Tri-County's Interior Design Students Prepare for
Presentation at Anderson Home Builders Show

CONTACT: WANDA MORGAN, EXT. 2384

FOR RELEASE BEFORE FEBRUARY 19, PLEASE
(By Lisa Garrett)

ANDERSON --- The first large-scale design project by Tri-County Technical College's current advanced Interior Design students will be viewed by thousands next weekend (February 19 – 21) at the annual Anderson Home Builders Show.

The students, under the guidance of their instructor, interior designer Wanda Morgan, have been working feverishly for months to prepare for this year's new concept, an Interior Design Center, which is comprised of eight 10 x 10 design booths, or vignettes, spotlighting designs for the millennium. For four days preceding the event, students, clad in old jeans and tennis shoes, will spend 18 - 20 hours a day working on the presentations, by loading furniture and accessories and setting up the booths at the Civic Center.

"This is what they have been waiting for. Students get valuable experience and project time. This is the culmination of two years of study in the Interior Design certificate program," said Ms. Morgan.

Students began this endeavor by giving Ms. Morgan their ideas for styles and sponsors for the booths. Next, they found the furniture, accessories, floor and wall coverings, lighting, fabrics -- everything on their own.

"They have had to find their furnishings, deal with the retailers, arrange the room – just like in the real world," said Ms. Morgan.

"It's been a valuable lesson," she said. "They really have worked as a team. Each student is an individual with different ideas. The key is learning how to turn individual tastes into a design that is pleasing for everyone."

Tri-County's interior design program is for both personal interest and career advancement, she said. There are 18 courses, including an internship. Graduates earn the title of residential and commercial interior design specialists. "They can go into any area of design. When I came to Tech 18 years ago, I was teaching one class. Interior design is so complex. We began to develop the program, and now we have 18 courses and we plan to add more," she said.

The students were ready for a project of this magnitude," said
Ms. Morgan," but they still are working under my guidance. They still have questions, and I'm there to answer them. I enjoy seeing what students have learned all come together," she said.

Former students have repeatedly won top honors for best booth at the Southern Home and Garden Show in Greenville and the Anderson Homebuilders Show.

Ms. Morgan says students also learn that interior design is not all glamour. "There are days when you climb ladders and paint walls," she said, clearly speaking from experience.
-30-