Teaching
TRANSdisciplinary studio: (Re)search for inclusive healthcare
This undergraduate studio course, co-hosted by the Graphic Design and Designmatters at ArtCenter, took place in the fall of 2022 and included students from the Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Product Design, Fine Art, and Illustration departments. The studio’s project brief focused on increasing awareness of and enrollment in cancer-related clinical trials within diverse communities, specifically Korean and Latinx communities in a major U.S. city. The class learning outcomes included (1) the intentionality of the design process and its relationship to bias and delivery, (2) in-depth guidance for research aimed at understanding communities’ perspectives, and (3) structuring deliverables based on feedback and co-design.
systems thinking & human-centered design
A key challenge of working as a design practitioner is explaining and utilizing design tools without marginalizing the lived experience and expertise of those we engage in our research and design work. In this class, the students will explore human-centered design (HCD) techniques and their criticism and develop their own tools to demonstrate their position and perspective. This class aims to imagine and dissect design as a language, helping designers communicate and learn from those closest to the challenge—decentering themselves.
MENTORING: CANCER RESEARCH FOR HEALTH EQUITY
Since clinical trials are exclusionary by design, Cedars-Sinai Cancer Research Center for Health Equity has been working with Designmatters at ArtCenter College of Design to invite students to reimagine how they recruit for their clinical trials and studies. Increasing diversity in these trials is challenging; it reveals the need for more trust between historically marginalized communities and health institutions. For the past few years, I have been mentoring design students to hack bureaucracy, develop research and community-centered awareness campaigns, and develop their practice as designers. The students have been from the following disciplines: Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Illustration, and Media Design Practices.
bringing Design to public servants
Employing tools and templates such as fishbone analysis, five-why interviews, how-might-we statements, and dot voting, I taught human-centered design tools and methods to public sector employees. This course introduced them to essential techniques for reimagining their challenges, identifying root causes, prioritizing problems, and fostering collaboration. I drew on design thinking principles to instill an ethical standard of deferring judgment, fostering trust, and building a foundation for sustainable change.