Hollywood, Fla. (February 22, 2024)— For nine years, PAVE Global has had the privilege of partnering with the creative, connected, and curious design collaborative Bergmeyer to support college-level Interior Design, Industrial Design, Architecture, and Graphic Design students through a $1,500 scholarship as well as an opportunity to take part in an immersive mentorship experience with some of the industry's top designers at Bergmeyer in Boston, Massachusetts.
“In collaboration with PAVE, Bergmeyer would like to congratulate Valerie Lange from the University of Washington as the recipient of the 2024 Bergmeyer Scholarship and Mentorship Experience. We extend our appreciation to all the talented design students from colleges and universities across the United States who submitted applications to the ninth annual Bergmeyer Scholarship with PAVE," said Rachel Zsembery, Bergmeyer's President. "Bergmeyer would like to recognize Valerie specifically for creating architecturally bold branded experiences that engage customers and inhabitants in experience-rich multi-sensory environments."
Applicants were asked to reflect upon the confluence of future Store Design thinking and an active focus on sustainability and submit a written response to how they imagine stores of tomorrow will be different from today. Students were also asked to provide a project folio highlighting their retail, restaurant, or hospitality-related projects. The quality and talent of the applications were impressive, with several standout entries that demonstrated a variety of design skills and knowledge.
In an excerpt from her letter of recommendation, John Passmore, a Tenured Full-Time Instructor at Bellevue College had this to say, "Valerie has always been a very hard worker and very focused. She is a very creative thinker and has developed consistently creative and well-developed solutions when compared to those of her classmates in a studio environment. Valerie possesses the design skills and creativity to create very meaningful, concept-driven environments." He continued, saying “She is among our strongest students. I would not hesitate to recommend her for the award.”
In the spirit of connecting students to the industry, once again the Bergmeyer team has graciously opened their doors and extended an invitation to all of the applicants to reach out if they are ever in the Boston, Columbus, or Los Angeles areas for a hosted tour of the Bergmeyer studios to see how they work, meet some of the design team, and to get to know each other.
The PAVE Scholarship Program, now in its fourteenth year, provides financial assistance to students in educational programs preparing them for careers related to the design and creation of consumer environments, including but not limited to careers in retail design, hospitality design, healthcare design, visual merchandising, interior design, architecture, product design, UX design, graphic design, and industrial design.
PAVE was developed to help ensure a future talent pool for the industry by eliminating barriers to studying in these fields. The funds assist students who are experiencing financial difficulties that would prevent them from continuing school. PAVE has awarded students over $254,400 in financial aid grants and scholarships in the past three years.
About Bergmeyer
Creative. Connected. Curious. Bergmeyer is a Design Collaborative; inspired through partnership, thoughtfully creative, inherently curious, and driven to fulfill their clients’ needs. They design for their clients’ clients, the people whose lives and experiences are enhanced by their work, by focusing on understanding the end user while delivering on each clients’ vision and return on investment.
Services include Architecture, Interior Design, Branding, Graphic Design, Strategy, Visual Merchandising, Program Management, Sustainability Consulting, Placemaking, and Event Design + Activation. Markets include Retail, Restaurant, Workplace, Commercial, Multi-Family Residential, Academic, Cultural, Hospitality, Healthcare, and Pop-Up + Temporary Experiences. (www.bergmeyer.com)
About PAVE Global
Founded in 1992 as The Planning and Visual Education Partnership, PAVE Global is a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation, with all proceeds benefitting PAVE’s educational programs. The organization enables young talent to build successful careers designing and creating consumer environments. Our vision is to cultivate relationships with students, educators, and the design industry through financial assistance, top-industry thinking, inspiration, and mentorship.
For more information, please visit www.paveglobal.org.