Kendall College of Art and Design
(800) 676-2787
17 Fountain St. NW,
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Program Mission
The mission of the KCAD Interior Design program is to cultivate interior designers who are engaged in innovative and creative human-centered solutions that contribute to the advancement of the profession.
Program Goals
The goals of the KCAD Interior Design program are to:
- Develop effective evidence-based solutions for the built environment using the design process
- Demonstrate ability to communicate design solutions using a variety of hand and digital drawing methods
- Apply appropriate building codes and laws to create accessible, inclusive spaces that promote health and well-being
- Understand interior design industry practices and responsibilities to people, place, and planet
Competition, Graduation, and Career Success
Graduates: 8
Retention rate: 71%
Job placement rate: 89%
Graduate school admission: 12% (Master of Architecture)
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette
- First Place: Madelyn Groninger
- Honorable Mention: Tressa Fidler
IIDA NeoCon Chicago Charrette Participants - Marie Contzen and Madelyn Groninger
Trevarrow Student Kitchen Design Competition: First Place - Dia Rozzano
Joe Withers Endowed Award - Emmaly Garcia and Lejla Mecavica
Joe Withers Endowed Scholarship - Janeen Fulkerson, Micah Heneveld, Emily Nguyen, Calyn Poore and Kate Timmerman
Ken Krayer Design Scholarship - Tressa Fidler
Robert James Campbell Scholarship - Megan Zelenka and Kayley Sullivan
Steelcase Design for NEXT top 2% finisher - Pamela Scholten
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship - Calyn Poore and Megan Zelenka
Graduates: 12
Retention rate: 75%
Job placement rate: 67% at graduation
Graduate school admission: none
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
The Friends of Michigan State Fair Endowed Scholarship - Claire Ashcraft
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship - Ashley Grotenhuis and Calyn Poore
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette, First Place - Kali Thompson
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette, Honorable Mention - Kate Timmerman
2021 IIDA TX/OK Shift Student Conference attendees - Claire Ashcraft and Jenna Smaby
Joe Withers Endowed Award - Tressa Fidler and Kali Thompson
Joe Withers Endowed Scholarship - Claire Ashcraft, Ashley Grotenhuis, Elizabeth Smethwick, and Kate Timmerman
Mardell R. Grant Memorial Scholarship - Kali Thompson
Robert Bergelin Endowed Scholarship - Fabiola Garcia and Alexandria Short
Robert James Campbell Scholarship - Megan Zelenka
Graduates: 14
Retention rate: 82%
Job placement rate: 90% at graduation
Graduate school admission: none
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
The Friends of Michigan State Fair Endowed Scholarship - Sofia Melnikoff
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship - Tiffany Taylor and Alexandria Short
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette, First Place - Claire Ashcraft
Joe Withers Endowed Award - Claire Ashcraft and Ashley Grotenhuis
Joe Withers Endowed Scholarship - Ashley Grotenhuis, Elizabeth Smethwick, Claire Ashcraft, and Kate Timmerman
KCAD General Scholarship Endowment - Maggie Kimbrell
Graduates: 19
Retention rate: 79%
Job placement rate: 79% at graduation
Graduate school admission: none
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Tiffany Taylor
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Amanda Wyman
2021 Metropolis Magazine Top 100 to Watch Amanda Wyman
2021 IIDA TX/OK Shift Student Conference attendees Brooke Crissman and Felicia Burger
2021 Shift Student Conference Charrette First place Felicia Burger
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette First Place Peyton Helsen
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette Honorable Mention Sarah Kane
Joe Withers Endowed Award Claire Ashcraft and Peyton Helsen
Joe Withers Endowed Scholarship Claire Ashcraft, Ashley Grotenhuis, Elizabeth Smethwick, and Kate Timmerman
KCAD General Scholarship Endowment Kelly Clouse, Sarah Kane, and Maggie Kimbrell
Dr Stanford Stoddard Family Scholarship Sofia Melnikoff
Graduates: 20
Retention rate: 80%
Job placement rate: 70% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 5%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
Steelcase NEXT Student Design Competition Top 5 finisher, Honorable Mention Sean Guirey
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Amanda Wyman
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Amanda Wyman
MWest Challenge team competition 2nd place for Considered Furniture with team members Sydney Johnson – Interior Design, Joe Dunaske – Furniture Design, and Kate Hyman – Master of Architecture
2019 IIDA NeoCon Charrette attendee Sara Petosky
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette First Place Sara Petosky
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette Honorable Mention Daniela Coyotl Symonds
IIDA TX/OK Student Shift Conference attendee Allisha Lightning Poucher
Friends of Michigan State Fair Endowed Scholarship Maggie Kimbrell
The Joe Withers Endowed Award Kelly Clouse
The Joe Withers Endowed Scholarship Kelly Clouse, Sawyer Seide, and Rachel Polet
KCAD General Scholarship Endowment Maggie Kimbrell
Graduates: 16
Retention rate: 89%
Job placement rate: 75% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 0%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Allison Misner
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Felicia Burger
2018 IIDA NeoCon Charrette attendee Monica Mathie
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette First Place Leanne Westrate
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charrette Honorable Mention Averie Harris
IIDA MI 2019 Student Video Competition winner Sara Petosky
IIDA TX/OK Student Shift Conference attendee Sara Petosky
Graduates: 16
Retention rate: 94%
Job placement rate: 80% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 6%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition First Place Lauren Copping
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Sara Petoskey
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Katelyn Boverhof
2018 IIDA NeoCon Charette Second Place Monica Mathie
IIDA MI ThinkUP! Student Charette
- First Place Alanna Sanchez
- Honorable Mention - Katelyn Boverhof
PAVE - Target Scholarship Caroline Montgomery
Graduates: 19
Retention rate: 86%
Job placement rate: 95% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 0%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition
- First Place Kelsey Ballast
- Second Place - Ashley Newton
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Hailey Klein
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Caroline Montgomery
Graduates: 29
Retention rate: 97%
Job placement rate: 80% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 0%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarships
IIDA Booth Design Competition First Place Kelsey Ballast
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition First Place Caitlyn Carr
2015 IDEC Student Design Competition Midwest Region
- Winner: Alex Pelton
- Midwest Region Winner: Dani Rose
2016 ThinkUp! Design Competition
- Grand Prize Team Member Allison Cornwell
- Honorable Mention Team Member Elise Boersema
Tower Pinkster Scholarship Jennifer Kang
2016 IIDA NeoCon Charette First Place Team Member Kelsey Ballast
Sherwin Williams STIR Top Ten Entrant Caitlyn Carr
Graduates: 17
Retention rate: 100%
Job placement rate: 88% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 0%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarship
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Dawon Kim
NKBA Michigan Chapter Student Competition People's Choice Kaitlin O'Connell
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition
- Second Place Dawon Kim
- Third Place Amanda Hamberg and Mallarie Hiaeshutter
Rehau Student Competition First Place Mallarie Hiaeshutter
Interiors and Sources I Like Design! Top Ten Caitlyn Carr
ThinkUp! Design Competition Honorable Mention Amanda Hamberg, Kaitlin O'Connell, Kelsey Ballast, Madison Gentry
HKS Midwest Design Fellow Dawon Kim
Tower Pinkster Interior Design Endowed Scholarship Jena Glazier
Joe Withers Memorial Scholarship Victoria Hays
IIDA NeoCon Charette People's Choice Kaitlin O'Connell
Graduates: 20
Rentention rate: 95%
Job placement rate: 85% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 5%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarship
West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum Scholarship Amanda Klein
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship Amanda Klein
Steelcase NEXT Student Competition Honorable Mention - Courtney Wierzbicki
Ghiordes Knot Competition
- First Place - Chelsea Stafford
- Honorable Mention - Patrick Jackson
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition
- First Place - Amanda Klein
- Second Place - Marci Gibson and Courtney Wierzbicki
- Third Place - Dawon Kim
Klise Student Competition
- First Place - Chelsea McBurney (Interior Design) and Stacey Folker (Furniture Design)
- Second Place - Courtney Wierzbicki (Interior Design) and Kyle Kulchar (Furniture Design)
Rehau Student Competition First Place - Laurah Boogaard
Carnegie Student Competition Courtney Wierzbicki and Ashley Flamion
Graduates: 31
Retention rate: 100%
Job placement rate: 87% at graduation
Graduate school admission: 6%
Awards/Competitions/Scholarship
George and Lucile Heeringa Trendway Scholarship: Kaitlyn Volpe
Ghiordes Knot Competition
- First Place - Laura Fussman
- Honorable Mention - Lauren Breymeyer and Michael Fisher
IIDA MI Dr. Virginia North Student Competition
- First Place - Kaitlyn Volpe
- Second Place - Kayla Mousseau
West Michigan NKBA Student Competition
- First Place - Courtney Wierzbicki
- Second Place - Emily May
- Third Place - Chelsea McBurney
- People's Choice - Amanda Klein
- Owner's Choice - Courtney Wierzbicki
Jeannette O'Brien Memorial Scholarship Claire Granskog