MSU Interior Design’s Kristy Kellom received Best Student Poster award from the Environmental Design Research Association
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EmailIn June 2018, Kristy Kellom, graduate student in environmental design, also assistant instructor of interior design in the School of Planning, Design and Construction, was awarded the 2018 Best Student Poster award.
In June 2018, Kristy Kellom, graduate student in environmental design, also assistant instructor of interior design in the School of Planning, Design and Construction, was awarded the 2018 Best Student Poster award at the Environmental Design Research Association’s 49th annual conference, which was held in Oklahoma City.
The association’s mission is to advance and disseminate behavior and design research toward improving understanding of the relationships between people and their environments and seek to recognize student projects that demonstrate excellence in the design of humane environments.
Projects are judged onsite by the Awards Committee in four categories: 1) Quality of the design project and demonstrated links between design and a body of research literature, 2) quality of graphic communication and representation, 3) comprehensive quality of the submission, and 4) alignment of the design with EDRA’s mission.
Kellom’s poster on “Empowering Buildings against Active Shooter Incidents on University Campuses” competed against nearly 60 submissions. Linda Nubani, assistant professor of interior design, served as Kellom’s major advisor.
“I had been skeptical of how the topic of my research would be received, particularly on a design research platform. Receiving the best poster award affirmed a home for this topic within the EDRA community,” Kellom said.
“I am grateful for Dr. Nubani’s mentorship and encouragement to present research at EDRA, and for the opportunities to network and connect with so many world influencers,” she said.
Kellom’s research interests fall into three categories: Design, technology and crime. Her topic connects all three.
“Dr. Nubani made a huge impact on my specific topic. Learning of her work connecting architecture and crime through innovative technological methods inspired me and began to instill a new dream,” Kellom said.
“I shared with her my ideas to research an area between design and crime where I had observed a knowledge gap. The methods employers are being trained in response tactics are not always physically possible in various buildings, particularly in learning environments. Add that to the level of fear many people experience despite the statistical rarity of the event,” she elaborated.
Kellom said she finds satisfaction and motivation in working on a topic that feels important to society, and remains stimulated by the higher level technological applications involved.
“Dr. Nubani’s mentorship and my opportunities within the School of Planning, Design and Construction have equipped me to accomplish each milestone thus far,” Kellom said.
In addition to Kellom’s poster award, Michigan State University had five more contributions.
