While pursuing her undergraduate degree in Architectural Studies and Studio Art at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, in Geneva, NY, Lauren was encouraged to partner her academic interests with civic engagement. Through that work, she gained experience working with the surrounding neighborhood and schools through design and teaching, and was able to better understand how design can support community and education. She saw industrial design as a constructive way to continue to serve these communities through the human-based design of objects and systems to improve education, which in turn would allow communities to better solve the problems they faced.
She decided to take this passion for designing to empower education into an AmeriCorps term at City Year Greater Philadelphia, where she created large-scale service events to transform schools in the city. While serving as a corps member, she became more knowledgeable about the struggles faced by students and schools, and she decided to continue to serve this cause through a graduate design education.
Now in her second year of the Masters of Science in Industrial Design program at Philadelphia University, Lauren is working to improve educational environments by developing and implementing industrial design curriculum at a local high school as a way to promote service learning, design education and community leadership.
Lauren plans to continue this design work by partnering with communities and non-profit organizations, as she works to create opportunities for communities to serve each other through thoughtful, human-centered design projects.
