This summer, educators from 10 school districts in Lake, Geauga and Cuyahoga counties participated in #DesignCampCLE - a free, professional development experience at Lakeland Community College’s HIVE Makerspace.

After two years of virtual #DesignCampCLE in both 2020 and 2021, this year’s participants were eager to gather in person to practice human-centered design methods and mindsets to transform education for their students.

HIVE’s #DesignCampCLE engaged and immersed educators in activities designed to foster authentic connections. Teachers participated in a mini-design cycle, exploring the phases of human-centered design: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test.

The theme for this year’s camp was “Explore.” Participants paired up to design and test new explorer gear for their partner, which was rooted in a unique need that they gleaned from their empathy interview.

After the design challenge, teachers attended breakout sessions to take a deeper dive into core aspects of human-centered design. The goal of each session was to provide tools that teachers could readily implement in their own classrooms and schools.

In one breakout called “The Power of Designing for One,” co-teachers Sarah Loveland and Mary Kohl shared their own journey of using human-centered design to create and open a STEM school in Perry Local Schools. “We’re telling our story today, yes, but this learning session is about you,” Kohl shared with teachers. “We want to make sure that you all leave with an actionable idea that you’re ready to try when school starts in August.”

Leah Konopka Hartmann, executive assistant to the president and special projects lead at Lakeland, was thrilled about the impact of #DesignCampCLE on Northeast Ohio teachers and ultimately, students. “Our role at Lakeland is to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow. Through human-centered design, a world-class way of approaching complex problems, we are helping teachers learn an innovation framework that they can teach their students.”

Participating school districts include:

• Chardon Local Schools
• Cleveland Municipal School District
• Crawford Central School District (Pennsylvania)
• Euclid City Schools
• Heritage Classical Academy
• Notre Dame Schools
• Perry Local Schools
• Riverside Local Schools
• Warrensville Heights City Schools
• Willoughby-Eastlake Schools

To learn more about professional development opportunities offered at Lakeland’s HIVE Makerspace, contact Rachel Siegel, design and innovation specialist at rsiegel3@lakelandcc.edu.

By: Adam Continenza, Mktg and Communications Spclst