Research and Creative Achievement

Industrial Design

The Industrial Design Program has several areas of specialized research in conjunction with our award winning faculty. Students benefit from this research in the classroom, as well as through undergraduate and graduate research, patents, publishing, and exhibition opportunities. Currently, you can find projects that focus on Health and Wellness, Material Science and Advanced Manufacturing, Behavioral Science and Sustainability Practices, the history and theory of design as shown through the Library of Material Culture.

Interior Design

Presently, faculty scholarship within the Interior Design program ranges from works of design and creative scholarship and expressed in the forms of exhibitions and juried competitions; research in areas related to health and wellness with focus on aging in place and design for special needs groups; research that considers how acoustic and thermal comfort levels within interior environments impact design teaching and learning; workplace design and strategy; design history and cultural heritage; and the use of VR and AR for both design learning and practice. Faculty have received regional, national, and international recognition for works of creative scholarship; NSF and NEA grants to fund research projects and agendas; and are actively publishing in recognized academic journals. Faculty have also been elected to serve nationally and internationally as leaders of professional design organizations and are frequently invited to give keynote presentations and to sit on juries for national design and creative competitions.

Landscape Architecture

The Landscape Architecture Program faculty work across several areas of inquiry including aspects of environmental and cultural landscapes; relationships between human health and well-being and landscape experience; landscape performance, such environmental disturbances as flooding, light pollution, and climate change; visual landscape stewardship; and design as a product and a practice. Students are often engaged in these research and creative activities in their design studios and classrooms, as well as through individual studies, undergraduate senior projects, masters theses and doctoral research. Faculty are regionally, nationally and internationally recognized for their scholarly and creative works as well as engagement with landscape architecture practice and professional organizations.