John Reynolds Klai II was born and raised in Osnabrock, North Dakota. After spending a few years as an accounting major at the University of North Dakota’s College of Business in Grand Forks, an engineering class inspired him to pursue a career in architecture. He returned to Osnabrock, where he worked for his father’s construction company and saved to attend the architecture program at North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies in 1977 and graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture in 1978.