Northwestern University Key Projects
I am currently at Northwestern University working on my Masters of Science in Engineering Design and Innovation. While at Northwestern, I have been privileged to work with a wider array of people than I have before, and I have been able to work on amazing and impactful projects. On this page I will goes through a number of my favorite projects from this program; some will be censored by NDAs.
HUMAN CENTERED DESIGN WITH Procter & Gamble
Packaging Design for Busy Parents
During my first year at Northwestern, I took a Human-Centered Product Design course where we were sponsored by Proctor and Gamble to work on various home goods. I worked with a wonderful group of people; Tracy Do, Palka Dhirawani, Madeline Farace, and Eddy Chen. My team was tasked with a specific space in the baby care space for parents with busy schedules. At the beginning of this project, we focused heavily on design research and in-home visits to better understand the problem space. From our in-home visits, we were able to create journey maps and personas to help lay out our understanding of the problems. We also used the insights and tensions we found while doing in-home visits to create a set of design requirements. From these requirements, we researched current products and adjacent products to come up with several prototype ideas. We took these prototypes and tested them with consumers during two rounds of central site visits with iteration on our prototypes in between them. Finally, with a final design strategy and a final product prototype, we went to P&G headquarters in Cincinnati to present our findings, conclusions, and suggestions for the next steps for their design team.
Product Refinement to Production Hand-off
The Creative Cruiser
All children deserve access to toys that match their developmental, physical, and cognitive needs. However, children with disabilities often encounter a lack of toys that are adaptive to their unique requirements while also supporting the development of fine motor skills.
Initially approached by Reach Services during my undergraduate studies at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, I was tasked with addressing this gap. Years later, during graduate school at Northwestern University, I revisited this challenge with a refined perspective, an expanded skill set, and an added goal of advanced brand design work. Click the read more button to learn all about this project, my approach to it, how I came to The Creative Cruiser, and my reflection on the last 5 years of professional growth.
THESIS PROJECT
A Better STEM Toy: The Build-A-Song
The toys we play with as children shape how we see ourselves, develop skills, and even influence the careers we pursue. Yet, STEM-related toys are overwhelmingly marketed to boys -- about 77% go to them -- contributing to the gender gap in STEM fields. My project focuses on designing a new STEM toy that is engaging and accessible to all children, with the goal of fostering curiosity, problem-solving, and foundational STEM skills from an early age. By creating a toy that encourages exploration and learning regardless of gender, I hope to inspire more young girls to see themselves in STEM and develop these foundational skills that will help their everyday lives. Click the read more button to learn all about this project, my approach to it, and how I developed The Build-A-Song.
