2017 CIDA Award for Excellence Winners Announced

CIDA Award for Excellence Winners Announced

The Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2017 Award for Excellence. This award recognizes and celebrates outstanding practices that advance the cause of excellence in interior design education.

The first place winner is Lindsey Bahe, Professor and Director of the Interior Design Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Professor Bahe’s entry, “Shifting Studios: From Project Typology Based Problem Solving to Inquiry, Circumstance, and Conditions” encompasses applied inquiry and research, critical thinking, and the role and impact of design on current social issues. “The CIDA Board congratulates Professor Bahe for this outstanding example of an inquiry-based studio that gives students the opportunity to research and develop critical thinking skills and an evidence-based approach to their individual design work,” states CIDA Board Chair Collin Burry, FIIDA. Professor Bahe received a $5,000 award in recognition of this honor.

Two entries were recognized with a $2,000 merit award. Tilanka Chandrasekera, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Design, Housing, and Merchandising at Oklahoma State University received a merit award for his entry, “Empathetic Design in Virtual Reality.” Erik Johan Granberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor in Interior Design at the Virginia Commonwealth University Qatar and Ben Robinson and Fahad Al Kawari from the Doha Film Institute also received a merit award for their entry, “Exploring Space through the Lens – Production Design.” Nathan Bicak, Assistant Professor in the Interior Design Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Vanessa Schutte, AIA, Principal, DLR Group, received an honorable mention for his submission, “Learning Spaces Collaborative Studio.” Tasoulla Hadjiyanni, Ph.D., Professor in Interior Design at the University of Minnesota also received an honorable mention for her submission, “Unraveling Culture through Digital Storytelling.” CIDA is proud to honor these design educators and collaborative partners for their exceptional work.

Winning entries of the 2017 CIDA Award for Excellence are available for viewing on our website here.

The Council for Interior Design Accreditation is an independent, non-profit, accrediting organization responsible for setting standards and evaluating degree-granting interior design programs. There are 190 CIDA-accredited programs in the U.S., Canada, Qatar, and the UAE.

For additional information:  Holly Mattson, Executive Director
616.458.0400 or holly@accredit-id.org