Design Portfolio - 2025 by sjcavanaugh

STEPHANIE CAVANAUGH

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

STEPHANIE CAVANAUGH

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

A: 4023 Emerald Lane, APT F, Bowie, MD, 20716 // T: 864•952•7015 // E: scavanaugh90@gmail.com

STATEMENT

I am a graduating MLA student interested in planting design and sustainable landscapes. I am looking to leverage my experience in residential design on projects of different scales in my future employment in the Annapolis, Baltimore, or D.C. area.

AWARDS

2025 MD ASLA HONOR AWARD WINNER

DEPARTMENT OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AWARD OF EXCELLENCE

2024 - 2025 GRADUATE SCHOOL’S OUTSTANDING GRADUATE ASSISTANT AWARD

2025 AGNR OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT AWARD

EDUCATION

2022 - 2025

2014 - 2018

MASTER OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD - G.P.A: 3.98

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE - PSYCHOLOGY MINOR - PHILOSOPHY

Clemson University Clemson, SC - GPA: 3.59

STUDENT CHAPTER ASLA

2024 - 2025

PRESIDENT

• Organized and hosted networking and outreach events, including Parking Day, Portfolio Review and Happy Hour, skill-building workshops, and fundraising initiatives

• Delegated tasks effectively to executive board members, ensuring responsibilities aligned with individual strengths to maximize productivity and achieve SASLA’s goals

• Acted as a liaison between the Landscape Architecture department and students, strengthening communication and bridging gaps between students and professors

CERTIFICATIONS

AUTOCAD CERTIFIED USER

CERTIFICATION - 2018

UME SUSTAINABLE HORTICULTURE

CERTIFICATE - 2024

ENROLLED IN WATERSHED STEWARDS

ACADEMY FOR ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY - CLASS 17

SKILLS

Adobe Suite - Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator

AutoCAD/LandFX

SketchUp/Lumion

ArcGIS

Planting Design

Construction Detailing

Event Planning & Organization

Team Collaboration

Communication

Customer Service

REFERENCES

2023 - 2024

GRADUATE VICE-PRESIDENT

• ▪Aided in organizing and facilitating meetings, events, and workshops to promote networking, professional development, and academic engagement

• Represented the interests and concerns of graduate students of the LARC program and advocated for resources and opportunities to support their academic and professional goals

• Evaluated effectiveness of chapter activities and initiatives through feedback, and identified areas for improvement and implementing strategic adjustments

Byoung-Suk Kweon

Professor - UMD

E: kweonb@umd,edu

Rachel Jawin

Adjunct Professor - UMD

Senior Designer - Oehme, van Sweden

E: rjawin@gmail.com

Kelley Oklesson

Owner - Groundsmith Collective

E: kelley@groundsmithcollective.com

Meredith Cole

Senior Designer - Homestead Gardens

E: mcole@homesteadgardens.com

WORK EXPERIENCE

2024 - Present

GROUNDSMITH COLLECTIVE - REMOTE

Part-Time Contract Landscape Designer

• Designed and presented customized landscape designs from concept to completion

• Developed detailed planting plans with bloom schedules, tailored to clients’ aesthetic and seasonal preferences

• Collaborated on comprehensive pricing options aligned with client budgets and project scope

• Assessed and accounted for client maintenance abilities to deliver practical and sustainable design solutions

2022 - 2025

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND - LARC DEPARTMENT

Part-Time Graduate Assistant For LARC 151, 240, 340, 341, 454

• Directed independent discussion sessions and taught students the basics of Landscape Architecture

• Organized project critiques and completed lesson plans with professors

• Provided students feedback and guided them on studio projects

HOMESTEAD GARDENS LANDSCAPE DIVISION - DAVIDSONVILLE, MD

Junior Landscape Design Intern

• Performed site assessment and plant identification to provide accurate data for designers Summer 2024

• Designed planting plans for residential homes while combining aesthetic appeal and sustainability

• Conducted extensive plant research to select appropriate species for a variety of site conditions and design goals

• Created and collaborated with designers on proposal generation and management

• Assisted in the warranty process, ensuring client needs were met

DEWBERRY - LANHAM, MD

Summer Landscape Architecture Intern

2019 - 2020

• Hand-drafted a multitude of custom designs for residential and commercial locations Summer 2023

• Achieved skills in grading hold-down plans as an integral element of subdivision development strategies, guaranteeing site stability and adherence to regulatory standards

• Developed comprehensive permit packages in accordance with Prince George’s County standards

• Adapted to evolving project requirements and regulatory guidelines, demonstrating flexibility and problem-solving skills in navigating permit approval processes and client desires

• Learned how to utilize LandFX to improve planting design

GRAHAM KIMAK LANDSCAPE DESIGN - GREENVILLE, SC

Full-Time Assistant Drafter

• Utilized AutoCAD to modify and create construction details for contractors to build

• Optimized company database by converting hand-drawn details into AutoCAD

• Directed site analysis, inventory, and performed unofficial surveys of client properties

While at Clemson University, I studied psychology with the intent of going to medical school, as required by my parents. Nearing the end of my Psychology program, I was unsure what my true calling was, so I decided to finish my degree, get certified in AutoCAD, and try my hand at design. Post-graduation, I worked as a design assistant at a boutique landscape design firm in Greenville, SC, and this opened my eyes to an entirely new profession I was unaware of: Landscape Architecture. After several years of planning, an ongoing pandemic, and trying other career paths, I applied for and got accepted to the University of Maryland’s Masters of Landscape Architecture program. Now in my third and final year, I still boast a near 4.0 GPA and a passion for environmental protection and sustainability. With a strong background in residential design, I am curious how we can bridge the gap between private and public spaces and encourage homeowners to think of the long-lasting effects of their gardens. In my free time, you can find me hiking, exploring new places, reading, watercolor painting, and playing Fallout 76. While born and raised in the Carolinas, Maryland has started to feel like home in many ways.

(1) ILEX OPACA `MARYLAND DWARF`

(3) CAMELLIA X 'WINTER'S ROSE'

(1)

(5) ASTILBE CHINENSIS 'VISION IN PINK'

(1) ILEX OPACA `MARYLAND DWARF`

FROM 2019 - CURRENT 0 7 08 Personal Art

0 1

Thesis

(5) DRYOPTERIS ERYTHROSORA 'BRILLIANCE'

(13) SOLIDAGO CAESIA

(3) HELLEBORUS X HYBRIDUS `MONOBYRN1` (11) PACKERA AUREA

(3) DRYOPTERIS ERYTHROSORA 'BRILLIANCE'

(8) PACKERA AUREA (8) SOLIDAGO CAESIA

Sowing the Seeds of Sustainability

0 2

Internship Project

(6) DRYOPTERIS ERYTHROSORA 'BRILLIANCE'

Deale Community Library, Deale, MD

(5) SOLIDAGO CAESIA

(3) SOLIDAGO RUGOSA 'FIREWORKS'

(4) COREOPSIS VERTICILLATA 'MOONBEAM' (5) SYMPHYOTRICHUM OBLONGIFOLIUM (13) HEUCHERA X `STEEL CITY` (6) PHLOX DIVARICATA

(3) MUHLENBERGIA CAPILLARIS

(3) LAVANDULA X INTERMEDIA 'PROVENCE' (15) PACKERA AUREA

IRREGULAR PENNSYLVANIA FLAGSTONE IN 2’ TO 3’ PIECES

Studio Project Nature Play Spaces Rock! Druid Heights, Baltimore, MD

Native Haven Silver Spring, MD

0 3 0 4 0 5 06

Internship Project

Welcome Home Garden Edgewater, MD

Studio Project

Community Connections Gaithersburg, MD

Other Work

Graphic Samples

Photoshop, Illustrator, Lumion + SketchUp, Hand Graphics

Other Work

Detail Samples

Other Work

SOWING SEEDS OF SUSTAINABILITY

AT THE DEALE COMMUNITY LIBRARY

PROJECT NARRATIVE

My thesis project centers on providing a rural library in Deale, MD with an aesthetically pleasing and environmentally friendly design that connects the library to the Community Park. I aim to bolster this library’s resources by providing a one beyond its’ walls.

CURRENT SITE CONDITIONS

VIEW FROM TENNIS COURTS: SIGNIFICANT PAVEMENT AND LAWN

GOALS

SITE

Demonstrate sustainable and aesthetically pleasing native gardens to inspire residents to implement in their own yards.

Foster community engagement by encouraging stewardship in their community and in their properties. Teach environmental stewardship through experiential learning, signage, and workshops.

GOAL DEVELOPMENT

CRITICAL AREA DESIGNATIONS (LDA/IDA) AND WETLAND BUFFER

This project involved deep site inventory as the Deale Community Library is located in the Critical Area. Research was required on stormwater management practices and soil conditions. With these constraints in mind, I designed three concepts to show to the client and my committee. Eeach party preferred the Woodland Walk concept, and I took some elements from the Forested Fundamentals and Nature Nexus concept to develop my site plan.

DESIGN EXPLORATION

FORESTED FUNDAMENTALS CONCEPT

WALK CONCEPT

WOODLAND

NATURE NEXUS CONCEPT

SECTION B-B’: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WOODLAND WALK, OUTDOOR CLASSROOM, SEATING MEADOW WALK

SECTION A-A’: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ACCESSIBLE SEATING AREA, SENSORY GARDEN, AND BIORETENTION

V 1 : VIEW OF OUTDOOR READING AREA

PLANTING ZONE MAP

Open Meadow

Sensory Gar

Amsonia hubrichtii

Eutrochium maculatum 'Gateway'

Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’

Solidago uliginosa

Anemone canadensis

Packera aurea

Monarda didyma ‘Purple

Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird'

Thymus serpyllum

Nepeta x 'Walker's Low'

Salvia rosmarinus 'Arp'

Myrica cerifera 'Don's Dwarf'

Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Blue

Since my design focused on plantings and native gardens, plant palettes were a vital design element I accounted for. I focused on nine zones as well as shade and understory tree options. This is only a snippet of the plant palettes to help tell the story of this design.

Understory Tree Options

Garden

Bioretention

Magnolia virginiana

Salix discolor

Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’

Ilex verticillata

Lobelia cardinalis

Carex stricta

Asima t riloba

Magnolia virginiana Malus a ngustifolia Amelanchie r canadensi