M.A. Graduate Mina Kasirifar awarded by IDSA

School of Design's M.A. graduate Mina Kasirifar received the 2021 West District Graduate Student Merit Award from the Industrial Design Society of America (IDSA). Each academic year, the ISDA recognizes exceptional student design talent through the Student Merit Awards program. The competition highlights the very best creativity, problem-solving, and design brilliance in each of IDSA's five North American Districts among Industrial Design students of the nation's top design schools.

The IDSA invited Kasirifar to present her winning projects during this society's 2021 International Design Conference and Education Symposium. During her presentation, Kasirifar focused on the design process and concept development of her graduate thesis project. Kasirifar enjoys finding solutions and is committed to pursuing ideas up to the execution phase to deliver a viable and efficient product for the user. She sees design as a social responsibility and seeks to direct her knowledge to create beyond personal interest. 

In the project titled "Designing home furniture for engaging sensory exploration in young children," Kasirifar addressed the shortcomings and challenges that parents face when trying to keep their children physically and mentally engaged at home. Kasirifar used different design methods to understand the user better and find a suitable solution. This project's design outcome is a multifunctional piece of furniture that is space-efficient and can be used in different use scenarios. The product promotes physical activity and sensory exploration at home by providing input for Vestibular and Proprioceptive senses related to balance, movement, and coordination.