By: Design Studies Institute Staff
The Design Studies Institute is excited to announce the addition of four new faculty members. These academics form a talented group of educators, mentors, and researchers who hold dedicated passions for their specialized forms of design. They are bringing fresh perspectives in their teaching and research, and are committed to student success at DSI.
We welcome Dr. Cheryl Miller, Dr. Erin O’Connor, Dr. Ricardo Gonçalves, and Dr. Zayed Ahmed. You can read more about our new faculty and all of their accomplishments in their directory listings.
A visionary in the field of design, Dr. Cheryl Miller offers students a distinctive interdisciplinary perspective on historic and contemporary design practice. Dr. Miller has roots as a designer, an author, a historian, a theologian, and a thought leader for equality and inclusion throughout the professional world of design. She holds numerous degrees as well as four honorary doctoral degrees from prestigious universities in design and art. She is a visionary for a new design ethos, focused on decolonial perspectives, cultural impact, and a sense of belonging in the design community. Dr. Miller’s boundless knowledge and body of work in design scholarship denote her as the Institute’s first appointment as a full Professor of Design Studies.
Explore Dr. Miller's Faculty Directory Listing ↗
Dr. Erin O’Connor, with her work in sociology and ethnography, serves as a guiding light in both the art, and craft, of design. She is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Northeastern University-New York City. Her previous research, as well as her exciting upcoming research look at the entangled agencies of mining, creativity, and geopolitics in studio glass. Dr. O'Connor will be joining the Design Studies Institute team as a Doctoral Advisor.
Explore Dr. O'Connor's Faculty Directory Listing ↗
Dr. Ricardo Gonçalves brings experience as a researcher and educator in working across diverse global contexts. Dr. Gonçalves' work is a beautiful blend of social design, embodied awareness, and transformative education. He specializes in working across diverse epistemes and is also a co-founder of a creative residency program. Dr. Gonçalves’s passion for learning and teaching design will be an asset to the Institute in his role as a Doctoral Advisor.
Explore Dr. Gonçalves' Faculty Directory Listing ↗
Dr. Zayed Ahmed brings a speciality in cutting-edge quantitative design research methods. His extensive research focuses on energy systems, aerospace technologies, and power electronics. Dr. Ahmed brings a fascinating take on engineering design through a multitude of collaborations and also has three recent publications (as of September 2026) dedicated to his work. With his vast experience, he will be joining the Design Studies Institute team as a Doctoral Advisor.
