CPID Student Fellows

Meet the Center for Public Interest Design's Student Fellows:


Valeria Degutis (2019 - 2020)
Molly Esteve (2017 - 2018) (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)
Colin O'Neill (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)
Danette Papke (2016 - 2017) (2017 - 2018) (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)
Cassandra Rice (2019 - 2020)
Rebecca Taylor (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)
Matthew Thomas (2019 - 2020)
Justin Tuttle (2019 - 2020)
Emily Waldinger (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)
Nichole Wetle (2018 - 2019) (2019 - 2020)

Christopher Cardoza (2018 - 2019)
Bijeta Choudhury (2018 - 2019)
Molly Esteve (2017 - 2018) (2018 - 2019)
Lauren Fitzpatrick (2018 - 2019)
Colin O'Neill (2018 - 2019)
Danette Papke (2016 - 2017) (2017 - 2018) (2018 - 2019)
Rebecca Taylor (2017 - 2018) (2018 - 2019)
Emily Waldinger (2018 - 2019)
Nichole Wetle (2018 - 2019)
Robert Wilson (2018 - 2019)

Molly Esteve (2017 – 2018)      
Dominic Galen (2017 – 2018)                                                           
Lisa Patterson (2017 – 2018)
Connor Scher (2017 – 2018)           
Becca Taylor (2017 - 2018)
Rob Wilson (2017 – 2018) 

Janna Ferguson (2016 – 2017)                                                   Rosemary Hill (2016 – 2017) (2017 - 2018)
Tucker Jones (2016 – 2017)
Santiago Mendez (2016 – 2017)
Danette Papke (2016 – 2017) (2017 - 2018)
Olivia Snell (2016 – 2017) 

Paul Conrad (2015 - 2016)
Jodi Dubyoski (2015 - 2016)
Hayley Nelke (2015 – 2016) (2016 – 2017)
Alejandra Ruiz (2015 - 2016) (2016 – 2017)
Matthew Rusnac (2015 - 2016)

Willy Chandler (2014 - 2015) (2015 – 2016) (2016 – 2017)
Julia Mollner (2014 – 2015)
Jennifer Rimorin (2014 – 2015)
Jenna Wasser (2014 – 2015) (2015 – 2016) (2016 – 2017)
Reid Weber (2014 - 2015)

The CPID Student Fellows program is designed to give outstanding graduate and upper level undergraduate students the opportunity to gain valuable experience outside of the classroom through extended participation in a public interest design project. Student Fellows are given a leadership role on an active CPID project under the guidance of one of its faculty members. Through this fellowship, students may receive IDP credit, work experience, fulfillment of practicum hours toward the Public Interest Design Certificate at PSU, and access to special events and opportunities.

The fellowship begins with a one-week intensive trip to one of CPID’s project sites to examine broad issues of public interest design, tackle a small project that responds to an issue the group identifies, and meet with stakeholders to evaluate recently completed work by the CPID. Past orientation trips have included a trip to Haiti where students built play structures at the Montesinos Orphanage and Environmental School, and work on an Earth Lodge on the Crow Reservation in Southeastern Montana. 

The CPID Student Fellows program creates a core group of students to advance work and allows for significant collaboration between students and faculty. The project that the student fellow works on throughout the year is based on his or her interests and abilities, current Center projects, and the focus area of their faculty or professional collaborator. As important as this relationship is for the success of individual projects and consistency with community engagement, this program also fosters the esprit de corps of the organization.

Projects that the Student Fellows are working on in 2017-2018 include:

  1. Research and design to inform responses to Portland's housing crisis

  2. Design, engagement, and planning efforts toward the creation of transit stations that maximize community impact in Sacramento

  3. Design and construction administration for small infill housing prototypes to address Portland's need for affordable housing and densification

  4. Retheorizing and examining public interest design practices

  5. Programming and design planning for a local nonprofit empowering underserved entrepreneurs