Interior Design students and faculty were recently invited to tour the newly opened NOUN Hotel in Norman’s historic Campus Corner area. The field trip was a collaboration with the Oklahoma Interior Designers Coalition (OIDC) chapter board, the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Oklahoma City Chapter board, and GH2, an Oklahoma based architecture and design firm. The OIDC, IIDA, and GH2 hosted the entire Interior Design program, including undergraduate students and faculty.
Interior Design students tour the hotel.
Megan Chinowth and Christina Harris, the lead designers of the NOUN Hotel project, are both alumni of the Gibbs Interior Design program as well as current Interior Design Professional Advisory Board Members. Megan and Christina gave the Interior Design students and faculty tours of the newly opened NOUN Hotel, sharing their experiences working on the project. Students were able to observe and ask questions about the design of the rooms, common areas, bar, and restaurant at the NOUN.
Interior Design students view the hotel bar.
Other local design professionals and OIDC and IIDA board members, including Aaron Pilat with GH2, attended the event allowing students to meet and interact with many interior design professionals.
Interior Design students view the NOUN hotel lobby.
Thank you to Megan Chinowth and Christina Harris for facilitating this tour of the new NOUN hotel for our Interior Design students. Additional thanks to OIDC, OIDC President Sara GReen, OIDC President-Elect Mackenzie Matray, the IIDA TX OK chapter, and IIDA TX OK President-Elect Melissa Park for also hosting this wonderful event.
The Gibbs Design in Action Awards (GDAA) program, led by Dr. Wanda Liebermann, has announced its 2026–2027 funded student projects. The initiative supports design and research work that addresses social, cultural, and economic issues in the built environment through collaboration with faculty and community partners.
The OU Institute for Quality Communities (IQC) 2024 collaboration with the Historic Threatt Filling Station has been recognized in the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's newly released Byways Report: The Scenic Route to Rural Prosperity – a story-driven publication exploring how road trip culture and place-based tourism can fuel economic growth in rural communities.
The Gibbs College of Architecture is pleased to announce that Camille Germany, Chief of Staff, has been named the 2026 recipient of the university-wide Jennifer L. Wise Good Stewardship Award.
