Design Entrepreneurship and Inclusion
With major support from The Cleveland Foundation, Kent State’s Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative launched a new Design Entrepreneurship and Inclusion Initiative in 2022. The goals of the initiative include:
Inclusive Design: expanding the diversity of designers in leadership roles on civic, institutional, and private sector design and development projects in Greater Cleveland, using the Design Diversity Index to track progress.
Design Diversity: leveraging the CUDC’s design practice to bring Black and Latinx design firms and emerging designers to Cleveland for catalytic, high visibility projects.
Business Development: creating entrepreneurship resources and programs to equip young designers with tools they need to launch their own firms.
Academic Outcomes: exploring more inclusive approaches to design pedagogy and recruiting more students from HBCUs into Kent State’s design programs.
Dawn N. Mayes is the Director of Design Entrepreneurship and Inclusion at Kent State’s Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative. In this role, Dawn leverages her expertise to create pathways for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) students to pursue graduate studies, provides essential support to startup architecture and design firms, and organizes impactful programs that promote awareness of design entrepreneurship and diversity. With a strong foundation in both academia and entrepreneurship, Dawn brings a unique blend of skills and experiences to her role, driving initiatives that foster inclusivity and innovation within Northeast Ohio's design community.