Lakeland College’s interior design technology program has won it’s 15 consecutive student design competition.
Students Mandy Davediuk and Mackenzie Dieleman finished second and third out of six spots in the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) Student Design Competition. Around 300 people across North America participated in the competition that challenged students to design a small kitchen or bathroom for Habitat for Humanity.
Instructor Rochelle Horne says the success from the competition somewhat validates all the student’s hard work in the program.
“The program is fairly intense here at Lakeland. We try and mimic a working studio and how large a scale the project might be and how detailed the project might be.”
As part of their podium finishes both Davediuk and Dieleman received a scholarship and a trip to the 2019 Kitchen and Bath Show in Las Vegas. Davediuk says being able to design a kitchen and make it functional for people to enjoy is very rewarding.
“My concept was about natural and clean, new beginnings for a new family to come in and enjoy the space and make it their home.”
The two-year diploma program is fully accredited by the NKBA. Horne says part of their success in the competition for the past 15 years is due to the program directly relating its content to the associations.
“I think we have a really strong relationship with the prairie provinces chapter of the NKBA and they are really supportive in helping align networking opportunities for our students, as well as getting them into trade only showrooms in Calgary and Edmonton to help build their knowledge a little bit further.”
NKBA has also recognized Lakeland as the 2017 College of the Year for their interior design program.