skip to Main Content
Laura Spencer

Meet Laura Spencer, Designer-in-Residence at the Design Lab

Meet Laura Spencer, Designer-in-Residence at the Design Lab

Meet Laura Spencer, Designer-in-Residence at the Design Lab

As a leader for innovation and design in every avenue, The Design Lab prides itself on fostering talent with diverse backgrounds; and individuals who look to ask “how far can design’s impact reach?” Laura Spencer is one such talented individual, who currently occupies one of the Designer in Residence positions.  She is also currently a CUE (Computer Using Educators)  Board member, former President of SDCUE, the San Diego affiliate of CUE, and is a Founding Board Member of EquityEDU.

“As the Chief Academic Innovation Officer for Elite Academic Academy, a K-12 charter school in Southern California, I have to focus on bringing innovation into the curriculum,” explains Spencer, “I have to ask myself different questions. How can I implement design thinking into learning? How can I facilitate project based learning? How can I make education more meaningful?” with design thinking and project based learning. And again, just trying to find ways for education to be meaningful.” Spencer’s passion for education has founded her career since her introduction into the working world. In 2010, the educator graduated from Alliant International University- San Diego Scripps Ranch with an EdD in Educational Leadership and Administration. Since then, she has been heavily involved in roles, positions and curricula regarding education, leadership and innovation; such as her time as a Part-time Lecturer at University of San Diego’s School of Leadership and Education, and as a conference speaker across the country.

“At the time I was working for a district where we were trying to see if kindergarteners understood design thinking and if we could get them to apply it to their work. I reached out to Michèle Morris at the time since I was interested in seeing how UCSD was incorporating design into their education through The Design Lab.” Morris then convinced Spencer to get involved with the Educators Alliance, and it was then that her interest in The Design Lab was piqued. “I got connected with Design Alliance and then last year when they worked with Design For San Diego (D4SD), I really saw an opportunity to make that kind of learning relevant for lower grades. A lot of times, when we’re in university we get focused on academics and research. It’s like the older we get, the more we’re stuck in a box,” Spencer continues, “We stick to what works because it worked before. But children aren’t like that and so, I was interested in seeing what would happen if we took these concepts from UCSD, these principles and this way of using design thinking and brought it to a younger level. Would they have new ideas that were completely out of the box? Or would they fall into the same patterns of thinking? I thought The Design Lab had a lot to offer in terms of exploring these questions, and so I brought it to Michèle Morris.” What followed was a partnership where Spencer gathered a bunch of fifth graders, taught them to employ design thinking in their work and had them come up with design solutions. The result? Ideas that blew her away. “They were so smart!” The educator exclaims, “and that’s when I was like, there’s something here, and I’d love to be a part of it and now here I am, a designer in residence.”

Her time at The Design Lab has since enriched her process. “The Design Lab has such a wealth of brains that I could learn from for my own work,” she says, “On the flip side, sometimes empathy leaves the conversations of academia. So I would go into meetings, hear the research and ask, “I see how this applies to academia but what about beyond that?” I use my experience to be the voice beyond the walls of this research institute, the voice of the common folk.” The intersection of her contribution to the Design Lab and her learnings from it, help shape her experience and research as a Designer in Residence.

“I want my children to have what I have,” says Spencer, “I don’t want them to wait until they are nineteen to understand design thinking and implement it into their lives. I want them and kids like them to experience it now.” She hopes that her research will make the design process more accessible to younger generations. It’s Laura Spencer’s ambition, passion and expertise that displays how she truly embodies the Designer in Residence role; and through that, the diversity of research, experience and leadership that The Design Lab prides itself on.

As a leader for innovation and design in every avenue, The Design Lab prides itself on fostering talent with diverse backgrounds; and individuals who look to ask “how far can design’s impact reach?” Laura Spencer is one such talented individual, who currently occupies one of the Designer in Residence positions.  She is also currently a CUE (Computer Using Educators)  Board member, former President of SDCUE, the San Diego affiliate of CUE, and is a Founding Board Member of EquityEDU.

“As the Chief Academic Innovation Officer for Elite Academic Academy, a K-12 charter school in Southern California, I have to focus on bringing innovation into the curriculum,” explains Spencer, “I have to ask myself different questions. How can I implement design thinking into learning? How can I facilitate project based learning? How can I make education more meaningful?” with design thinking and project based learning. And again, just trying to find ways for education to be meaningful.” Spencer’s passion for education has founded her career since her introduction into the working world. In 2010, the educator graduated from Alliant International University- San Diego Scripps Ranch with an EdD in Educational Leadership and Administration. Since then, she has been heavily involved in roles, positions and curricula regarding education, leadership and innovation; such as her time as a Part-time Lecturer at University of San Diego’s School of Leadership and Education, and as a conference speaker across the country.

“At the time I was working for a district where we were trying to see if kindergarteners understood design thinking and if we could get them to apply it to their work. I reached out to Michèle Morris at the time since I was interested in seeing how UCSD was incorporating design into their education through The Design Lab.” Morris then convinced Spencer to get involved with the Educators Alliance, and it was then that her interest in The Design Lab was piqued. “I got connected with Design Alliance and then last year when they worked with Design For San Diego (D4SD), I really saw an opportunity to make that kind of learning relevant for lower grades. A lot of times, when we’re in university we get focused on academics and research. It’s like the older we get, the more we’re stuck in a box,” Spencer continues, “We stick to what works because it worked before. But children aren’t like that and so, I was interested in seeing what would happen if we took these concepts from UCSD, these principles and this way of using design thinking and brought it to a younger level. Would they have new ideas that were completely out of the box? Or would they fall into the same patterns of thinking? I thought The Design Lab had a lot to offer in terms of exploring these questions, and so I brought it to Michèle Morris.” What followed was a partnership where Spencer gathered a bunch of fifth graders, taught them to employ design thinking in their work and had them come up with design solutions. The result? Ideas that blew her away. “They were so smart!” The educator exclaims, “and that’s when I was like, there’s something here, and I’d love to be a part of it and now here I am, a designer in residence.”

Her time at The Design Lab has since enriched her process. “The Design Lab has such a wealth of brains that I could learn from for my own work,” she says, “On the flip side, sometimes empathy leaves the conversations of academia. So I would go into meetings, hear the research and ask, “I see how this applies to academia but what about beyond that?” I use my experience to be the voice beyond the walls of this research institute, the voice of the common folk.” The intersection of her contribution to the Design Lab and her learnings from it, help shape her experience and research as a Designer in Residence.

“I want my children to have what I have,” says Spencer, “I don’t want them to wait until they are nineteen to understand design thinking and implement it into their lives. I want them and kids like them to experience it now.” She hopes that her research will make the design process more accessible to younger generations. It’s Laura Spencer’s ambition, passion and expertise that displays how she truly embodies the Designer in Residence role; and through that, the diversity of research, experience and leadership that The Design Lab prides itself on.

As a leader for innovation and design in every avenue, The Design Lab prides itself on fostering talent with diverse backgrounds; and individuals who look to ask “how far can design’s impact reach?” Laura Spencer is one such talented individual, who currently occupies one of the Designer in Residence positions.  She is also currently a CUE (Computer Using Educators)  Board member, former President of SDCUE, the San Diego affiliate of CUE, and is a Founding Board Member of EquityEDU.

“As the Chief Academic Innovation Officer for Elite Academic Academy, a K-12 charter school in Southern California, I have to focus on bringing innovation into the curriculum,” explains Spencer, “I have to ask myself different questions. How can I implement design thinking into learning? How can I facilitate project based learning? How can I make education more meaningful?” with design thinking and project based learning. And again, just trying to find ways for education to be meaningful.” Spencer’s passion for education has founded her career since her introduction into the working world. In 2010, the educator graduated from Alliant International University- San Diego Scripps Ranch with an EdD in Educational Leadership and Administration. Since then, she has been heavily involved in roles, positions and curricula regarding education, leadership and innovation; such as her time as a Part-time Lecturer at University of San Diego’s School of Leadership and Education, and as a conference speaker across the country.

“At the time I was working for a district where we were trying to see if kindergarteners understood design thinking and if we could get them to apply it to their work. I reached out to Michèle Morris at the time since I was interested in seeing how UCSD was incorporating design into their education through The Design Lab.” Morris then convinced Spencer to get involved with the Educators Alliance, and it was then that her interest in The Design Lab was piqued. “I got connected with Design Alliance and then last year when they worked with Design For San Diego (D4SD), I really saw an opportunity to make that kind of learning relevant for lower grades. A lot of times, when we’re in university we get focused on academics and research. It’s like the older we get, the more we’re stuck in a box,” Spencer continues, “We stick to what works because it worked before. But children aren’t like that and so, I was interested in seeing what would happen if we took these concepts from UCSD, these principles and this way of using design thinking and brought it to a younger level. Would they have new ideas that were completely out of the box? Or would they fall into the same patterns of thinking? I thought The Design Lab had a lot to offer in terms of exploring these questions, and so I brought it to Michèle Morris.” What followed was a partnership where Spencer gathered a bunch of fifth graders, taught them to employ design thinking in their work and had them come up with design solutions. The result? Ideas that blew her away. “They were so smart!” The educator exclaims, “and that’s when I was like, there’s something here, and I’d love to be a part of it and now here I am, a designer in residence.”

Her time at The Design Lab has since enriched her process. “The Design Lab has such a wealth of brains that I could learn from for my own work,” she says, “On the flip side, sometimes empathy leaves the conversations of academia. So I would go into meetings, hear the research and ask, “I see how this applies to academia but what about beyond that?” I use my experience to be the voice beyond the walls of this research institute, the voice of the common folk.” The intersection of her contribution to the Design Lab and her learnings from it, help shape her experience and research as a Designer in Residence.

“I want my children to have what I have,” says Spencer, “I don’t want them to wait until they are nineteen to understand design thinking and implement it into their lives. I want them and kids like them to experience it now.” She hopes that her research will make the design process more accessible to younger generations. It’s Laura Spencer’s ambition, passion and expertise that displays how she truly embodies the Designer in Residence role; and through that, the diversity of research, experience and leadership that The Design Lab prides itself on.

Read Next

Design Lab Global

Design Lab Gains Global Perspective with New Student Program

The Design Lab is launching the Global Scholars program this spring quarter, an exciting new initiative for graduate-student learning.

Known for creating human-centered design solutions that focus heavily on users’ needs and behaviors, the Design Lab, located within the Qualcomm Institute at UC San Diego, is home to an impressive team of interdisciplinary designers, engineers, technologists, scientists and business leaders who work on large-scale complex socio-technical challenges regionally and beyond.
Smart Streetlights Data San Diego

San Diegans Shouldn’t Be Lab Rats for Innovation

Voice of San Diego Editorial by Design Lab Faculty Lilly Irani

In 2016, San Diego installed thousands of General Electric cameras, microphones and telecommunication devices on streetlights around the city. The City Council approved the project with little investigation, looking no further than the city’s casting of the project as environmental “sensors” and “nodes” that would analyze traffic and the atmosphere.

The city finally held town halls this year to explain the program to communities, but by then it was too late. Once installed, technologies of this type will outrun the uses for which they are designed and publicly justified. Over and over, researchers like myself have seen data creep — like mission creep — take hold as companies try to add value to data and monetize them.
Design Lab Uc San Diego Dexcom Automation

A New Partnership Seeks to Inject User Trust into Diabetes Management Technology

Advances in healthcare technology are revolutionizing the management of diabetes. Continuous glucose monitoring systems paired…

Design Lab Students Swarm CHI Conference in Denver

In May, many UC San Diego Design Lab members and students swarmed the largest human-computer interaction conference in the world, ACM CHI 2017. Affiliated with ACM SIGCHI, the premier international society for professionals, academics and students who are interested in human-technology and human-computer interaction (HCI), the conference brings together people from multiple disciplines and cultures to explore new ways to practice, develop and improve methods and systems in HCI.

“I love the mix of people at CHI—chatting with people making new sensor technologies, new theoretical approaches, new architectural construction techniques -- it has incredible diversity but is still brought together with a common set of ideas and expectations,” said former Design Lab Fellow Derek Lomas, who presented at the conference.

This year, the mega-HCI conference, which was sponsored by tech-industry giants such as Facebook, Google, IBM, Microsoft and Yahoo! was held in Denver near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Organizers selected the site, which is full of scenic trees, mountains and valleys to serve as a motivation for the theme of “Motivate, Innovate, Inspire.”
Design Lab Don Norman Healthcare Designforward

San Diego is Getting Serious About Healthcare Design

In June 2017, San Diego hosted two of the largest annual healthcare conventions - the…

Design Lab Uc San Diego Don Norman Creative Education

Rethinking Design Education

Don Norman, Design Lab Director

The Challenge

The requirements of the 21st century are quite different than those of earlier years. New needs continually arise, along with new tools, technologies, and materials. Designers are starting to address some of the major societal issues facing the planet. Does design education prepare them to work with and lead the multidisciplinary teams required to work on these complex sociotechnical systems?

The Origins

We are embarking on a serious effort to rethink design education for the 21st century. We started with the multiple thoughtful articles in two special issues of the journal She Ji on design education (download from our website). This inspired us to assemble a team of senior designers from academia and business to serve as a steering committee to start a large effort to rethink design education.
Back To Top