STR Partners
STR Partners is a Chicago-based architectural firm founded in 1969 that exclusively designs educational facilities — from early learning centers through universities — for school districts and higher-education clients across the Midwest.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1969
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What STR Partners does
STR Partners LLC is a Chicago-based architectural firm founded in 1969 (originally as Scheidemantel & Treitler, Ltd.) that specializes exclusively in educational facility design across the Pre-K-12 and higher-education verticals. The firm is structured as a privately-held LLC led by Senior Principals Mike Henderson and Jennifer Costanzo alongside six Associate Principals, with a staff of more than 50 design professionals. Core services span architecture, interior design, construction administration, and master planning, delivered through a sales-led model in which the firm engages directly with school district administrators, boards of education, and university facilities teams, often beginning with needs assessments, visioning sessions, community engagement, and referendum assistance before design work commences.
The firm's service portfolio is organized by project category — Early Learning Centers, Elementary Schools, Middle & Junior High Schools, High Schools, Universities & Colleges, and District Administrative Buildings — and includes specialized expertise in sustainable/LEED-certified design, 21st-century learning environments, building envelope evaluation, and master planning. STR Partners is licensed in five states (Illinois, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Indiana, Ohio) and operates a building envelope subsidiary, STR-SEG LLC, based in Wisconsin. The firm's revenue model is professional services fees negotiated on a per-project basis, with no publicly disclosed pricing and no external funding rounds; ownership has evolved organically through partner additions since 1969, and the firm carries no disclosed institutional investors or parent company.
The client base centers on more than 30 Illinois school districts, complemented by higher-education engagements with institutions such as Northeastern Illinois University, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and University of Wisconsin. The firm is recognized in Building Design + Construction's 2025 ranking of the nation's largest K-12 design firms (#54) and in ENR's Midwest Top 100 Design Firms, and has accumulated awards from IASB, American School & University, Learning By Design, and the Brick Industry Association, including the first LEED Platinum-certified public high school in Illinois (Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy).
STR Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- STR Partners
- Legal name
- STR Partners LLC
- Website
- https://strpartners.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1969
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- STR Partners is a Chicago-based architectural firm founded in 1969 that exclusively designs educational facilities — from early learning centers through universities — for school districts and higher-education clients across the Midwest.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where STR Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
STR Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Architecture and Design Services: Professional fees for architectural services including needs assessments, visioning, master planning, schematic design, design development, construction documents, bidding, and construction administration. Projects range from small additions and renovations to large-scale new school construction.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
STR Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
STR Partners provides comprehensive architectural and design services exclusively for educational facilities, spanning Pre-K-12 public and private schools and higher education institutions. Services include needs assessments, visioning and community engagement, master planning, interior design, sustainable/LEED-certified design, construction administration, building envelope evaluation, and referendum support. Projects range from small renovations and additions to large-scale new school construction.
Product overview
STR Partners is a Chicago-based architectural firm offering comprehensive architectural and design services for educational facilities. The firm's core offerings span four main service areas: Architecture (needs assessments, visioning, asset management, community engagement), Interior Design (renovations, sustainable design, code analysis), Construction Administration (project management, cost estimating, value engineering), and Master Planning (space planning, furniture specification). Their project portfolio includes Early Learning Centers, Elementary Schools, Middle & Junior High Schools, High Schools, Universities & Colleges, and District Administrative Buildings. The firm serves over 30 school districts across Illinois and has completed more than 50 years of educational architecture projects.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Architecture Services
Quantifiable outcome
- First LEED Platinum-certified public high school in Illinois (Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy)
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use STR Partners
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
STR Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
STR Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.
- STR-SEG LLCcoreBuilding envelope subsidiary of STR Partners providing specialized building envelope design and evaluation services. Located in Wisconsin (T: 262-253-4700).
- SmithGroupJJRmajorSTR Partners worked in association with SmithGroupJJR on the Northeastern Illinois University 160,000-gsf new Education Building project.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights3 records
STR Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Wight & Company: Illinois-based architecture and engineering firm with a strong K-12 and higher-education design practice serving public school districts across the Midwest. Most directly comparable peer given similar Illinois/Midwest base and education specialization.
- Legat Architects: Midwest-based architecture firm with a longstanding focus on Pre-K-12 and higher-education facility design. Comparable in scale, geography, and education vertical specialization.
- Fanning Howey: National architecture firm specializing exclusively in Pre-K-12 and higher-education learning environments. Directly comparable as a competitor for education-specific design work and referendum-driven projects.
- TMP Architecture: Michigan-based architecture firm with deep expertise in K-12 educational facility planning, design, and referendum support. Comparable as a regional education-architecture specialist.
Broad incumbents
- DLR Group: National integrated design firm with one of the largest K-12 and higher-education practices in the U.S. Comparable in education focus but operates at significantly larger scale with broader geographic reach.
- CannonDesign: Large national architecture, engineering, and planning firm with a substantial Pre-K-12 and higher-education practice. Competes for major education projects but operates across many verticals.
- SmithGroup: National architecture and engineering firm with a major higher-education and Pre-K-12 practice. Already a partner of STR Partners on the NEIU Education Building, demonstrating direct competitive and collaborative overlap.
- Perkins&Will: Global architecture practice with a large dedicated education studio serving K-12 districts and major universities. Comparable in education expertise though much broader in scale and sectors.
- LPA Design Studios: Integrated design firm with significant K-12 and higher-education practice, known for sustainability-focused school design. Comparable in sustainability expertise and education vertical focus, larger in scale.
- Stantec: Global architecture, engineering, and consulting firm with a sizable Pre-K-12 and higher-education practice through its buildings practice. Operates across many sectors and geographies, competing primarily on larger education programs.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
STR Partners social profiles
Digital presenceSTR Partners compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
STR Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
STR Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
STR Partners subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
STR Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
STR Partners M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about STR Partners
What does STR Partners do?
STR Partners provides comprehensive architectural and design services exclusively for educational facilities, spanning Pre-K-12 public and private schools and higher education institutions. Services include needs assessments, visioning and community engagement, master planning, interior design, sustainable/LEED-certified design, construction administration, building envelope evaluation, and referendum support. Projects range from small renovations and additions to large-scale new school construction.
Is STR Partners a public or private company?
STR Partners is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was STR Partners founded?
STR Partners was founded in 1969. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is STR Partners based?
STR Partners is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does STR Partners make money?
One revenue line is on record: architecture and Design Services.
Who are STR Partners's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Wight & Company, Legat Architects, Fanning Howey and TMP Architecture. Broad incumbents are DLR Group, CannonDesign, SmithGroup, Perkins&Will, LPA Design Studios and Stantec.
Does STR Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for STR Partners.