Even though they were a couple of years apart in classification, their professor, Don Collier, kept creating opportunities where their paths overlapped. He curated student experiences, many involving travel, where they were able to see iconic design in person, making it tangible and attainable. Through these trips, they visited San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Newport, and New York City: some of the epicenters of American culture and the foundations of design as we see it today.
Michelle and John remember those experiences like they were yesterday. They both learned, firsthand, the value of seeing design beyond the classroom, and they took those lessons with them beyond graduation.
Michelle is now the Interior Design program director in the College of Health & Human Sciences. John is the Deputy Chief Usher/Acting Chief Usher and Creative Director for the Executive Residence at The White House, where he has served since 2017. Yet, no matter how far they were separated professionally, they stayed in touch – united in the conviction that those trips had changed everything.
Now established in their own careers, they decided it was time to bring that tradition back – together.