Designing Forward

SJSU Senior Show 2025

Project Overview

Context

Each year, the graduating class of Bachelor of Science in Industrial Design students hosts a Senior Show, showcasing a selection of their strongest work developed throughout the program. The exhibition highlights the creativity, problem-solving, and design process that each student brings to the field, serving as both a celebration of their journey and a launchpad into their professional careers.

Goals

Our goal was to host a show of caliber that stood as a testament to the dedication and hard work each student put into the program. Together, we aimed to create an event that not only highlighted our individual and collective achievements, but also reflected the creativity, resilience, and design growth of our graduating class. As a team, we focused on ensuring the show was professional, well-organized, and welcoming — an experience that celebrated our journeys while leaving a lasting impression on industry professionals, faculty, peers, and guests.

My Role

Led planning and organization efforts, contributed to developing event organizational materials, and ensured smooth communication across team leads and faculty. I also took ownership of finalizing deliverables and distributing essential resources on the day of the show.

Key Responsibilities:

Co-planned & organized clear agendas and timelines
Co-planned & organized event materials with a partner
Finalized documentation to ensure clarity and accuracy
Led weekly team meetings to track progress and align goals
Prepared & distributed lead packets with customized maps, charts, and task-specific checklists
Coordinated with executive team members to streamline communication and responsibilities
Supported event execution & day-of logistics to deliver a professional, cohesive experience

Stakeholders

Faculty Advisors – provided guidance and approvals

Industry Professionals – attended and provided feedback

Student Leads – managed individual teams and responsibilities

Graduating Class – contributed project work and participated in the show

Teams I Managed

Building and executing fresh promotional strategies + launching the Designing Forward LinkedIn.

📸 Promo Team
Custom designing and constructing the new frame structures + crafting an upstairs prototype gallery.

🛠️ Space Planning Team
Designing our logo + poster templates.

🎨 Visual Design Team
Gathering assets + for the first time building the Senior Show website (in collaboration with other design seniors across disciplines).

💻 Website Team

Documentation: Pre-Show Management

Organizational Drive

Drive built to house documentation and planning documents. Shared with show executive team (leads of all teams), as well as key SJSU faculty.
Delegation

Chart built to clearly state responsibilities for each team. The class was split into four key teams, each with a Lead and Co-Lead.
Calendar Timeline

Provided to everyone with key deadlines for tasks (color coded per team). Was reviewed twice weekly: By the executive team & then with the whole class.
Live Miro Board

Miro housed our constantly updated board where each team had full reign to share and communicate progress and ideas. Served as home for key links.
3D Bracket Print Plan

The frame Space Planning Team designed and built requires custom brackets. This served as timeline guide for 3D printing brackets and assigning volunteers.
Assignment Tracker

Originally, there were assignments structured in a class to help us plan the show. This chart tracked them.
Weekly Class Agenda

Fluid agenda/task list for weekly full class meetings. Exec team was also encouraged to include important topics for discussion here.
Meeting Notes

Kept running meeting notes and documentation for all sessions. Updated by myself and other exec team members to review.
Weekly Exec Meeting Slide Decks

Over 120 pages of slides. Hosted weekly executive team meetings with updates and timeline reminders.

Documentation: Day of Show Management

Run of Show

A detailed, timed schedule of every activity, cue, and transition for Senior Show. Served as a central, quick-reference document for all executive team members to ensure seamless execution from setup to cleanup.
Materials List

Materials breakdown for every part, tool, or element of the show we could have possibly needed. This was printed out and checked off as materials were transported to and from the venue.
Day of Show Team Breakdown

Worked with my partner to create a Team Breakdown specific for the Day of Show. Each Team had broken down tasks and sub tasks for different elements of transportation, setup, and teardown.
Zone & Spinner Maps

Using the map architecture built by Space Planning Team, I sectioned out colored zones for specific team tasks and placments. Second map served as a visual representation of each persons team and placement on the floor.
Person & Project Specific Guides

Using the map placement of each person by Space Planning Team, I built a finalized map with each persons project placement. With the help of Space and Promo Team, we solidified the amount of tables needed per spinner.
Spinner Packets

A total of 9 packets built to help each trio of people build their frames/spinner. Each packet included: an envelope with materials, a stage timeline, a building steps guide, an overall map of the space, as well as their individual space.

Executive Team Packet Details

Co-planned and organized with my partner, then finalized independently. Printed and distributed on clipboards to all executive team leads on the day of the show.