Probably the most exciting part of my apprenticeship with Civilla was working on the Reform Project, as it was my deepest dive in human centered design during my stay in Detroit.

Currently, the State of Michigan Department of Human and Health Services utilizes a Public Assistance Form that is 64 pages long and carries convoluted language and structure. Because the whole system of processing cases and giving assistance to individuals is centered around this form, Civilla took on the challenge of making the 1171 more human centered for citizens, who apply for assistance, and for caseworkers, who process these applications.

Under the tutelage of Design Project Leads, Lena Selzer and Michael Brennan, I operated as a design researcher and performed ethnographic interviews, synthesized insights, built prototypes, and ran user testing and co-design sessions with citizens and caseworkers.

The team also designed a storytelling experience through which we presented our findings and prototypes to the Administration of the Michigan State Department of Human and Health Services by utilizing art, sound installations, and strategic spatial design. Instead of a PowerPoint presentation, we decided to design an experience that would immerse the user into the struggles of caseworkers and citizens through spatial, visual and sound design. And the response was amazing.

It was in this storytelling lift that I realized my love for building and creating art with a purpose. I would have never discovered this had it not been for the environment that Civilla fostered. This culture encouraged me to bring my true self to the table, even the parts of me that laid dormant for years.

Civilla is now in conversations with MDHHS in order to define next steps in making the application process better for citizens and caseworkers.