Building the Next Generation
The National Building Museum continues to celebrate its 30th Anniversary with a special series in National Building Museum Online. This month, we’re proud to feature an interview with a former student of two Museum outreach programs: the Design Apprenticeship Program and Investigating Where We Live. Claire Lorman is now a junior at Savannah College of Art and Design studying Industrial Design. Recently we sat down with Claire to learn more about how the Museum’s programs impacted her life.
National Building Museum Online (NBM Online): How did you get involved in the Design Apprenticeship Program (DAP)?
Claire Lorman: I went to a school with a British style curriculum, and we had a Design Technology course for several grades in which you learn general design concepts and how to use machine tools. My teacher told us about the program and encouraged us to get involved. After I started, I went back to DAP every year and even participated in Investigating Where We Live (IWWL) for two summers.
NBM Online: What did you enjoy about DAP and Investigating Where We Live (IWWL)?
Claire Lorman: My design class in school only had a few students, so it was great to meet and work with a larger group of kids that shared an interest in design. Some of the participants that I met through the programs have become my close friends.
NBM Online: Did participating in DAP help you prepare for studying design at the college level?
Claire Lorman: It’s great to be able to translate the things I learned at the National Building Museum into my college courses. The quality of the instructors in DAP was so high, that they really taught us at a young age to start thinking like professionals. They brought in local architects and designers to teach us how to think about design and interact with clients; when I tell other students and professors at college about it, they’re amazed at the experience I was able to gain in DAP and wish they’d had similar opportunities. Having five years of experience in the program on my resume has helped me with new opportunities like internships and jobs. In fact, I am thinking about redesigning one of the projects I worked on with three other students so I can include it in my portfolio.
NBM Online: How did your experience participating in IWWL compare to DAP?
Claire Lorman: IWWL was really interesting to me because it encourages people to see neighborhoods in Washington from a completely different perspective. You see the buildings, streets, and people from the eyes of kids. Some of the kids are so talented; the photographs they create are truly amazing.
Also, seeing the kids present their materials to their parents at the end of the program really made an impact on me. They are so proud to show off the sketchbooks they created to their parents and families; they also put an incredible amount of care into creating the exhibition.
NBM Online: How have you continued to be involved after graduating the programs?
Claire Lorman: Even though I graduated from DAP and IWWL, I still feel connected to the program and the Museum. I still go back to all of the presentations every year if I can. The outreach programs staff invites us to come back and help with aspects of the programs, which is very rewarding. Some of my friends from the program have also helped at the Museum’s festivals, like Festival of the Building Arts and the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
NBM Online: What would you say to kids to encourage them to get involved?
Claire Lorman: A lot of kids haven’t ever been challenged to think about design. It’s amazing to watch them come to the National Building Museum’s programs and discover how interested they are—they absolutely fall in love with it. I would let them know that getting involved in these programs gives you the chance to really think about things and see the world in an entirely new way. You’ll get to do it in one of coolest places in Washington, working with really amazing people and other students and you get a chance to learn from real professionals in a fun way.
NBM Online: Do you think your experiences here will continue to play a role in your life in the future?
Claire Lorman: Definitely. The programs that the National Building Museum offers are truly special—but other organizations and schools should implement programs that teach kids about design and architecture. I think that after seeing so many students get so involved in the programs, it would be amazing if they could have experienced it earlier.
