Dr. Deana McDonagh

Director of Serious Fun

Dr Deana McDonagh is Professor (Industrial Design) in the School of Art and Design and founder of the (dis)Ability Design Studio at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. She is a Health Innovation Professor at the Carle Illinois College of Medicine and is bringing empathic modeling into the training of medical students to experience disability from a personal perspective to support patient-inspired innovation. She is an Empathic Design Research Strategist who focuses on enhancing quality of life for all through more intuitive and meaningful products, leading to emotional sustainability. She concentrates on the emotional user-product relationships and how empathy can bring the designer closer to users’ authentic needs, ensuring both functional and emotional needs are met by products.

Dr. McDonagh's profile

Carle Illinois College of Medicine

Personalized Nutrition Institute

Vice President of the European Academy of Design

School of Art and Design

Dr. Susann Heft Sears

Director of Enriching Life Experiences

Dr. Sears is the Assistant Director of Academic Services with the Division of Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES). The mission is to ensure that qualified individuals with disabilities are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from the programs, services, and activities of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign through the identification and enactment of reasonable modifications to institutional policies and procedures, the provision of effective auxiliary aids and services,and  the establishment of innovative educational services. Her research interests include investigating the career readiness levels, student engagement outcomes, and residential needs of college students with disabilities.  

Dr. Sears' profile