Denise Rush
Dean of the School of Interior Architecture • Boston Architectural College
Denise Rush is a design leader and educator serving as the Dean of School of Interior Architecture at The Boston Architectural College.
Photo courtesy of Boston Architectural College
I build, nurture, and foster an atmosphere of collaboration within our student body. It’s important for me to provide a visible presence in the design community locally and nationally.
Denise Rush, ASID, IIDA, is concurrently Dean of the School of Interior Architecture and Director of Undergraduate Interior Architecture at The Boston Architectural College. Denise considers it her responsibility to foster a collaborative atmosphere among students. In service of the college’s mission, it is also her duty to ensure that the school’s curriculum is at the intersection of professional practice and academia. Prior to her extensive studies in interior design, she practiced many forms of artwork, including watercolor, calligraphy, and model-making. Denise decided she wanted to study architecture in high school, and found her mentor, artist, and architect Gretchen Minnhaar, through a matching program.
Denise describes herself as someone who loves learning and works hard to get the best education possible. In her sophomore year at the College of Human Environment and Design at Michigan State University, she secured one of only 30 spots in the junior-level interior design courses with an anonymously submitted project and went on to earn her BA in Interior Design in 1984. At her first post-college job, she observed the head of the interior design department to prepare herself for her own leadership position. Denise worked her way up from an entry-level design position to the role of college dean that she holds today, sharpening her skills at every opportunity. She now also volunteers on boards and committees of the American Society of Interior Designers, the International Interior Design Association, and the Interior Design Educators Council.
Denise Rush at the Allsteel Showroom in Downtown Boston celebrating the advancement of the Interior Design profession in Massachusetts.
Photo by Molly Chase
PErsonal History
Photo by Nancy Carbonaro
Inspiring Hobbies
“I was always interested in the arts and had parents that supported and nurtured those interests. I liked painting and calligraphy. I used my calligraphy skills for my father’s reservations chart. He was a maître d’ for a private dining club in Grand Rapids, MI. I also would create calligraphic works for his colleagues. Another hobby that shaped my career was my miniature house. My mother (who was a furniture craftswoman) and I built a 1/12th scale farmhouse. Some would say dollhouse, but I prefer model.”
Representation Matters
“I feel quite fortunate that my first job after college graduation was with WBDC, the largest full-service architecture firm in my hometown, Grand Rapids. WBDC designed the headquarters of Steelcase. The interior design department was led by a young woman, Mary Dixon, who nurtured and grew the staff. I observed Mary’s management style and knew one day I wanted to be in design leadership. I have been in the Architecture & Design field for over thirty years, and it is sad to see that the profession has not become more diverse.”
In her previous roles in interior design and project management, Denise has led several teams through programming, schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction administration, including built interior environment and furniture selection and specification. In her first role at The WBDC Group in 1984, she notes that only 3 out of 300 employees were people of color. In her second job she was the only person of color in a small design firm, and in her third job she was the only person of color in the design department.
Discovering Love for Education
“Although I love the practice of interior design and solving clients’ space needs for large workplace projects, I truly love design education. After being in design for many years I went back to school to earn a Master of Science in Nonprofit Management. It was my intention to work for an innovation nonprofit organization that provided interior design services for other nonprofits. Somewhere along the way this led me to becoming a full-time academic administrator for the BAC, a small nonprofit institution of higher education, where I also teach a few classes.”
Leadership Takes Practice
“My early positions groomed me for design leadership. Each position allowed me the opportunity to hone my leadership skills. I went from entry level designer to job captain; to facilities designer; to head of interiors; to director; to project manager; to adjunct educator; to full-time educator; to Dean. My best advice is to find your passion and hone your skills. You must live and breathe design. To be successful you must have a voracious appetite for continuous learning because the design field is constantly changing.”
Photo by Nancy Carbonaro