Georgia Southern interior design professor wins grant from international education foundation
Christine Wacta, Ph.D., assistant professor of interior design in 91涩漫鈥檚 College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, recently earned a $2,000 Irma Dobkin Universal Design Grant from the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA).
Wacta is one of five recipients from across the United States to receive a grant from this program. She said the grant comes as a great opportunity and will support her innovative approach in design education. She plans to involve first-year students in community engagement and research, which involves collecting data.
鈥淢y goal is to integrate geoscience into interior design education to develop a geo-info lab where data from the community will be collected and used in ways we have never done before,鈥� said Wacta. 鈥淭his will allow us to develop a wealth of users’ feedback of real daily experiences that then create a new layer of information that will augment the designer’s knowledge.鈥�
In the announcement, Helen Wagner, chairman of the board of the Educational Foundation of IFDA, congratulated the winners.
鈥淭heir skills and initiative in undertaking new challenges are impressive,鈥� she said. 鈥淓ach winner exemplified the goals of the award they were granted, whether research, universal design, professional development or the advancement of interior design programs.鈥�
IFDA鈥檚 mission is to inspire collaboration within the furnishings and design industry to support its people, their products and services.