By: Veronica Lynagh, VP of Strategic Initiatives, International Center for Creativity

Parker Warren, Industrial and Innovative Design, class of 2017 took a walk down memory lane with me to his time at Cedarville, the ICC and how his career has unfolded since his very first visit.

Originally Warren, who was set to attend Kent State University, felt studying architecture would be the perfect blend of art and engineering. His parents, however, encouraged him to attend Cedarville because of their Christian values. His mother really prompted the discussion after receiving an email from Cedarville about a new program which would blend interior and exterior along with product design, so he agreed to a visit. Upon visiting the old home of the ICC, which students fondly remember was tucked away in the woods in Powell, Ohio Warren said he loved the staff. “They were awesome, all of them, Jim, JD, Gabe, Tom” says Warren listing off members of the faculty, almost all of which are still very much the faces of the ICC administration today. He remembers meeting some of the students, exploring the projects and it seemed to him that more than architecture it was a blend of engineering and art.

During his first two years on campus Warren recalls that at Cedarville, nestled in the heart of Miami Valley you learn to make your own fun. “I remember a time we were going to go canoeing and we didn’t have any money, so using some of our design skills we build our own raft and sailed it on some local lakes” laughing he followed up, “with permission of course.”

At the ICC Parker shared lots of memories but most noticeable for him was the impact he says all his professors had on him. He says he related most to Tray Ojala, a staff instructor at the ICC. “I always went to Tray, we clicked pretty early on, I always went to him for design instruction and design thoughts on how I can attack this problem, but I could go to any of them for thoughts, instruction and good feedback.”

Warren designed his senior capstone project around a personal hobby of his, long boarding, which he describes as a bigger skateboard used to get around from point A to B. There was no bag or accessories on the market. Warren partnered up with Singing Needle, a local prototyping business in Columbus to build out his vision. Warren walked me through his design, after starting with a messenger bag, he learned to sew modifications and even 3D printed different parts till he settled on a working model, the first of it’s kind.

Warren was hired by InterDesign right out of the ICC, which split into two companies IDesign and MDesign (which in an online retail provider). MDesign, where Warren was assigned, features organizational and home décor, it’s a quick paced environment with tight turnarounds. Warren said it’s critical to understand how products are designed for manufacturing. “Coming out of college you don’t know the manufacturing aspect yet” and says he has had wonderful mentors to teach him how to understand how plastic goes through a mold, when to use steel to make welds strong, to name just a few examples. Warren, recently promoted to Senior Designer, now leads a team, and says communication with his team and vendors all throughout the US and Asia, as well

as working with the marketing team are all key responsibilities in his new role. Warren said he is enjoying learning more each day and sharpening his skills around communication, leadership, and the manufacturing aspect of his job; he’ll eventually look to become a Design Manager but wants to have the robust knowledge and skills first to support what would be a growing team.

As I do with all alumni and students, I asked Warren what advice he might give to students looking at the ICC.

“If they are looking for a blend of engineering and art, it’s perfect for them. I get to be creative everyday but there is a very real side because what you’re designing has to work, you have to push yourself very hard, it’s a smaller industry then say nursing, or engineering and there aren’t as many jobs as possible, so you have to push yourself. It’s very rewarding and it’s a fun job, I really enjoy what I do.”

Warren also shared with me that in this (design) field there is a great deal of pressure to forget about your religion and spirituality and focus on the product or art side of things, but as God often provides fellowship in our paths he has been fortunate to have a boss who is also a believer, Warren connected with him on a spiritual level. He has a strong spiritual background that he attributes to his time at Cedarville, Warren says that time enhanced his values and has pushed him even more.

Warren lives in Cleveland Heights with his wife Jordyn, together they have been able to make a explore and make the new city to both of them their home.

To connect with Parker Warren or learn more about his journey you can reach him at:

Parker Warren
Cedarville and ICC Alumnus 2017
Senior Designer, MDesigns
pjwarren2017@gmail.com