Exhibit Design Lakeland Community College x IDEO

The Challenge: Help Lakeland Community College use human-centered design to
better understand their students’ needs

The Outcome: Catalyzing a student-centric movement at Lakeland, empowering faculty, staff, and
administrators to redesign their services, spaces, and strategic priorities to support the success of students and the resilience of its community.

How It Came to Life: The research culminated in an interactive exhibit that guided individuals through a series of relatable scenarios based on students’ experiences. IDEO identified six key moments in the learning journey that students struggled to navigate: enrollment, registration, degree planning, overcoming obstacles, getting back on track after stumbling blocks, and second chances following an absence. 

The exhibit proved to be a powerful empathy-building exercise for students, faculty, and administrators. By experiencing students’ feelings and emotions firsthand, Lakeland staff were able to deeply understand students’ challenges and identify opportunity areas for redesigning student services. This work catalyzed discussions and new workstreams focused on supporting students in ways that foster belonging, resilience, and wellness. 

My Role: Exhibit Branding—Communication Design & Production. Designed and applied the “Start With Students” branding across multiple touch points and mediums, including a large scale, fully immersive “board game,” exhibit signage and graphics, exhibit swag, workshop materials and mircosite.