The Council for Interior Design Accreditation has named the 2016 winners of the CIDA Award for Excellence, celebrating “outstanding practices” in interior design education.
The first-place winner was Carl Matthews, professor and interior design department head in the Fay Jones School of Architecture + Design at the University of Arkansas, whose entry focused on human-trafficking victims in Phnom Penh.
As Matthews tells EAL, “Our studio focused on human trafficking and adaptive reuse in Cambodia was truly a life-changing experience for students. My student, Jasmine Jetton, said it best: ‘Interior design has a higher calling to affect how humans interact with the world around them and (the studio taught me) how we can provide solutions for communities and people who don’t have a large voice in society.’”
“The CIDA Board congratulates Professor Matthews for integrating complex social issues and cultural considerations with a historically significant site in need of revitalization,” says Lisa K. Waxman, board chair. “The power of interior design to positively advance human well-being and create significant social and cultural value emerged from this excellent student learning experience. We have every reason to believe that these perspectives and learning are core to the profession’s future.”
Two additional entries were honored with a merit award; Stephanie McGoldrick, assistant professor in the School of Design at Mount Ida College, was honored for her work, “Universal Design-athons at Marymount University and Mount Ida College,” and Emily McLaughlin, program director in the Interior Design Technology Program at Indiana University– Purdue University Indianapolis, received the award for her entry, “Designing and Constructing With Earthbags in Swaziland.”
Honorable mention was given to Junghwa Suh, assistant professor in the Environmental + Interior Design program at Chaminade University of Honolulu, for her “Learning On the Go: Using Mobile Tools in Design Education.”
