OU Interior Design Faculty recently presented at the Environmental Design Research Association’s 54th Annual Mexico City Conference. Professors of Interior Design Dawn Loraas and Yeji Yi both attended the conference and shared their research findings.
EDRA invited practitioners, researchers and educators from all interested fields to submit proposals that collectively rethink how environmental, architectural and design research can take on current challenges. The conference provided a forum to discuss how to improve the environment and promote health and well-being at both a local and global level.
Loraas presented her project “Using Place Theory to Understand Educator’s Perceptions of Poor Indoor Air Quality on Well-Being” and explored her findings on place detachment, as part of the larger field of place theory. Place detachment refers to the state of mind of a person who has lost their emotional bond with a specific place, due to unwanted circumstances.
The main goal of her research was to determine if negative place attachment was significantly higher for educators who perceive toxic indoor air quality in their school building. Loraas discovered that many participants deem the school building in which they work to be hostile. From her research, she determined that physical building attributes are a key component in educator well-being and satisfaction with their workplace.
Yi presented her project, “Creating Therapeutic Environments for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Using Virtual Reality Technology: Systematic Review.” She examined the current state of virtual reality technology used for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in therapeutic settings. Her research and findings provided a guide for design considerations in creating environmental interventions using VR technology.
Petya Stefanoff, Chair of the Educational Committee with the American Planning Association, Oklahoma Chapter (APA-OK) and Gibbs College PhD candidate, has developed a new training program for local government officials. The program, focused on land use, zoning principles, and land development, recently certified its first graduates with Certified Citizen Planner status.
Gibbs Construction Science and Architecture students recently traveled to Dublin, Ireland, to compete in the Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) Region 8 Student Competition. The team partnered with Czech Technical University and secured third place in the Design-Build category.
Gibbs College is pleased to present the exhibition Vollendorf in Oklahoma: The Architecture of Dean Bryant Vollendorf during the Spring 2026 semester. It will be on display in Gould Hall, on the OU-Norman Campus, from February 16, 2026 - March 13, 2026.
