(January 7, 2026. Sacramento, California) Ginger Thompson, AIA, will lead AIA California in 2026 as President of the eighty-two-year-old organization. Thompson’s strategic priority is to establish the role and job of the architect in the twenty-first century.“Our field is changing so rapidly that skills and positions we were trained for, just a few years ago in school, are shifting in real time due to AI,” Thompson said. “At the same time, AI and technology are simply tools. Key to what architects bring is our distinctly human ability to understand and empathize with client and community. It is this responsiveness that makes successful architecture.”

“2026 is a critical year to reflect, to expand the definition of the value of an architect through today and tomorrow’s lens, to reset our identity,” Thompson said. “This identity is fundamental to us as individual practitioners, the firms we shape, and the public we serve – it is also the fundamental building block of all AIA California activities.”

Thompson’s experience has long bridged the professional and civic realms. She melds numerous positions within AIA California and AIA Central Valley governance with her tenure, begun in 2023, as a commissioner on the Sacramento Planning and Design Commission and five years spent as a mentor to high school students through the CREATE program.

Thompson served as AIA California’s Vice President/President-Elect in 2025;; Vice President, Academy for Emerging Professionals in 2024; and entered the Board as acting Associate Director North in 2022. She began her formal involvement in AIA activities with AIA Central Valley.

Serving with Thompson on the 2026 AIA California Executive Committee are: newly-elected First Vice President/President-Elect Robert Drew Weigl, AIA and Secretary/Treasurer Daniel Perez, AIA. The three join the following already-serving officers: Vice President of Government Relations Laura Knauss, AIA; Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs Carol S. Lanham, AIA; VP of Education; and Professional Development Amy T. Eliot, AIA.

About the American Institute of Architects California (AIA CA)
AIA California is dedicated to serving its members, and uniting all architecture professionals in the design of a more just, equitable, and resilient future through advocacy, education, and political action. The organization represents the interests of more than 11,000 architects and allied professionals in California. Founded in 1944, the AIA CA is the largest component of the national AIA organization. For more information, visit www.aiacalifornia.org