Search

Amid a riot of colors and textures, faculty and students from Cornell Human Ecology’s Department of Human Centered Design (HCD) marvel at the swatches and garments on display in the MVR 1250 gallery.

Knitwear experts Thijs Verhaar and Lyske Gais spent two weeks embedded in HCD as the 2024 Designers in Residence. During the residency, they attended classes; hosted workshops, a gallery exhibit and a lecture; and made themselves available to faculty and students.

Verhaar

Each year, five Human Centered Design students get to pursue a design project of their choice from concept to execution, thanks to scholarships from the Barbara L. Kuhlman Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the fiber arts and related fields. 

The current cohort of students are selected by a faculty committee and worked under the mentorship of Fatma Baytar, associate professor, and Melissa Conroy, senior lecturer, focusing on the stories they wish to

Sehar Mapara is a recent graduate who majored in design and environmental analysis (DEA). She is now an architectural designer with MAOarch Architecture, a woman- and minority-owned boutique firm specializing in luxury retail, workplace and commercial projects. In addition to her day-to-day work at MAOarch, she has participated in New York and Paris design weeks.

Mapara shared insights into how her undergraduate experience informs her work: 

Q. What do you do as an architectural

In FSAD 6900, students take a holistic approach to fashion design. The graduate-level course is taught by Heeju Park, Vincent V.C. Woo Professor of Human Centered Design, who is also affiliated with the Department of Design Tech. It emphasizes understanding human performance and environmental challenges, developing functional prototypes, and scientifically evaluating those prototypes using advanced technologies.

At the end of the class, two groups unveiled forward‑thinking projects that improve performance and comfort in women’s apparel

When Kathleen McCormick ’16 told people that she studied human development, they often responded with confused stares. “You mean psychology?” some asked.

McCormick had earned a bachelor’s degree in human development at Cornell Human Ecology and returned to pursue her doctorate. Yet even she sometimes struggled to articulate a succinct definition of the field, also called human development and family science (or studies). When she cast about for resources detailing the field’s origins and progression