Closing the Diversity Gap in Design Disciplines

The lack of diversity in design is not a new problem. Although scholars, employers, organizations, and design professionals have been investigating it for more than 50 years, the problem still exists. Representation of people of color in the design profession hasn’t significantly increased in over ten years, while culturally insensitive advertising and messaging are on the rise. What are the problems causing this disparity? Come listen as Jacinda Walker founder of designExplorr and author of Design Journeys: Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Design Disciplines explains the problems causing the lack of diversity in design, shares the need for more resources and outlines strategic solutions to close the diversity gap in design disciplines.

Jacinda Walker, MFA, is renowned for her work in diversity, design research and strategy. She is the founder of designExplorr, a design education business that exposes underrepresented youth to design careers. Jacinda has helped clients including Amazon, Adobe, Kellogg, and others with their diversity recruiting strategies. She has led design thinking and community design education workshops for the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, the Boys and Girls Club and numerous AIGA chapters. Jacinda is chair emerita and served as national chair of AIGA’s Diversity & Inclusion taskforce from 2016-2018 and helped the association significantly increase its own diversity and inclusiveness in measurable ways. She obtained her M.F.A. in Design Research & Development with a minor in Nonprofit Studies from The Ohio State University. Her thesis, Design Journeys: Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Design Disciplines, has been widely hailed as a breakthrough work. This research explores diversity in design disciplines and investigates effective strategies to expose African-American and Latino youth to design careers. Jacinda is a strong advocate for young people and proudly mentors design students on portfolio presentations, professional development and career planning. Walker’s future goals are to help scale diversity in design education initiatives for corporations, school systems, education organizations, and museums for underrepresented youth.

To our guests with disabilities, please indicate if you need special services, assistance or appropriate modifications to fully participate in this event by contacting Accessibility Services, access@bgsu.edu, 419-372-8495. Please notify us prior to the event.