington(1985) and a graduate degree in Architecture from Virginia Tech(1996)-both with academic honors, and is licensed in both Texas and Maryland(1988). In 1996 Ron founded the Landscape Architecture program at Virginia Tech’s Washington-Alexandria Center and as Associate Professor, served as Program Coordinator until 2005, and since 1988 has remained on the active faculty of The George Washington University’s Landscape Design Program. His constructed works have been professionally honored and his academic works have been published in numerous conference proceedings. Ron is co-author of the City of Alexandria, Virginia’s Landscape Guidelines(1997/2007) and the critically acclaimed Cobb’s Island, Virginia: The Last Sentinel(Donning Press, 2003). He is Senior Landscape Architect and Planner with the City of Alexandria’s Department of Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities.

Sarah Couchman, Secretary

Sarah Couchman, ASLA

scouchman@lardnerklein.com

Sarah is a landscape architect with Lardner/Klein Landscape Architects, P.C. in Alexandria, VA. Sarah joined the firm as an intern while pursuing her degree in landscape architecture and accepted a full-time position upon graduating. Since joining the firm, she has worked on several projects throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, among them two natural resources management plans for Fairfax County; multiple scenic byway corridor management plans, including the award-winning Journey Through Hallowed Ground; park master plans; and numerous GIS mapping projects. This work has enabled Sarah to pursue her interest in context sensitive design, watershed management and planning. She is a graduate of Wellesley College and has a MLA from Virginia Tech's Washington Alexandria Architecture Center.

Mark Mastalerz, Treasurer

Mark Mastalerz, ASLA
MarkM@rhodeside-harwell.com

Mr. Mastalerz, Managing Principal of Rhodeside & Harwell, a 25-person landscape architecture and planning firm in Alexandria, also serves as the Technical Director for the firm and is its LEED coordinator. He is a registered landscape architect in Virginia and Maryland and has over 30 years experience on both private and public sector projects including small-scale residential gardens, multi-million dollar commercial developments, institutional and governmental facilities, highway and transportation projects, and public park and recreational areas. He has worked with numerous architects, engineers, developers, owner project managers, and government agencies throughout the metropolitan Washington-Baltimore area and the Mid-Atlantic region. He has a BSLA from Penn State and has been a member of ASLA and the Potomac Chapter since 1982. He is also a member of the Construction Specifications Institute, the US Green Building Council and served on both the Arlington County Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Commission and the City of Alexandria Beautification Commission. He is currently serving on the Potomac Chapter Executive Committee as Treasurer (2008-2009).

Jeannette Ankoma-Sey, Member-At-Large
Adele Ashkar, Member-At-Large

Paul Kelsch, Member-At-Large