The education you receive in four semesters will be shaped by five guest speakers each semester, each of whom has a reading, typically a book or lengthy online material; teamwork on the report to a real client; and class lectures and discussions. This accumulation of information makes a profound difference in the breadth and depth of your thinking as a designer.
You are what you think about: think about design processes to solve business problems and you will become a designer who solves bigger problems.
The MPS courses describe the importance of being disruptive and taking big chances using design as the fulcrum. Finding equilibrium between design and management is a balancing act. We read about it, we talk about it, and we discover our own paths. But we all agree that design management must satisfy three concerns: social/cultural by meeting the needs of people; environmental by meeting the demands of sustainability; and economic by planning for profitability.
You will learn to speak the language of business in your business course categories: Leadership, Marketing, Operations, Finance, Legal, and Strategy. You will learn about principles of design management from distinguished guest lecturers in the Design Management sequence. You will learn how to lead and collaborate by working in teams on a common business problem in the Collaborative Design Studio sequence.
I look forward to welcoming you as a student in the MPS program.
Alex W. White
Chair, Master of Professional Studies, Design Management
SASD MPS Design Management Faculty
Alex W White, MFA, BFA (Chair)
Dilek Katgi, MPS, BFA
Max Shangle, MS, BS
SASD MPS Guest Lecturers
We have five guests, representing a broad spectrum of businesses, visit every semester. Each guest has a required reading which is followed by a focused writing assignment. This cumulative experience exposes students to some 20 professionals and their most influential books over four semesters.
| Robert Pietrzyk | Lead Design Strategist, Global Marketing, Unilever |
| Robert Kahn | Partner, Futurebrand/McCann-Erickson |
| Perry Robinson, MD | Medical Entrepreneur |
| Jerid O’Connell | CEO, Fuel for Humanity |
| Zachary Kubin | VP Marketing, Sled |
| Robert Pietrzyk | Lead Design Strategist, Global Marketing, Unilever |
| Matt Wilber | CFO, Barteca Restaurant Group |
| Jarrett McGovern | CEO, Rise Coffee (Entrepreneur) |
| Spencer Curry | CEO, FreshFarm Aquaponics (Entrepreneur) |
| Adam Thatcher | Executive Director, Grace Farms, New Canaan |
| David Lickstein | R&D Design Manager, Skin Products, Unilever |
| Ken Coulson | CEO, FutureBright, A Sustainability Holding Company |
| Daniel Pelavin | Graphic Designers and Illustrator |
| Josh Cohen | CEO, Junkluggers (Entrepreneur) |
| Peter Gordon | CEO, LiteWater (Entrepreneur) |
| Nathan Garland | Graphic Designer |
| Elena Cahill | Professor and Entrepreneur |
| Laurel Syah | Head of Creative at The Shop at eBay Enterprise |
| Cheryl Miller | Contributing Editor, Print Magazine |
| Rich Mavrogeanes | CEO, Discover Video (Entrepreneur) |
| Adam Kaplan | Adam Kaplan Creative/Brand Trainer |
| Dr Ramon Peralta | Founder, Peralta Design |
| Charlie Griggs | Entrepreneur |
| Leslie Singer | Art Director |
| Jay Ford | CFO, Splash Management Group |
| Brian Miller | Partner and Creative Director, Miller-Smith |
| Kyle McClure | CEO, Rhone Clothing Company (Entrepreneur) |
| Bob Kunkel | President, Alternative Marine Technologies |
| Brent Robertson | Partner, Fathom |
| Amy Cueva | Founding Partner, MadPow |
| Jonathan Gouthier | Chief Creative Director, WITH Creative |
| Amy Graver | Creative Director, Elements |
| Paul Shaw | Typographic Historian |
| Charles Silverman | Partner and CEO, Indigo6 |
| Bahador Pazoki | Creative Director, Primacy |
| Robert Cohen | Architect, AIA |
| Ryan Johnson | CFO, Lovesac, Inc. |
| Robert Beleson | Chief Marketing Officer, Playboy Enterprises |
| Carly Price | Partner, IDEO |
| Gary van Duersen | Industrial Design Consultant |
| Jerry Kuyper | Indentity and Branding Maven |
| Gregory F. White | President, iRobot Consumer Division |
| Adam Dotson | Entrepreneur and Investment Consultant |
| Ashley Schofield | Partner and Creative Director, Cline Davis & Mann |
| Deb Kline | Creative Director, Group Four |
| Andrew Lathrop | Creative Director |
| Adam M. Dotson | Ironwood Capital |
SASD MPS Clients
Every semester we work in teams with one client to address their most pressing business concerns. Our clients, chosen among the many based in Fairfield County and New York City, have included corporations, companies, government, nonprofits, and NGOs. This work applies the principles and ideas learned throughout the MPS program.
| Half Full Brewery | Stamford CT |
| AmeriCares | Stamford CT |
| UrbanGlass | Brooklyn NY |
| Stamford Innovation Center | Stamford CT |
| Sun Products | Norwalk CT |
| Bridgeport YMCA | Bridgeport CT |
| Spinnaker Real Estate Partners | Norwalk CT |
| Pelham Community Rowing Association | Pelham NY |
| MetroCrops | Bridgeport CT |
| Kubtec Medical Imaging | Stratford CT |
| Hope for Haiti | Stamford CT |
| City of Bridgeport Planning Commission | Bridgeport CT |