O'Neal stays determined on the road to success.

Ask Terrence O'Neal about his plans for the fall and he'll tell you about overseeing the final stages of a shelter in upper Manhattan, completing an interior fit-out for a major midtown corporation, scheduling meetings in Newark to discuss new school construction, jetting to Buffalo to review plans for AIA New York State's upcoming 75th anniversary, entering the next stage for a multi-housing development in Bedford-Stuyvesant--and that's just in a week's time.

The fact is that it's been a highly successful and, consequently, extremely hectic year for O'Neal, principal of Terrence O'Neal Architect LLC, one of his busiest years since he launched his firm in 1993.

"When I branched out on my own, I knew I was taking a major risk," says O'Neal. "I left a secure, well-paying job with a major design firm. I was, however, fiercely determined to do what I'd always planned to when I first became an architect."

Taking calculated risks and meeting challenges have, in fact, become trademarks of Terrence O'Neal Architect LLC or TONA, a full-service architectural and design firm headquartered in the Union Square section of Manhattan.

"Whether the goal is to complete a super fast-track relocation and renovation project for a corporate client or to discover a way to integrate high quality design into public housing projects on extremely tight budgets, we find a solution," says O'Neal.

In the dozen years since its founding, TONA has achieved an extremely high repeat business rate through its work for a roster of clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies such as NBC Universal (five interior fit-outs) and Prudential Financial to major healthcare institutions such as the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, nonprofit organizations such as Covenant House New York (five projects completed, one current), and public school systems (12 projects for Newark).

The firm has also made its mark as an innovator in over 40 multifamily urban housing developments in the tri-state area. In addition, O'Neal is about to assume the presidency of AIANYS.

Jayne Merkel, an architecture and design writer, recently called O'Neal "one of the great citizens of architecture."

"He does high quality work for institutions that need high quality work," she added.

TONA's much lauded work, both public and private, is guided by a single principle: architecture should enhance the quality of life at work and at home.

"The human element must always be the first and foremost consideration. The point isn't that the buildings we inhabit can have an affect on our lives, rather, they should have a positive impact," says O'Neal.

To apply this concept, in the corporate realm he maximizes light and open space because "a pleasing work environment boosts morale and productivity." In affordable dwellings, he pays heed to the architectural elements that are often overlooked in budget constrained work. For example, he remembers adding gabled roofs to one of his first public housing projects.

"This small detail evoked a sense of home in what had been a stark, impersonal structure," says O'Neal.

His passion for architecture was fueled at an early age by strong parental encouragement (his father is a retired research chemist for NASA, his mother a teacher), and ready recognition of his talent--he won first place in a design competition in high school in Cleveland, Ohio.

After that initial success, O'Neal received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Kent State, relocated to New York City, married Heather O'Neal, also an architect and managing partner in his firm, and began working for such prestigious companies as IBM, Ulrich Franzen & Associates, and The Eggers Group, P.C. until he founded TONA.

The firm's work has been exhibited at City University of New York and was showcased at the AIA Center for Architecture. O'Neal has been honored by the U.S. General Services Administration, has taught at the New York Institute of Technology and served on design juries at Pratt Institute and the New York School of Interior Design.

O'Neal has also been a trustee of the New York Foundation for Architects, vice president of public education overseeing the Learning by Design NY program that brings architecture education to grades K through 12 and is currently a mentor with the New York City chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects.

Deeply committed to introducing young people from all backgrounds to architecture and increasing opportunities for minority and women architects, he says, "Attaining diversity in our profession ... will increase our relevance to society."