Susan Melsop, Assistant Professor of Interior Design, has recently received two awards for her community outreach service and teaching efforts.

Susan was selected to receive a Faculty Award for Excellence in Community-Based Scholarship at the 2012 Ohio State Service Awards. She was also given the Arts and Humanities Outreach Award from the College of Arts and Sciences.

Susan is the creator of Design Matters, a service-learning course that brings together urban youth with Ohio State students to co-design and build small scale structures, furniture pieces, and landscape elements for a community art center on the East side of Columbus.

Each project is completed by university students and youth from the Transit Arts program, an arts-based development program for urban teens.

The primary purpose of the course is to engage urban youth and university students in design/build opportunities to exchange knowledge, share cultural values and improve the physical environment of the East side. Over 40 Ohio State students have participated since the course began in 2010.

Below are photographs of Ohio State and Transit Arts faculty and staff working together on projects.