Alumni Spotlights

“Each co-op opportunity contributed to my personal growth and the discovery of my interests. I learned that I had a strong attraction to woven design, which is now the focus of my job,” she explained. 

Samantha has spotted her designs all over social media, with many influencers wearing her creations. She has also noticed strangers wearing her dresses, highlighting her achievements with her craft. 

The co-op program offers students a chance to explore the professional world they will step into after graduation. DAAP students are ahead of the curve, ready to confront any challenges. Samantha was already geared up for her career before she even graduated.

Being a student-athlete at the University of Cincinnati is no easy feat, but for those in the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), it requires an unparalleled level of dedication and time management. However, students like Tim Brown, a former professional soccer player and DAAP graduate, prove that it is possible to excel in both athletics and a rigorous creative discipline. 

With that being said, not all DAAP graduates who enter the sports industry do so as athletes. Charley Hudak, a 2011 UC DAAP alumnus, took a different path, using his creative talents to shape the future of athletic footwear. Hudak, now a lead designer for Tiger Woods’ new brand, Sun Day Red, recently returned to campus to inspire the next generation of designers at DAAP Camps.

Hudak’s career trajectory exemplifies how DAAP’s curriculum prepares students for roles in top-tier industries. During his visit, he taught middle and high school students about footwear design, demonstrating how a passion for creativity and sports can merge in unexpected ways. "I’m super humbled by the opportunity (at Sun Day Red), and part of it is coming back here and sharing my experience," Hudak said.

In addition to his design work, Hudak frequently collaborates with Woods, whom he calls "the most significant athlete to walk the planet." His work at Sun Day Red reflects his belief in the power of design to transform sports culture.

UC’s DAAP program has a long history of producing graduates who make waves in the creative industry, whether they are student-athletes or individuals working in the world of sports. The combination of hands-on experience, rigorous coursework, and co-op opportunities prepares students to take on influential roles in both creative and athletic industries.

For those who dream of excelling in both fields, Brown and Hudak’s stories serve as proof that with a little bit of hard work and dedication, it is possible to thrive as both a student-athlete and a creative professional at DAAP.

Brown’s dedication to innovation is a perfect example of UC’s strategic direction, Next Lives Here.

When University of Cincinnati alumnus Blake Young graduated in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in urban planning, his resume included four different cooperative education work experiences that bolstered his credentials.

“Those co-ops helped me get a better understanding of real-world applications and my passion for urban design,” says Young, adding that over the next decade of his career, it was always his hope to offer UC students the same opportunities he had, where they could gain the same valuable, real-world experiences he did when he was a student.

That opportunity came in May 2024 when Young was a guest speaker at UC’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP). Now he would be able to offer a leg up to another, as Young heads a land planning team with Kimley-Horn, an engineering, planning and design consulting firm with an office in downtown Denver, Colorado. 

In the audience of his speech was Sophia Gartland, a second-year urban design major at UC who was starting to explore avenues for her first co-op experience.

“Things just happened to fall into place really well,” Gartland says of connecting with Young and securing an internship on his team for spring 2025. While a first for Young’s team, the firm already brings on 1,000 interns from all over the country to its 125-plus locations with over 8,500 employees.

Under Young’s direction, Gartland is immersed in a professional consulting environment. Young’s team is currently working on comprehensive plans, housing needs assessments and various transit-related projects for communities in Colorado, Nevada, California and Washington. Gartland says she is involved in all aspects of these projects, from data collection to client meetings.

“The client interface is something that you don’t get in a classroom or studio,” she says, pointing to the benefits of taking what you learn in class out into the field. “Skills that you learn in both environments are so important.” 

Young says he emphasizes the same valuable lessons that he learned during his co-op experiences — one of which is time management. “As a consultant, we need to be efficient with our time and diligent with managing tasks,” he says. “We make sure that we are not just hiring co-ops to answer the phones."

Providing career opportunities and out-of-office experiences are benefits provided by Kimley-Horn. In addition to work, there is a VP of Fun in each office, who organizes extracurricular activities such as hockey games, bowling, snow skiing and other networking events, says Young.

These extracurriculars in a city surrounded by mountain ranges were an important draw for student Gartland, a member of the UC Mountaineering Club, which teaches members to rock climb, cave, backpack, canoe, raft and protect the earth at the peer-to-peer level. The move to Denver, she says, was made easier when she connected with several other UC students interning there, one of whom became her roommate.

“The work has been valuable, and I’ve even found some people my age to explore with,” says Gartland, who stressed, “It’s such an amazing and unique experience that not all universities offer.”  

Featured image at top: At the Kimley-Horn headquarters, Sophia Gartland (center) flanked by her direct supervisor Ines Ines Galmiche (left) and Blake Young.