BURLINGTON, Vermont, January 25, 2010 — The AIGA Vermont chapter presents the first Student Design Challenge to Champlain College students, who were tasked to design a bike share program for the city of Burlington. A juried exhibition will select the top 10 submissions to win student memberships to AIGA, the professional association for design.

The competition, sponsored by Champlain College and Jager Di Paola Kemp Design (JDK), encourages students to actively engage in design thinking and social responsibility within the community. In this scenario, a bike share program would target the greater Burlington, Vermont community and tourists. It would provide affordable, accessible, easy-to-use and well-managed access to bicycles for to help diminish traffic congestion, noise and air-pollution.

Each entry will consist of a complete solution including a company name and logo, a bike sharing program structure and a launch campaign. According to Suzanne Glover, an Assistant Professor of the design program at Champlain College, “The students have eagerly welcomed the opportunity to compete for free AIGA memberships and have their work displayed in the exhibition.”

Judging the competition will be Seth Drury, Art Director from Methodikal, Jeffrey Henderson, Creative Director/Principal from Tag New Media and John Siddle, Sr. Design Director from JDK. The top submissions will be on display at JDK located at 47 Maple Street in Burlington. The exhibit opens with a reception from 6–8 PM on Thursday, January 28 and will remain on display through Tuesday, February 2. “This competition will inspire young designers to utilize their future profession in a way that benefits their community. We are thrilled to share their work with the public through this exhibition,” notes Stephen Francisco, JDK CEO.

About AIGA
AIGA, the professional association for design, stimulates thinking about design, demonstrates the value of design and empowers the success of designers at each stage of their careers. AIGA’s mission is to advance designing as a professional craft, strategic tool and vital cultural force. Founded in 1914, AIGA remains the oldest and largest professional membership organization for design, and is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) educational institution. For more information about AIGA, please visit http://www.aiga.org/about.

For more information about the Student Design Challenge, please contact:

Kara Murphy, AIGA Vermont President
president@vermont.aiga.org

Jory Raphael, AIGA Vermont Communications Chair
communications@vermont.aiga.org

http://www.aigavt.org