Nancy Peters Sparrow
McDonald Remodeling, Inc. 
2022 NARI Cares Board Member


How did you get started in the industry?
This is a second career for me. After getting my college degree in Economics I was in retail management for several years; after an unfulfilling workday I went to the library to look at course catalogs for different technical colleges (yes, this was a long time ago!), saw the coursework for Interior Design and was enrolled within a few weeks. Looking back on what I enjoyed as a child – arranging the furniture in my dollhouses and paging through my dad’s blueprints from the commercial projects he was managing – the career move was the perfect choice for me. I’ve been designing residential remodeling projects since getting that second degree over twenty years ago and haven’t once looked back.

What value do women bring to the industry?
Everyone, men and women, brings different skill sets and adds their own unique value to a project. I feel that I bring a genuine interest in people and how they live in their homes, a strong capacity for listening and finding consensus, and an eye for detail. But the job wouldn’t get done without my teammates and their strengths in project management, knowledge of construction, and the ability to add those unexpected aesthetic details that really make a project outstanding.
 
What would you say to young girls/women thinking about a career in the industry?
I’d say they should follow where their interests lead them. If that interest is in an area of the industry that is stereotypically male, go for it. Learn the skills and do them well and do the job with confidence. It’s an industry with a lot to offer and seeing a finished project that you helped to create is immensely rewarding.

About Women in Construction Week:
The focus of Women in Construction (WIC) Week is to highlight women as a viable component of the construction industry.  WIC Week also provides an occasion for NAWIC's thousands of members across the country to raise awareness of the opportunities available for women in the construction industry and to emphasize the growing role of women in the industry.  To learn more, visit https://www.nawic.org/nawic/default.asp