Stephen Parker is a dedicated behavioral health planner and mental health design subject matter expert. He champions an “architect as advocate” approach for colleagues, clients, and communities alike. Through design, he advocates for humanity at its most vulnerable, elevating communities in crisis and serving those who often suffer in silence. With clients including the Cleveland Clinic, Connections Health Solutions, Johns Hopkins University and Department of Veterans Affairs, Stephen helped write the new VA Inpatient Mental Design Guide and strives to harmonize evidentiary approaches with empathy. This purpose driven mindset shapes his leadership within Stantec’s boundaryless Mental + Behavioral Health practice, leading sensory-enabled architecture, trauma-informed design and neuroarchitecture on projects from the Arctic to Australasia.

Stephen is an award-winning designer and collaborative researcher, recognized by Healthcare Design Magazine, Fast Company, and AIA Virginia. His honors include American Institute of Architects (AIA) Young Architect Award, is a Helene Combs-Dreiling FAIA Fellow, and Royal Institute of British Architects Rising Star. He serves the board of the Design in Mental Health Network in the United Kingdom, a Practitioner with the Trauma-Informed Design Society and appointed to International Union of Architects’ Public Health Group.