Erin Schambureck, MFA, NCIDQ, LEED AP

Education
BFA 2004, Interior Design, Iowa State University, Ames, IA
MFA, 2014, Design Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI

Research Interests
Erin Schambureck is a Registered Interior Designer at CRW Architecture.  Previously, she taught Interior Design at Texas Tech University.  As part of her MFA work,  Schambureck researched the needs of the visually impaired in the designed environment. Instead of requiring those with vision disabilities to adapt themselves to the environment, how can public buildings be designed to meet their needs? She has developed a set of low vision design typologies to be used to analyze interior spaces, identify problem areas, and propose solutions. As an interior design practitioner and an advocate for the visually impaired, she works to define the problems in the visual environment that make navigation, wayfinding, and task functions difficult for those with vision disabilities. Through this research she has also developed an interactive design guide that shows graphic examples of the problem typologies identified, as well as best practices for good design solutions to address them in the interior space. Erin currently serves on the National Institute of Building Science’s Low Vision Design Committee.