During the Winter semester, the College for Creative Studies hosted 14 sponsored projects, including a diverse range of sponsored projects and competitions that engaged a variety of academic departments. Students partnered with local and global brands to work on a specific project tailored to meet the needs of our industry sponsors. Educational partnerships at CCS are highly conceptual and allow CCS students the opportunity to participate in creative, research-based assignments, interacting with designers and staff from the collaborating company. Highlighted collaborations during the Winter semester include:

  • Augmented Reality Center (ARC) in partnership with Oakland University x Communication Design and Strategy, MFA User Experience Design and Entertainment Arts
  • Crain Communications – Automotive News x Illustration
  • 313 Presents x Illustration
  • BorgWarner x Product Design
  • Covestro x MFA Transportation Design
  • Detroit Grand Prix x Illustration
  • GM x BFA Transportation Design & MFA User Experience Design
  • GODNII x MA/MFA Color and Materials Design
  • Hagopian Rug Competition x All Departments
  • Office of Future Mobility and Electrification with support from the Global Epicenter of Mobility x Transportation Design
  • MAWBY Sparkling Wines x Illustration
  • Trek Bikes x Product Design
  • University of Michigan Dearborn – Environmental Interpretive Center x Communication Design and Strategy & Interior Design
  • Zumiez and Somerset Collection x Illustration

“This project was pure inspiration,” said Ali Evans, Founder and Creative Director of GODNII. “Collaborating with CCS has been a longtime hope of ours, and it lived up to everything we imagined. The students brought forward deep research, bold ideas, and a clear vision for the future of sustainable fashion. Their work affirmed what we already believed—creativity with purpose can shift the industry. At GODNII, we’re excited to carry these insights forward as we continue designing not just for style, but for impact.”

CCS alumna and Trustee Molly Valade and her husband Mark Valade established the Valade Family Endowed Chair in Studio Art & Craft.
The College for Creative Studies (CCS) is thrilled to announce a commitment to endow the position of Chair of Studio Art & Craft. The Valade Family Endowed Chair in Studio Art & Craft will ensure ongoing support for the College’s Studio Art & Craft Department, one of CCS’s most historic programs.

This transformative commitment reflects CCS alumna and Trustee Molly Valade’s deep connection to and belief in the legacy and importance of the Studio Art & Craft program, as well as her enduring belief in the power of a CCS education. Molly graduated from CCS’s Fine Arts program (now Studio Art & Craft) and has served on the College’s Board of Trustees since 2008, in addition to serving on CCS’s alumni council for 13 years. Over the years, her engagement with students, faculty, and staff has strengthened the program’s creative and academic environment, and this gift will ensure that impact continues into the future.

“Studio Art & Craft has been at the heart of CCS for more than a century,” said Don Tuski, President of the College for Creative Studies. “The establishment of this endowed chair will help ensure the department continues to evolve, inspire new generations of artists and makers, and expand opportunities for innovative studio practice well into the future.”

Founded in 1906, CCS, then The Society of Arts & Crafts, integrated rigorous courses with the progression of the art and design movements and world-class, contemporary exhibitions. Since its inception, the Studio Art & Craft program has carried on this tradition while continually building on this foundation and legacy. In 2026, the program is still rooted in traditional techniques, now enhanced by contemporary processes and innovative technologies. The department currently enrolls undergraduate students exploring the disciplines of Ceramics, Drawing, Fibers and Textiles, Fine Arts, Glass, Metalsmithing and Jewelry, Painting, Performance, Print Media, Sculpture, Digital Fabrication and Digital Media.

Under the leadership of Department Chair Valerie Jenkins, Studio Art & Craft continues to foster rigorous studio practice and distinct creative voices. The creation of the Valade Family Endowed Chair will further elevate that work, strengthening the program’s impact and vitality, ensuring its continued growth.

Echoes: CCS Alumni Voices in Clay brings five decades of CCS ceramics alumni to the international convening.

As the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) holds its first-ever conference in Detroit, the College for Creative Studies (CCS) presents Echoes: CCS Alumni Voices in Clay, an exhibition featuring over 30 CCS Ceramics alumni, on view March 20 – April 18, 2026, at Charach Family Galleries (formerly Center Galleries), located at 301 Frederick St.

While NCECA previously convened in Michigan in 1967 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, the 2026 gathering marks the organization’s first conference hosted in Detroit and is expected to bring thousands of ceramic artists, curators, collectors, and educators to the region for exhibitions, lectures, and citywide programming.

Bringing together alumni spanning more than five decades, Echoes highlights the national reach and evolving influence of ceramics at CCS. The exhibition reflects how CCS-trained artists continue to expand contemporary ceramics through sculptural experimentation, hybrid material practices, and interdisciplinary approaches to clay. It is part of a broader network of NCECA exhibitions and cultural programming taking place across institutions and galleries in Detroit.

“With Detroit hosting NCECA for the first time, Echoes is both a recognition of the generations of artists who have shaped contemporary ceramics and a celebration of the CCS alumni who continue to expand its language,” said Claire Thibodeau, Assistant Professor, Studio Art and Craft, Section Lead of Ceramics at the College for Creative Studies.

“This exhibition reflects the depth and strength of Detroit’s creative community while highlighting the lasting impact of our graduates within the broader ceramics field.”

Featured artists include Laith Karmo (‘04), Hayden Allison Richer (‘15), Kenneth Baskin (‘02), Elysia Vandenbussche (‘11), Joy Kin (‘19), Emily Duke (‘09), Kaiser Suidan (‘93), Katie Bramlage (‘11), Kara Thomas (‘13), and Sean Evans (‘01), among others. The exhibition includes alumni graduating from the late 1970s through 2025, reflecting the program’s sustained contribution to contemporary ceramic arts practice.

Exhibition Details Echoes: CCS Alumni Voices in Clay March 20 – April 18, 2026

Hours Tuesday–Saturday, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm; Extended hours during NCECA conference (March 25-28) Charach Family Galleries (formerly Center Galleries) 301 Frederick St., Detroit, MI 48202

Participating Artists Kenneth Baskin (‘02), Chrys Bonnay Lewis (‘10), Alexis Bratto (‘19), Katie Bramlage (‘11), Hailey Callahan (‘20), Emma Doppel (‘24), Emily Duke (‘09), Anna Edry (‘25), Jaminely Emmanuelli (‘19), John Gargano (‘92), Brett Gray (‘10), Steven Johnson (‘17), Laith Karmo (‘04), Karen Katanick (‘78), Joy Kin (‘19), Thea Lavender (‘24), Emily LoPresto (‘15), Melissa Mytty (‘04), Jane Plieth (‘14), Hayden Allison Richer (‘15), Drew Siering (‘24), Janelle Songer (‘08), Kaiser Suidan (‘93), Travis Grant Taylor (‘14), Kara Thomas (‘13), Karleigh Thompson (‘14, Fine Arts), Leilani Trinka (‘92), Elysia Vandenbussche (‘11), Bobby Veresan (‘20), Kailani Wolfe (‘25), Pierpaolo Zaldana (‘23, Illustration), Tyler Zibkowski (‘19), and Sean Evans (‘01).

About the NCECA NCECA supports and advances the field of ceramics by fostering education, research, and creative exchange within the global clay community. The organization’s annual conference is the largest international convening dedicated to contemporary ceramic art and education, advancing the field through exhibitions, scholarship, and professional development.

Located in the heart of midtown Detroit, CCS’s prime location offers unparalleled opportunities for art and design collaboration. Our students have found countless ways to make a positive impact on local metro Detroit businesses through innovative art and design problem-solving.

Last year alone, CCS students collaborated to problem-solve timely topics for 15 metro Detroit businesses and nonprofit organizations. They addressed a range of issues in healthcare product design, sustainability, mobility, and even emerging augmented reality technology.

Embracing the city’s rich history of cultural and sporting events, students continue to participate in annual design competitions to create the newest posters for iconic Detroit events such as the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix Presented by Lear, the Movement Music Festival and the 313 Presents Pine Knob concert series.

Here’s a look at some of the partnerships:

  • Augmented Reality Center (ARC) in partnership with Oakland University x Communication Design & Strategy, Graduate User Experience Design and Entertainment Arts
  • Crain Communications – Automotive News x Illustration
  • 313 Presents x Illustration
  • Detroit Grand Prix x Illustration
  • GM x Transportation Design & Graduate User Experience Design
  • Godnii x Graduate Color & Materials Design
  • Hagopian Rug Competition x All Departments
  • State of Michigan Office of Future Mobility and Electrification with support from the Global Epicenter of Mobility x Transportation Design
  • Zumiez and Somerset Collection x Illustration
  • BorgWarner x Product Design
  • Carhartt x Fashion Design
  • Henry Ford Health x Product Design
  • Changing Lives and Staying Sober (C.L.A.S.S.) x Interior Design and Graduate Color & Materials Design

Sometimes when you meet someone, you just click. For Stephanie Kalb and Chair of Interior Design, Sandra Olave, a shared elevator ride at College for Creative Studies was that moment. And it would prove to be pivotal in paving a career pathway for a lifetime passion for interior design.

I love this job because I love to draw things and then make it into reality.

What sparked your interest in interior design?

I was taking evening classes at CCS. At the end of the semester, I came to this exhibition just to see it with my friends. As I’m getting out of the lift, I see this fantastic woman – this charismatic woman coming at me. She said, “You are Stephanie Kalb.” I was like, “Whoa. I don’t know this woman.” And that was Sandra Olave, the head of the Interior Design department. She said, “I want you in my class.” I have to tell you that this little sentence, for me, was very boosting. It really boosted my interest in interior design and materials. Then I studied for four years at CCS in the Interior Design department.

Did you always know that you wanted to go into interior design? Or is this something that you realized later in life?

I believe I knew it, but I didn’t understand it at the beginning. When I was younger, I started to study marketing for five years or so. But I was very interested in interior design. I was going to all the fairs in Europe. I was visiting all the construction sites that I could. Going and seeing and imagining the different rooms that it could be. I’ve always been very open to design.

How does it feel now to see your designs realized in front of you?

This is fulfilling to me. I love this job because I love to draw things and then make it into reality. This is my passion now. I love to see how drawings can become reality. Fulfilling the customer’s needs. We need to understand the ways they live when we’re doing residential, when we are doing offices, and the way they want the strategy to be put into walls. Because of my background in marketing, I’m very, very interested in this part as well.

What do you love the most about what you do?

Starting the project on-site. This is an exciting moment. You’ve been doing the conception for two months, three months, sometimes even longer, and then it turns into reality, into technical problems, into, “How am I going to work with this facade?” Then working with the workers and having them understand what you want to reach, and understanding their problems as well, is an interesting part for me. Plans are plans, but when you are in it, for example, this apartment was a big challenge because we had so many surprises, and we had to deal with so many problems. I love that.

If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?

Start studying interior design as soon as possible. Don’t waste your time. I have to say that going back to studies when you’re 35 – I was 35 at this point, with three kids – I had different problems from the other students. For me, at the beginning, it was quite a challenge, especially with all the software. I mean, the computer part was pretty tough. I had to work many, many nights on top of days as a mom.

“I would start right away, and not be afraid of this kind of career.”

How do you feel CCS prepared you for a career in interior design?

I have to tell you that I really loved their way of teaching. I could compare it with France, for example. France was very conceptual. Till the end, I mean, I did the last year in France, and it was very conceptual, while CCS was more technical. I love this part as well. Sandra is a great enhancer of talent and concept. She’s very good at bringing you to the end of your concept, and I loved this. And you’ve got other teachers teaching you technical things that are very fundamental when you start to work because you might have very good ideas, very good drawings, but if you cannot make it into reality, it’s a problem. I really loved the two parts of CCS, the conceptual and the technical.

At the end of the four years you transferred, why is that?

I was an expat in Detroit. My husband came to the end of his contract, so we had to go back to France. I couldn’t go on with the CCS studies, and on top of that, I wanted to study in France, because I knew I would practice in France. It’s a different system – electrical system, different rules, of course, different materials. I really wanted to have a graduation in France. So I completed four years at CCS with one year in Paris.

What’s your ultimate goal or dream?

I would love to work in the U.S., actually. I would love to do a project with my European background and to put it back in the U.S. with what I know from there.

Learn more about CCS's Interior Design program

Over the course of the Fall semester, the College for Creative Studies hosted 11 sponsored projects and competitions across a variety of disciplines. Students from a wide range of disciplines partnered with local and global brands to work on a specific project tailored to meet the needs of our industry partners. Sponsored projects are highly conceptual and allow CCS students the opportunity to participate in creative, research-based assignments within real-world design parameters, interacting with designers and staff from the partnering company. Highlighted collaborations during the Fall semester include:

“The most important project that I did at CCS was a sponsored project,” said Hakha Masahyekhi, ’15 Integrated Design (MFA) reflecting on his time here. “It was so valuable to get real feedback from working professionals. That’s something that you never get in school.”

Camille Guellec fell in love with the art of rug design during her time at CCS. Drawn to the hands-on creativity of tufting, she built her own tufting frame with help from faculty and friends in the Fiber & Textiles program creating a tool for not just herself, but future students to use to explore the craft. Through her minor in Fashion Accessories Design, she gained the skills to land herself a job crafting bags for an iconic design house before finding her way back to where it all began.

The Interview

“I love getting lost in the moment of creating. Time flies and I don’t even realize it. It’s a beautiful experience.” –Camille Guellec

How did you end up where you are today? I’m actually from France. Both of my parents are French. I spoke French at home my whole life but never lived here until about two years ago. I still have a lot of family here in France.

When I first left CCS, I planned to move to France. I applied to Hermes and got into their leatherworking training program. And then, for a year, I worked with them, learning how to make bags on a high-end quality scale. It was exceptional. I think by the time I left, there were about 15 bags that I made that are out there in the world somewhere. I don’t know who has them, but it’s a cool little fun fact.

Now, I’m working as a design specialist for a UK company called Rug Artisan. I’m a rug designer. I research a lot of trends and make my own designs, and sometimes I’ll have clients that I have to work with. They might want a specific design based on an idea that they saw and I help design whatever they need.

What do you love most about rug design? What I love most is actually getting to make the rugs and being hands-on. I love getting lost in the moment of creating. Time flies and I don’t even realize it. It’s a beautiful experience.

Who or what inspires you? I get a lot of inspiration online. When it speaks to me, it speaks to me. Living here inspires me a lot, too. I’m working on a personal collection for my job. It’s a Parisian-inspired collection, so I’m working with the Guimard-style metros the way that they have the green curvy architecture.

What’s your ultimate goal? What are you hoping to accomplish in, say, 10 or 20 years? Hopefully, I’ll have made my own rug-making business flourish while still working in rug design for a big corporate company at the same time. I really like the fact that there’s a possibility to have steady pay and also be able to have my own business on the side, because I’m working from home and have such flexible hours.

How do you feel CCS helped you prepare you for this career? CCS helped me learn how to network. I found this job on my own. I reached out to people and that’s not something I would have ever known how to do without the classes that I took.

What advice would you give your younger self? Take advantage of the facilities that you have. I didn’t realize how much I would miss having a screen printing studio and the Fashion Accessories Design studio with all the industrial sewing machines. It’s really phenomenal to have all of that. I mean, you’re paying for it. You might as well use it as much as you possibly can.

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