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Jun 10, 2024 By Jessica Jones
Meet 2024 Student of the Year Emily Hatcher
An Auburn University graduate and member of IIDA’s Alabama Chapter, Emily Hatcher believes ‘designers have one of the most powerful jobs in the world’
By Jessica Jones Jun 10, 2024
Published in Articles

(Above Image: Emily Hatcher graduates from Auburn University 2024. Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher)

Our 2024 IIDA Student of the Year Award recipient is Emily Hatcher, Student IIDA, an interior design graduate of Auburn University and member of the IIDA Alabama Chapter. Growing up, her passion for art and creativity led her to pursue a career as an interior designer. Hatcher believes interior design is an important tool to inspire emotion. “It creates the feeling of the consumer,” Hatcher explained. Designers “can create joy, sadness, creativity, productivity, and every other emotion imaginable. Designers have one of the most powerful jobs in the world.”

Creating space for the study and celebration of design is just as important to Hatcher as the many resources offered to her through the support of IIDA. She is very active on her campus and in the IIDA community; last spring, she was elected co-president of The Societies, Auburn University’s student-led chapter of IIDA and ASID (The American Society of Interior Designers). Through this position, she has been able to serve as a leader on her campus, foster connections with design industry leaders, and learn more about the importance of mentorship in design. Mentorship, after all, is a key part of Hatcher’s career plan: “It will be my goal to create an environment of learning, inclusion, and exposure to resources within interior design,” Hatcher added.

Hatchers’s dedication to leadership, education, and strengthening the design community is apparent to those in her orbit. “In addition to excelling with a rigorous course workload, Emily continually volunteers her time participating in meetings that include state, regional, and national student conferences with both ASID and IIDA. She also serves as an undergraduate teaching assistant for studio courses and has served as a mentor to underclassmen,” said Melanie A. Duffey, Ph.D., an associate professor of interior design at Auburn University.

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During an internship last year at architecture and design firm Cooper Carry, Hatcher made some lasting impressions. Patrece Julian, IIDA, senior associate at Cooper Carry, said, “Emily was an immediate fit and proved to be a great contributor to the projects in my purview. She helped to prepare a presentation for the renovation of the Ebenezer Baptist Church Education Center and participated in a town-hall style forum that gathered information from the church constituents.”

Hatcher worked with 18 different designers and numerous architects throughout her internship. “Her commitment and leadership in IIDA, and community volunteerism rounds out her character—which will take her far,” Julian continued. Not just in her career, but as someone who “fully contributes to society.”

We asked Hatcher to tell us a bit more about what winning this award means to her, and how IIDA has contributed to her growth as a designer.

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Hatcher and her co-president Lyvi, for the Societies, Auburn University's Interior Design student-led chapter organization.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher

Hatcher and her co-president Lyvi, for the Societies, Auburn University's Interior Design student-led chapter organization.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher

What was your reaction when you learned you’d received this award? What does being honored mean to you?

When I got the call that I had received this award, I was honestly at a loss for words! At that moment, I was so filled with gratitude and excitement. I am so honored to use this to represent Auburn’s interior design program as well as The Societies—our student chapter organization. Receiving this award means so much to me because it has always been a goal of mine. Auburn Interior Design definitely challenged me, but ended up providing me with more resources, connections, lessons, and friends than I could have ever expected. I knew from the moment that I walked into my first freshman studio course that interior design was the right choice for me, but I was so unaware that those next four years would provide me with the most rewarding connections—professors, mentors, and again, most importantly, friends! This award is a testament to those people, as they have helped me grow into who I am now.

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Hatcher and her design friends at Auburn University.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher
Hatcher and her design friends at Auburn University.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher
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Hatcher and friend enjoy the Societies Valentines Day event.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher
Hatcher and friend enjoy the Societies Valentines Day event.
Photo by Image courtesy of Emily Hatcher

How has IIDA influenced you throughout your collegiate career?

IIDA has had such a great impact on my time at Auburn, especially through The Societies. I served as an officer for two years, most recently as the co-president, alongside my friend Lyvi King. Whether we were traveling to IIDA student day or organizing an event for our members on campus, IIDA has always been so helpful and accessible to our student organization. They have provided us with ample connections and resources, and have given our members a network of professionals much larger than what we can find in Auburn. The events that IIDA helps us create are not only great for professional development and industry connections, but most importantly for creating space to develop friendships within our program. Those friendships are the most important takeaway of my time in The Societies and couldn't have been achieved without the support of IIDA.



The 2024 Student of the Year will be recognized at NeoCon during Meet Us on Monday: IIDA’s Celebration on the Stairs. Join us

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