Carrie L. Warner
BSCE 1995
Vice President, Building Structures
WSP
“I love being part of a team – working together with people I admire, to create something more than any one of us could have come to on our own accord.”
Carrie Warner’s passion for buildings was seeded in her childhood, venturing through her aunt and uncle’s 100-year-old house under restoration. To see the structure down to its bones one year made a stunning home by the next — through vision and hard work by people she admired — gave inspiration that remains with her to this day.
Raised in a loving, Boilermaker family in Avon, IN, Carrie followed her interest in buildings (and love for math and problem solving) to Purdue University, to study structural engineering at the School of Civil Engineering. Many faculty members had memorable impact on her such as Professor Ramirez teaching one of his first concrete classes, Professor Sutton arranging a tour of a private Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian house near campus, and — most notably — Professor Bowman providing insight, questions and support as Carrie decided to pursue architecture.
After completing a Masters in architecture, focused on structures, Carrie headed to Chicago to follow her dream — to team with people she esteemed to help shape and structure buildings. She found a perfect fit at Halvorson and Partners: a new structural engineering firm founded by industry-leading engineers and high-rise experts. Within her first year with the growing group, she was handling construction administration for a 37-story tower on the Chicago River and designing structural renovations within Louis Sullivan’s Auditorium Theater.
By 2006, Carrie was a senior project engineer on such significant projects as the 85-story Index Building in Dubai and 118-story Russia Tower (unbuilt) in Moscow. She was also named by Crain’s Chicago Business as 40-under-40. For over 20 years, Carrie has practiced with colleagues she admires (including her husband) at this same firm, which in 2016 joined WSP.
Recent buildings Carrie has led in design include a 600-foot tower in Charlotte, completed last year, and a 48-story tower under construction on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue. She has also helped shape special and long-span structures, including one of her favorites: The Writers Theatre with Studio Gang Architects. Carrie’s greatest professional joy is collaborating with teams to find structural solutions that contribute to the design of each building.