'Community Engaged Scholarship', by Amy Leidtke, after serving as Presidential Faculty Fellow, Rhode Island Campus Compact, 2013-2014.Pedagogy. I am interested in the intersection of design and education. I teach people about design, communication, empathy, creativity, and collaboration, skills that help propel twenty-first century innovation. My teaching philosophy is motivated by a love for the subject and I strive to ignite the same curiosity in the minds of my students. I am respectful of cognitive and cultural diversity and set a tone of inclusivity in the classroom. My pedagogical practice is multidisciplinary, reflective, evolving, and occurs at a variety of levels.
College Level Teaching. I am a faculty member in the Department of Industrial Design at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where I teach design courses at undergraduate and graduate levels. A sampling of past RISD studio courses include Curiosita: Practical Applications for Innovative Thinking, Nature-Inspired Design Innovation, Introduction to Industrial Design, Design Principles, Industrial Design Investigations, Spatial Dynamics, Drawing Boot Camp, and Industrial Design Graduate Studio. Recent Independent Studies include Tensegrity and Design for Good projects.
Continuing Education. I am a faculty member in the Department of Continuing Studies at RISD, where I teach studio design courses (3 college credits) include Introduction to Industrial Design and Sketching and Rendering for Design Thinking. With an affinity making learning accessible for children and an affinity for Rube Goldberg, I created engaging curriculum and projects for a children's class titled, Cool Contraptions: Toy of the Century. I developed a series of unique family workshops such as 3, 2, 1... Blastoff! Water Rockets, Joy of Drawing, Colossal Colorfields, and Sculptural Snacks + Edible Edifices.
Residencies. I am a master teaching artist, having served as a Designer-In-Residence with public and private schools, working with children, youth and educators to create fun, interactive products and experiences within the context of academically integrated curriculum. Programs focus on themes including but not limited to brainstorming, collaboration, empathy, communication, drawing and design thinking. Past residencies include RISD's Project Open Door, Hope High School, Community Preparatory School, J.M. Walsh School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Brunswick School, and Sacred Heart School.
Professional Development. I provide K-12 educators with professional development opportunities relating to STEAM and design thinking. Working with K-12 teachers has allowed me to test out some of my unique hands and minds-on curriculum such as Seeing and Making Mathematical Paper Structures and Nature-Inspired Design Innovation.
Partnerships. I am on the Arts in Education Roster of Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA), a program endorsed by The New England Consortium of Art-Educator Professionals (NECAP).
Advising. I am a RISD faculty advisor for the Edna Lawrence Nature Lab, an informal learning environment that houses over 80,000 species.
Learning. I am an active learner and highly curious. I recently participated in RISD's Design Division of Graduate Studies Department of Teaching + Learning in Art + Design's Professional Development + Teaching Advancement Program. Additionally, I recently completed college level coursework in politics, economics, philosophy, and anthropology.
Lecturing. See the ENGAGEMENTS page for a listing of lectures and presentations.
Writing. I am the author of Leonardo's Art Workshop: Invent, Create, and Make STEAM Projects Like a Genius (Rockport). I self published Design Connections: Curriculum Tools for Design Education, which includes a set of design skill-building projects for middle and high school students.
Contact me if you would like to learn more about any of these projects or would like to discuss a future collaboration.