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| Aug 28, 2015 |
Groovystuff design challenge draws more than 60 students
Boh staff
By Staff

A crop of student talents from Florida State University, the University of Minnesota, Auburn University, and Appalachian State University are participating in “The Groovystuff by Design: Connecting Education with Industry Challenge,” for the upcoming fall academic semester. The challenge, an eco-friendly furniture program, asks students to design an accessory, accent or occasional home furnishings piece that either uses or reconfigures reclaimed material. The material should epitomize the Groovystuff product line and the students’ work should be competitive enough—as judged via written orders at market—to be included in the company’s catalog.

Groovystuff, which is based in Dallas, Texas, is renowned for its reclaimed teak wood furniture. The company’s student challenge was started in 2010 and has been endorsed by a number of schools, including Southern Illinois University – Carbondale, Columbia College – Chicago, the University of North Carolina – Greensboro, North Carolina State University, Purdue University, the Art Institute of Las Vegas, the University of Georgia, KMITL in Bangkok, Thailand, Marywood University, University of Idaho and the University of Oregon.

Director of Graduate Studies Professor Marlo Ransdell shared, “Participating in the Groovystuff Challenge during the first year opened up real-world experiences in furniture design for students with reclaimed materials, costs considerations, and fabrication processes. These valuable lessons proved to be beneficial to the students not only throughout the rest of the furniture course but in other courses within the curriculum. Adopting this challenge for another year will give additional students real-world experiences and continue Florida State University's partnership with the furniture industry and market.”

Students will debut their final design projects at the Fall High Point Market in “The University Hall of Innovation and Job Creation,” October 17 to 22.

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