The DEC Steering Committee is composed of 15 dedicated educators providing service and leadership to the entire Design Educators Community. A “Call for Nominations” is announced annually by March and new committee members are notified by the end of April. The steering committee membership term begins in May and is 3 years with an option to extend for 2 additional years. Each year the number of open spots vary. New members are selected by the current DEC Steering Committee to represent a range of experience, interests, types of programs, and regions.
Minimum qualifications for consideration to the DEC Steering Committee are experience in teaching visual communication, graphic design, or a related field of study; membership in good standing with AIGA; experience with local chapter board leadership or committee service.
All DEC Steering Committee members meet once a month for a conference call and annually for a retreat. We support the participation of members at any phase of their career, in parenthood, relocations, and other life events and recognize the challenges associated with these types of transitions. We are a communicative, hard working, collaborative team with roles and tasks that are transparent, open, and transferrable. Members are expected to lead an initiative that will benefit the entire DEC and be active in managing the tasks associated with maintaining the mission and goals of the DEC Steering Committee.
Current Steering Committee Members
Katie Krcmarik
Steering Committee Co-Chair
Assistant Professor
Illinois State University
joined 2021
Zack Tucker
Steering Committee Co-Chair
Assistant Professor of Design
Sinclair Community College, Dayton, OH
joined 2023
Tasheka Arceneaux-Sutton
Associate Professor of Design
The University of Texas at Austin and Vermont College of Fine Art
joined 2023
Isabel Bo-Linn
Assistant Professor
Portland State University
joined 2025
Patricia Childers
Adjunct Professor of Graphic Design
Citytech, CUNY
joined 2022
Victoria Gerson
Assistant Professor of Graphic Design
California State University, Dominguez Hills
joined 2025
Ashley Hairston Doughty
Associate Professor of Art
Graphic Design & Media Program Coordinator
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
joined 2021
Jarrett Fuller
Assistant Professor of Graphic Design
North Carolina State University
joined 2022
Lee-Sean Huang
Design Education Manager
AIGA National
joined 2018
Kristina Lamour Sansone
Professor of Design
Lesley University and Rhode Island School of Design
joined 2025
Vinicius Lima
Associate Professor of Graphic Design and Foundations
Grand Valley State University
joined 2022
Lisa Maione
Assistant Professor of Graphic Design
Kansas City Art Institute
joined 2023
Devon Nassif
Graphic Design/Illustration Magnet Teacher
Skyline High School, Dallas, TX
joined 2024
Yvette Shen
Associate Professor of Visual Communication Design
The Ohio State University
joined 2022
RJ Thompson
Manager of Digital Strategy in Pitt Health Sciences
University of Pittsburgh
joined 2025
Shannon Zenner
Assistant Professor of Communication Design
Elon University, Elon, NC
joined 2024
