about
Our Story
The Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) was established in 1970 as the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER; renamed in 2006 to CIDA), using the legal structure of an Indenture of Trust. Its first Board of Trustees represented the American Institute of Interior Designers (AID), the National Society of Interior Designers (NSID), and the Interior Design Educators Council (IDEC). Created to address a need for accreditation in the interior design profession in North America, as identified in IDEC’s 1968 A Critical Study of Interior Design Education and as promoted in IDEC’s 1970 Guidelines for the Accrediting on Interior Design Educational Programs, the organization developed standards and guidelines for accreditation, administered a pilot program, and prepared an accreditation procedure.
In 1997, the Board of Trustees represented IDEC, ASID (merger of AID and NSID in 1975), IIDA (merger of the Institute of Business Designers/IBD, the International Society of Interior Designers/ISID, and the Council of Federal Interior Designers/CFID), Interior Designers of Canada (IDC), industry, and public-at-large, reflecting a shared commitment to design education. It held regular planning sessions to address the need for financial support of accreditation. In 1998, with the support of the founding organizations, FIDER/CIDA restructured its organization to a Michigan nonprofit corporation, one designed to maintain productive connections with all “communities of interest.”
The organization evolved and developed its accreditation processes to keep pace with changes occurring within the industry it serves by promoting and establishing excellence in the interior design profession and protecting the public from professional incompetence. It has an earned reputation for credibility and value through its support for the continuous improvement and enhancement of interior design education, and hence the profession itself. The number of accredited interior design programs increased substantially since its inception. Click here for a complete history of accredited programs.
Presented by Buie Harwood, FIDEC, Honorary FASID, with assistance from Holly Mattson, Hon. FASID, Hon. IDC, CIDA Chief Executive Officer ; Dr. Josette Rabun, FIDEC, ASID; Dr. Joy Dohr, FIDEC, IIDA; and Curt Sherman, FIDEC, ASID.
HISTORY OF CIDA
1968
Arnold Friedman, 1968
Joint Committee for the Accreditation of Schools (AID, NSID, and IDEC) formed following a review of the Critical Study by Friedmann.
In November 1968, representatives of AID, NSID, and IDEC “met in Chicago to assess the three major recommendations of a Critical Study of Interior Design Education. It was quickly apparent that all of us gave particular credence to the proposal for creation of a body to accredit schools of interior design, and from that meeting came formation of the Joint Committee for the Accreditation of Schools.” The committee met frequently in 1969 and 1970 to discuss the accreditation process, development, and guidelines.
Smith, J. M. [1973]. The History and Development of the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research, FIDER Annual Report 1973, p. 10.
1970
IDEC published the Guidelines for the Accrediting of Interior Design Educational Programs. This document helped initiate the development of FIDER.
FIDER was founded and established a Board of Trustees who represented AID (Edward J. Perrault/Chairman, James Merrick Smith), NSID (C. James Hewlett, Roslyn Mallin), and IDEC (Richard A. Rankin, Dr. Anna Brightman). The Trust Indenture that officially established FIDER and its purpose was signed in November 1970.
Establishment of the Trust
"The trust is created and shall be operated for the purpose of establishing and administering a voluntary plan for the special accreditation of interior design education offered at institutions of higher learning located throughout the United States, its possessions, and Canada, and such a plan shall emphasize the use of accreditation procedures to assure the purposes and accomplishments of programs of interior design students and the interior design profession and serve as a means of protecting the public against professional incompetence."
Smith, J. M. [1973]. The History and Development of the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research, FIDER Annual Report 1973, p. 10; FIDER [1972]. 1971-1972 Enrollment and Statistics, McLean, VA: Author, no p#
An oral history from Richard Rankin on FIDER
Dick Rankin was IDEC President in 1967 and a FIDER Trustee in 1970. These are his comments about the start of FIDER: “FIDER was the result of the growth of interior design education, the recognition that some fundamental areas of visual and psychological skills needed to be a part of all aspects of interior design education. The U.S. Dept. of Education, National Commission on Education, AID, NSID, AIA and of course IDEC, exerted some pressure for some consistency in the educational thrusts of university programs, professional programs, residential-commercial design, and architectural emphasis to ensure proficiency required to serve the public at large. FIDER was the agency to award assurance of educational subject inclusions, competence of classroom delivery, appropriate credits, and proof of accomplishments required for professional recognition on a national level, those appropriate for proscribing human environments.”
Harwood, B. [2010]. IDEC’s History: Important Milestones: 1963-1978. Journal of Interior Design, 35(2), p. 19.
(left to right) Edward Perrault, President of AID and FIDER chair; Anna Brightman, IDEC President in 1969; Roslyn Mallin, NSID and a subsequent FIDER chair; James Merrick Smith, past President of AID; James Hewlett, NSID Chairman; and Richard Rankin, IDEC President in 1967.
The first FIDER Trustees
ASID held the first Farkleberry wine fund-raiser for FIDER at its conference in San Francisco, as a means of introducing FIDER and the accreditation process to its members.
1971
FIDER was established as non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)3 organization, operating in the public interest, which was recognized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in a letter dated March 5, 1971.
Support for the FIDER Accreditation Program
"The program for the accreditation of interior design educational programs is one of the first administrative and legislative attempts to secure and establish the profession of interior design. Interior design in the past has had good public relations, but it has not had legal status. The program as proposed will give the necessary governmental and university recognition previously lacking for the profession."
FIDER [Sept. 7, 1972]. List of reasons for industry and supplier support of the FIDER accreditation program. FIDER Trustees Meeting, Attachment to Agenda. McLean, VA: Author, p.1.
FIDER held its first meeting on March 19, 1971 in the AID Headquarters in New York City.
1972
Jerry Nielson, 1972
FIDER established the first committees for Accreditation (Jerry Nielson, IDEC, Chair), Standards (Arnold Friedmann, IDEC, Chair), and Guidance (Art Hawn, IDEC, Chair), and held its first training session in Washington, D. C.
FIDER presented the first logo for stationary and documents
Frank Judson, President of Stroheim & Romann and Richard C. Johann, VP of Greeff Fabrics made the first industry contributions to FIDER.
1973
Gary Robinette & Dr. Anna Brightman, 1973
FIDER published the first FIDER Standards and Guidelines, which included the first Definition of the Interior Designer.
The Definition of the Interior Designer stated:
"A professional interior designer is one who is qualified by education and experience to identify, research, and creatively solve problems relative to the function and quality of man’s proximate environment. His competency includes fundamental design, design analysis, space planning and programming, the design of all interior space, and understanding of other related aspects of environmental design. His technological development includes knowledge of structure with emphasis on interior construction; knowledge of building systems, equipment, components; and ability in communication, quantative, and administrative skills. His education and experience have developed an awareness and an analytical understanding of the needs of man which can be fulfilled by the design of his surroundings. His design sensitivity, creative and conceptual abilities combined with technical proficiency affect a breadth and depth of design solutions that will serve the needs of man today and in the future."
FIDER [1973]. Definition of the Interior Designer. Standards and Guidelines for the Accrediting of Interior Design Education Programs. McLean, VA: Author, p. 2.
FIDER awarded accreditation for the first time to six interior design programs: University of Cincinnati, the University of Texas at Austin, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Georgia, University of Missouri, and Texas Technical University.
1977
The United States Office of Education and the Council on Postsecondary Accreditation (COPA) first recognized FIDER. At this time, FIDER recorded 27 accredited programs.
1979
Kate Ellen Rogers, Ron Veitch, Joy Dohr
FIDER conducted its first significant research study on interior design degree programs and degree levels under the guidance of Kate Ellen Rogers, published as From Your Point of View. This research led to a later study on two-year programs and the updated FIDER Standards and Guidelines conducted by Joy Dohr and Ron Veitch.
1980
FIDER celebrated its 10th anniversary as an organization during the ASID conference.
1982
FIDER restructured its Board with a change of representatives to six Trustees: ASID/2, IDEC/2, IBD/1, and IDC/1. IBD and IDC are represented on the Board for the first time.
FIDER initiated the Joel Polsky/Fixtures Furniture/FIDER Endowment with a gift from the Polsky family and Fixtures Furniture, and a cash reserve in March 1983 of $83,915. No awards were given after 2001.
1983
FIDER began to document its history.
Lyman Johnson, the IFI President, and Edna Kane
FIDER research and NCIDQ’s “The Interior Design Practice” led to formation of “The Common Body of Knowledge of Interior Design,” and an updated Definition of an Interior Designer.
1986
The first Interior Design Magazine Hall of Fame dinner was held in New York City to raise funds for FIDER.
Michael Wirtz, Erli Gronberg, and Betty McKee Treanor
FIDER presented a new logo reflecting changes in its image and identity.
The FIDER Board approved the process of granting accreditation at the First-Professional Degree Level offered in either a master’s or baccalaureate program. The interior design program at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville was the only graduate program to receive accreditation before this level was discontinued.
1994
FIDER adopted a new policy: An institution seeking accreditation of First-Professional Degree Level (or Pre-Professional level) must be accredited in the U.S. by an institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or in Canada by the provincial education ministry.
1995
FIDER celebrated its 25-year anniversary as an organization in Grand Rapids, MI.
1996
FIDER hosted the Futures Roundtable to look at the future of the interior design profession. Participants from industry, interior design practice, and interior design education reviewed 100 individual trends affecting society on a global scale and identified twelve areas of change, as prepared by the FIDER Research Council. Articles in the Journal of Interior Design and other journals documented the results on future trends.
1997
FIDER activated its first website as a venue for sharing and distributing information.
1998
FIDER initiated the "Strategic Stories Project" under the Research Council as a follow up to the 1996 Futures Roundtable study, and published the results in the Journal of Interior Design in 2000.
1999
FIDER dissolved its original Trust Indenture, which resulted in the restructure of FIDER to include a 9-member Board of Directors and a 6-member Accreditation Commission. The Accreditation Commission was given the responsibility for final accrediting decisions and oversight of volunteer site visitors.
Rationale for the new FIDER
"The restructured FIDER divides responsibility between a Board of Directors for governing and an Accreditation Commission for making accreditation decisions on programs. For the new nine-member Board of Directors, ASID, IIDA, IDC, IDEC, NCIDQ will each appoint a director. These five directors representing the professional organizations will appoint four additional directors to represent the public, industry, accredited programs, and the Accreditation Commission. Expanding involvement of various stakeholder groups is an obvious benefit of the new structure. The potential for stronger relationships and better communications with the professional organizations is another. Formal linkage with NCIDQ recognizes current collaboration and the need for a seamless foundation for the profession. With the division of responsibilities, more realistic workloads will expand the pool of potential board members."
The Council for Higher Education Accreditation accepted FIDER's eligibility application to seek recognition.
FIDER Board at Falkridge
FIDER announced that its name had changed to the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) to explicitly communicate the organization’s mission and values, and a new logo and website were launched.
2008
CIDA established the Keith Hooks Award, a one-time scholarship honoring his commitment to quality interior design education and his service as a FIDER Director, and the Keith Hooks Award of Excellence, recognizing an outstanding CIDA volunteer.
2010
CIDA Board, 2010
CIDA celebrated its 40th anniversary as an accreditation agency.
CIDA held a Collaborative Strategies session in Washington, D.C., convening multidisciplinary practice leaders to envision future collaboration among the professions.
CIDA independently sponsored the Innovation in Interior Design Education Award and received over 20 submissions from CIDA-accredited programs.
History of Standards & Guidelines
Standards for accrediting interior design programs are formulated by the Standards Committee and, as appropriate, by specially appointed subcommittee(s). Standards Committee members may be interior design educators or practitioners, representatives of the public served by interior designers, other environmental designers or educators, and others deemed appropriate to the development of acceptable standards for reviewing interior design educational programs. A breadth of interests is maintained in the composition of the Standards Committee.
1970
FIDER was founded and established a Board of Trustees.
IDEC published the Guidelines for the Accrediting of Interior Design Educational Programs. This document helped initiate the development of FIDER. This set of guidelines inaugurated the approved FIDER guidelines, policies and procedures that comply with accreditation criteria established by COPA and U.S. Department of Education.
1972
FIDER established the first committees for Standards (Arnold Friedmann, IDEC, Chair).
1973
FIDER published the first FIDER Standards and Guidelines, which were at four levels. Program assessments of minimum basic requirements were curricular based with suggested percentages of subject matter in five categories and degree structure.
1979
FIDER conducted its first significant research study on interior design degree programs and degree levels under the guidance of Kate Ellen Rogers, published as From Your Point of View. This research led to a later study on two-year programs and the updated FIDER Standards and Guidelines conducted by Joy Dohr and Ron Veitch. This begins FIDER’s practice of evaluating Standards, gaining input of constituencies and then subsequent publication of revisions.
1985
FIDER launched a major project to revise the standards with a grant of $100,000 from BIFMA. Eight drafts of proposed revisions circulated in written form to FIDER constituencies for response.
1986
FIDER held its first Research Committee meeting in Madison, Wisconsin with Joy Dohr as Chair. Held in January 1986, it addressed FIDER's mission to have research inform future developments for interior design education as well as the completion of projects. Over time, projects highlighted the Polsky-funded research, comparative cost of accreditation, and continuation of research on levels of interior design programs, and laid the groundwork for future research committees. Major projects included those under the direction of M. J. Hasell (1992-1997) on the “Future of Interior Design” citing six trends and M. B. Portillo (1998-2005) on the “Strategic Stories Project.” The Research Council was discontinued with CIDA reorganization.
1989
FIDER leaders hosted Camp Lake FIDER in Chicago to train volunteers on the new performance based standards.
FIDER members, 1989.
Joy Dohr, Kayem Dunn, and Doris Burton, 1989.
1993
From 1993-1995, FIDER revised and approved the name Professional Level Standards, replacing the term First-Professional Degree Level Standards. A number of requirements for student achievement increased.
1997
From 1997-1998, FIDER discontinued the use of Pre-Professional Assistant Level Interior Design Program Standards and Guidelines for two-year programs and moved to adopt a single set of standards.
2000
Revised standards were renamed Professional Standards in fall of 2000 followed by clarification publication.
FIDER convened all segments of the organization, from site visitors to board members, to begin addressing the next generation of educational standards. This event continued in subsequent years, including 2006.
2003
FIDER announced that effective January 2004, interior design programs seeking accreditation by FIDER would have to offer a baccalaureate degree as a minimum requirement.
2006
CIDA updated its Professional Standards to include specific design criteria regarding sustainability and higher expectations for communication, changes that reflected the increasing impact of professional practice.
CIDA initiated the 2006-2009 Standards Development Project with a trend review and analysis, and Future Vision 2006 describing priorities for future interior design curriculum.
2006 Future Vision session
2007
The Standards Committee surveyed the interior design community on criteria for interior design education. Based on the results and feedback from CIDA’s Board of Directors and the Accreditation Commission, the Professional Standards 2009 were drafted for comment.
2009
With Board adoption in 2008, Professional Standards 2009 were implemented July 1, 2009. CIDA gratefully acknowledged the project sponsors: ASID Foundation; BIFMA; IDC; IIDA; Interior Design Magazine; Haworth; Steelcase; Gensler Chicago; STUDIOS Architecture, Washington DC; and the Heeringa Foundation (Trendway).
2009 FIDER/CIDA Standards & Guidelines Chart
2012
CIDA initiated the "CIDA Professional Standards 2009 – 2011: Audit Study" to internally examine the results of standards implementation, including clarifications to expectations in Professional Standards 2009. These clarifications did not change the levels of expectations.
2014
CIDA conducted the first phase of "2013 – 2014 Trend Review and Analysis" to build on the knowledge base about the future of interior design.
Board of Trustees/Directors
Throughout its history, the collaboration between CIDA and the profession has been integral to fulfilling its mission. Today, CIDA maintains relationships with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) , the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) , the Interior Design Educatiors Council (IDEC) , the Interior Designers of Canada (IDC) , and the Council for Interior Design Qualification (CIDQ) . One board member is drawn from each of the five collaborating organizations.
(The Board of Trustees transitioned to a Board of Directors in 1998.)
1970-1973, Edward J. Perrault, FAID
1974-1976, Rosyln Mallin, FNSID
1976, Warren Arnett, FASID
1977-1978, Richard Rankin, FIDEC
1978-1980, 1983, Lyman Johnson, FIDEC
1981-1982, Doris Burton, FIDEC
1984, Boyd Loendorf, FASID
1985, Hugh Latta, FASID
1986-1988, Dianne Jackman, IDEC
1993-1995, Robert Ledingham, FIDC
2000-2004, Beth Harmon-Vaughan, FIIDA
2012, John Lijewski, FIIDA
2018, Collin Burry, FIIDA
2022, Vincent G. Carter, FASID, NCIDQ
1989, Michael Wirtz, FIBD
1996, Ann Erickson, FIDEC
2005-2007, Joseph Pettipas, FIDC
2013-2014, Heather Robertson Corrigan, FIDC
2019, Jan Johnson, FIIDA
2023, Felice Silverman, FIIDA
1990, 1992, Betty McKee Treanor, FIDEC
1997, Dorothy Trogdon, FASID
2008-2009, Cary Johnson, FIIDA
2015, Pamela K. Evans, Ph.D., FIDEC, IIDA
2020, Katherine Setser, ASID, IIDA, IDEC, NCIDQ
1991, Roi Nevaril, FASID
1998-1999, Alan Mack, FASID
2010-2011, Robert Wright, FASID
2016-2017, Lisa Waxman, Ph.D., FIDEC, ASID, LEED AP ID+C
2021, Katherine Ankerson, AIA, FIDEC, IIDA, NCARB
Executive Directors
The Executive Directors are noted below along with the administrative location of FIDER/CIDA at the time. FIDER started out in Virginia, moved to New York, and later moved to Michigan.
1972-1976, Gary Robinette
Executive Director, McLean, VA
1976-1979, John J. Mead, Administrator
(He was the Exec. Director of ASID at the time); Lynn Klaskin, Executive Assistant; Gary Robinette, Consultant when FIDER headquarters moved to the ASID National Office, New York City, NY
1977-1987, Edna Kane
New York City (started attending FIDER meetings in Nov. 1977; Director of Administration 1979; later called Executive Director)
1987-1988, Dominic F. Terrone
New York City, NY
1988-2006, Kayem Dunn
Executive Director, Grand Rapids, MI
1988, Doris Burton
Acting Executive Director with Lyman Johnson, New York City
2006-present, Holly Mattson
Chief Executive Officer, Grand Rapids, MI
1988, Lyman Johnson,
Acting Executive Director with Doris Burton, New York City