Patricia Gruits
Co-Executive Director of MASS Design Group
A non-profit architecture firm advancing a model of practice that promotes justice and human dignity through design. An architect and strategic leader, Patricia brings two decades of experience guiding transformative projects around the world — from health and education campuses to housing, memorials, and public landscapes.
About
Patricia is a champion of trauma-informed design and regenerative systems, leading interdisciplinary teams that embed research, equity, and community voice into every phase of the design process. Her work includes the award-winning Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda and the African Leadership University, among dozens of other mission-driven projects.
Under Patricia’s leadership, MASS has expanded its global reach and influence, helping shape the field through built work, advocacy, and research. The organization has been recognized with the National Design Award for Architecture from the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, Firm of the Year by the American Institute of Architects, and Innovator of the Year by the Wall Street Journal. MASS has also been featured in Architectural Digest, Fast Company, The New York Times, CNN, and CBS 60 Minutes.
She is an author of the Purpose Built series and led MASS’s first peer-reviewed impact evaluation. She currently lives with her family on the North Shore of Boston, where she also serves on the Board of the Boston Society for Architecture Foundation.
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Patricia is a champion of trauma-informed design and regenerative systems, leading interdisciplinary teams that embed research, equity and community voice into every phase of the design process.
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