Second-ever campus event by PAVE challenges seniors to collaborate across majors in a two-day immersive design experience.

On October 14–15, The Ohio State University’s Department of Design proudly hosted the PAVE + Ohio State Design Charette, a two-day on-campus design challenge that brought together fourth-year design students from all three majors and a distinguished group of professionals from across the country. This marks only the second time PAVE (Planning and Visual Education Partnership) has held such an event on a university campus, making Ohio State’s selection a significant honor. In 2023 Associate Professor Rebekah Matheny was honored as the PAVE Global Educator of the Year for her innovate approach to retail design education, collaboration across various design disciplines, and contributions to sustainability in the field, making Ohio State the perfect location for the event.

Held across multiple spaces in Hayes Hall, the event kicked off Tuesday morning with a warm welcome in Room 105 where student mingled with professionals from across the country and locally. Students were then introduced to the design brief written by Rebekah Matheny, prompting their multi-disciplinary teams to design a pop-up experience to promote student wellbeing across campus. Their design needed to provide students with resources, services, and/or products to improve overall well-being, meeting students where they are, both in their personal wellness journey and along their campus-life.

Throughout the day, professional mentors rotated among teams every 30 minutes, offering guidance, feedback, and insight into real-world design practices. Lunch was catered by event supporter, Hayworth and King Business Interiors, and the day concluded for the professionals at 3:30 p.m, however teams continued working on the project into the evening to complete their designs.

Wednesday morning featured final team presentations to a jury panel followed by a celebratory lunch and deliberation by the jury. The winning team, The Grove, was announced and the team received an award from PAVE and will be attending the NRF (National Retail Federation) student program in January 2026. https://nrffoundation.org/campus/new-york

“The Ohio State student teams generated such a wide range of creative solutions.  It was energizing and inspiring to watch them fearlessly dive into the unknown.  I was honored to be part of the event.” said Rebekah Sigfrids, PAVE Board Member.

The winning team received scholarship funds, and all participating students were gifted curated bags from the attending firms.

“Working with students across interior, industrial, and visual communication majors allowed us to collaborate efficiently through focusing on each of our strengths. We were very humbled to be recognized as the winning team, selected from many talented groups with inspiring proposals,” said Aya Rikabi, fourth-year Interior Design Student. 

Participating Professionals Included:

• Rebekah Sigfrids, Bank of America, PAVE Board Member
• Joe Baer, ZenGenius, PAVE Board President
• Dash Nagel, PAVE Executive Director
• Jeffery Sackenheim, SHP
• Michael Trenary, Arcadis
• Mat Gurda, WD Partners
• Martine Body, ASG/Chute Gerdeman
• Steve Calhoon, Hershey’s
• Allison Westrick, Sketch Blue
• Gina Nist, Haworth
• Meg Lefeld, Visual Merchandising
• Emily Moldovan, Visual Merchandising
• Maddie Flagg, Sr. Graphic Designer
• Zach Uhazy, Graphic Designer
• Sarah Bonnett, Interior Designer
• Raine Dearing, Interior Designer, King Business Interiors

The event showcased the power of interdisciplinary collaboration and the value of connecting students with industry leaders. It also reinforced Ohio State’s commitment to experiential learning and professional engagement.

Winning Team:

Sophie Chu, Aya Rikabi, Kitty Kozlowski, Ananya Muddappa, Bel Nixon, Tess Otten, and Saira Ramanna

About PAVE:

PAVE is a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting students, educators, and professionals in the retail design and visual merchandising industries. Learn more at https://www.paveglobal.org.