Illuminating Engineering Society NYC Awards $25,000 Scholarships
The Illuminating Engineering Society New York City (IESNYC) selected two graduate students as recipients of the 2021 IESNYC Merit Scholarship. Each student will receive an award of $25,000.
Katrina Matejcik is a candidate in the MFA Interior Design and Lighting Design program at Parsons School of Design at the New School (Parsons); Dianna Osickey is a candidate in the MPS Lighting Design (MPSL) program at the New York School of Interior Design (NYSID).
Now in its fifth year, the scholarship is open to full-time, graduate-degree candidates in architectural lighting who are enrolled in an accredited college or university located in New York state. The scholarship was created to help alleviate the economic burden of receiving a graduate school education for deserving students.
In addition to the monetary award, the scholarship provides for membership and mentoring opportunities.
“The members of the jury agreed that this year’s two recipients were both standouts,” said Caleb McKenzie, LC, IALDA. MIES (US Lighting Consultants), and chair of the IESNYC Scholarship Committee. “And though they both come from different backgrounds and have different aspirations, the jury decided it was important to support both of them so they can further their continuing success in the lighting field.”
Katrina Matejcik
Katrina Matejcik graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in architecture and minors in product design, urban studies, and art. After graduating, she worked in Minneapolis at multiple architecture firms, a custom design-build furniture workshop, and collaborated with other young designers on civic-focused, nonprofit design projects.
At Parsons, Matejcik is pursuing a double major in both lighting and interior design with a minor in civic service design. Since attending Parsons, she has taken on many leadership roles including teaching assistant, lighting design student council representative, and research assistant, focusing on how germicidal UV can create safer indoor environments.
Last summer, she had a lighting design internship at L’Observatoire International. Matejcik will spend part of this summer working at LAM Partners, a lighting design firm in Cambridge, Mass., and the rest will be devoted to formulating ideas for her thesis.
Growing up in Rapid City, S.D., she developed a deep appreciation for the distinctive landscapes and the natural cycles connected to them. Moving forward, she hopes to be an advocate for the environment, sustainability, and honoring indigenous people through her design practice.
Matejcik aspires to continue contributing to academia through teaching and wants to work in the lighting design field with a social and environmental mission.
“I’m so honored and grateful to be a recipient of this scholarship, which will allow me to focus more time and energy on my academic endeavors and onsite research this summer,” Matejcik said. “For me, the IESNYC community continues to be a source of encouragement and inspiration. I’m eager to develop my lighting design skills and become a part of the collective talent of New York City lighting designers."
In his letter of recommendation, Craig Bernecker, Ph.D., LC, FIES, professor of lighting design and program director of the lighting program, said: “Katrina is one of the clear leaders in her class as I constantly see her interacting with classmates and
faculty. Additionally, her work as my research assistant on our germicidal ultraviolet radiation (GUV) project has been exemplary.
“She has shown great initiative and an appetite for gathering information about GUV, helps keep three faculty members organized and focused, and works extremely well with another graduate assistant. She is a cheerleader for this project and her enthusiasm is infectious."
Dianna Osickey
Dianna Osickey, AIA, LC, LEED AP, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Tennessee in 2008. Upon graduation, she practiced architecture in Knoxville, Tenn., for several years before making a shift to lighting.
In addition to attending NYSID, she is currently a regional sales representative for SESCO Lighting and has been involved in the lighting of projects ranging from a residential cabin to university projects and parkscapes.
Osickey has been involved in AIA East Tennessee, first as a board member and then as chapter president in 2020. Currently, she sits on its Executive Committee as past president and also on the AIA Tennessee Board.
In the future, she intends to establish her own lighting studio that will be based in Knoxville. Her studio will become an accessible resource to design teams in the Southeast that understand the regional vernacular.
“It is a huge honor to receive an IESNYC Merit Scholarship to support my time in the MPSL program at NYSID,” Osickey said. “This time has rekindled a love for abstract thinking and utilizing light as a storytelling tool to enhance the built environment. I hope that my transition from student to professional will provide an opportunity for me to share my newly gained education with architects and designers in my region. It is an exciting time to be a new face in the industry and I am looking forward to joining this community of talented lighting designers.”
In his letter of recommendation, Shaun Fillion, LC, MIES, NYSID advisor and MPS Lighting Design program director, said: “Dianna is a proven leader with architectural training who has discovered the beauty of lighting. She has excelled as a student at NYSID, sharing her knowledge of architecture and sustainability with the others, who in turn share interior design expertise and theatrical storytelling techniques with her.
“Her studio work shows a sense of exploration, coupled with strong execution and a strong knowledge of luminaire technology. Our remote option was a good fit for Dianna, a professional living outside of New York who wanted the benefits of advanced studies. Her ambition is to start her own lighting design firm and educating AEC professionals in her area on the benefits of using an independent lighting designer.”