New York, NY – Stacie Krug, a fourth-year interior design student in NYIT's School of Architecture and Design, has been awarded the prestigious Angelo Donghia Foundation Scholarship for 2014.  Krug is one of 12 winners selected from 60 student projects submitted for this year's award by accredited institutions and vying for a scholarship of up to $30,000, which covers senior year tuition, board and maintenance, books and other requisite student materials.

Krug was awarded the Donghia Foundation scholarship for a design project to determine if an interior can live outside. The objective of this project was to analyze an assigned piece of furniture (in this case, the Zig-Zag Chair by Gerrit Rietveld, 1934) and create a sanctuary for it in an urban environment (see images, right). A key goal was to exhibit the chair but also give the user a sense of personal space while allowing for connection, rest, and observation with the exterior setting.

"It was critical for us, as students, to get an understanding of how the chair was crafted, and its innermost design strategy. An understanding of our piece allowed us to create a strategy for both how the chair was displayed and how the enclosure was designed for it," Krug explained.  "I chose to use a simple, minimal framed enclosure. This allowed me to mirror Rietveld's idea for an unobtrusive object in an area. This was the same idea he designed the Zig-Zag chair with, in order to not disrupt a space."

Krug is the third NYIT student to win this prestigious award in the last four years. NYIT student Melanie Li Foo Wing received a Donghia Foundation scholarship in 2011; Adam LoPorto received it in 2010. The projects that these students submitted all were conceived and developed in Professor Robert Allen's Furniture Design studio (DSGN 420) that is run every spring on NYIT's Manhattan campus.

"These scholarships are indeed an honor for the students who receive them; as one said to me upon winning, ‘it is a game changer for me and my family.' This award not only recognizes their talents among a formidable competitive pool, but the scholarship dollars essentially guarantee the student a year of study with little to no financial concerns," said Martha Siegel, associate professor and chairperson, Department of Interior Design, NYIT School of Architecture and Design. "For many of today's students, who have to work throughout their schooling, it means they can focus more rigorously on their studies and continue to develop their talents. NYIT's Department of Interior Design is grateful for the Donghia Foundation's continued commitment to interior design and for the time and vision of their esteemed judges to see and acknowledge tomorrow's professionals."

The panel of judges for the 2014 scholarship awards were: Judges were: Amanda Nisbet of Amanda Nisbet Design; Charles Pavarini III of Charles Pavarini Designs; David Scott of David Scott Interiors; Francine Monaco and Carl D'Aquino of D'Aquino Monaco Inc.; Brooke Gomez of Gomez Associates; John Barman of John Barman Inc.; Laura Bohn of Laura Bohn Design Associates; Jason Kontos of New York Spaces; Michael Pierce of Pierce Allen; and Ronald Bricke of Ronald Bricke & Associates, Inc.

The Angelo Donghia Foundation, Inc. was established by Angelo Donghia, the internationally recognized interior designer. The foundation launched the scholarships in 2002 to award deserving students who are entering their senior year in a Baccalaureate Degree Program in interior design.

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New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) offers 90 degree programs, including undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees, in more than 50 fields of study, including architecture and design; arts and sciences; education; engineering and computing sciences; health professions; management; and osteopathic medicine. A non-profit independent, private institution of higher education, NYIT has 13,000 students attending campuses on Long Island and Manhattan, online, and at its global campuses. NYIT sponsors 11 NCAA Division II programs and one Division I team.

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