From Experiencing Spaces to Understanding Them

Student Connections Summer Blog Series: Parkhill’s Student Connections program focuses on growth and applying knowledge through real-world experience. This program welcomes young professionals of all backgrounds into our offices. It encourages them to build connections, confidence, and a sense of community that carries into their careers; many of them choosing to continue at Parkhill.

Greta Guilliams is an interior design student who spent her first Student Connections summer in Parkhill’s Lubbock office.

For many students, choosing a career path starts with a class, a conversation, or an interest developed over time. For interior design student Greta Guilliams, inspiration came from experiencing a space.

As a musician in high school, she had the opportunity to perform at Buddy Holly Hall in Lubbock, Texas. Experiencing the venue sparked an interest in architecture that led her to interior design and to Parkhill’s Student Connections program. Liz Morgan, IIDA, LEED GA, served as her primary mentor.

“It was the Buddy Holly Hall that got me interested in architecture and then interior design,” she said. “I think it is such a funny, full-circle moment working for Parkhill, and I have really enjoyed learning the skills that it takes to design, develop, and build a huge space like that.”

Seeing Spaces Differently

Greta’s time at Parkhill has given her a new perspective on the built environment — not only how a space looks or feels, but also the countless decisions required to bring it to life.

“I think it has further enlightened me to the process and depth of detail and work that goes into every room and every aspect of that room,” she said.

One project Greta is particularly proud of being part of is the Tulsa Air National Guard Airman Center. The project introduced her to several new aspects of the design process, including Parkhill’s approach to material specifications and how designers work directly with clients to select and order materials. She also gained experience with tools such as Revit and Bluebeam and has seen how technology supports collaboration among different sectors throughout the design process.

That hands-on understanding has followed her beyond the office. She now finds herself paying closer attention to the materials used in the spaces she encounters every day and considering the work behind choices that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Learning Collaboratively

While developing her interior design skills has been an important part of her experience, Parkhill’s Student Connections program also offered something she has not yet experienced in school: the opportunity to collaborate with students from other disciplines.

“It was great to see Greta grow in her communication and collaboration with other disciplines through the Student Connections program,” Liz said. “I’m glad we have a program that supports students not only in developing their chosen profession, but also in building the skills required to be successful professionals in the workplace. Networking and collaboration are essential, and the program does an excellent job of highlighting and strengthening those skills.”

The Student Connections team project brought together students representing civil, electrical, interiors, mechanical, and structural disciplines for a 3D modeling assignment. Greta’s team chose to create a star featuring the Parkhill logo, with each point representing one of their sectors. Together, they decided how to approach the design, divide responsibilities, and use each team member’s software experience and strengths to move the project forward before ultimately seeing the model 3D printed.

“The biggest part of Student Connections that’s been really helpful was definitely the team project and getting to work with people from different sectors,” Greta said. “We haven’t had our collaboration studio in school yet, so I haven’t had that opportunity to work with anyone outside of interior design.”

For Greta, the assignment offered an introduction to the give-and-take of interdisciplinary work and how a project is strengthened through collaboration. Successful projects are rarely the product of a single discipline.

“It was really interesting to get to work with other people and decide what we wanted to do for our project, how we were going to divide the task, who had experience with what software, and who could help where,” she said. “I found it to be really enjoyable and a really interesting introduction to collaborative work on that kind of scale.”

Giving Back Through Design

As Greta begins her senior year at Texas Tech University, her experience at Parkhill has given her an opportunity to reflect on where her interest in interior design began and how it connects to her passion for music. What began with experiencing a thoughtfully designed performance space is becoming a desire to create those experiences for others.

Greta played in the drum line of the Goin’ Band from Raiderland for her first two years at Tech, is currently in a bagpipe ensemble for her sorority, and continues to be involved with the Lubbock Youth Orchestra.

“Working on those kinds of performing spaces is something that I hope to work towards, just to really give back to the music community and something I’ve been involved with for a long time,” Greta said. “I still play in some of our ensembles and with the School of Music at Tech. So it’s something that I really enjoy, and it’s a community that I am definitely interested in designing for and giving back to.”