OPEN HOUSE
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Welcome to Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University! KCAD is a place of collaboration, where designers, artists, historians, makers, and problem solvers of all kinds come together to develop, explore, and move their potential forward.
If you choose to join our community, you will experience immersive learning opportunities that transcend the walls of the classroom, leading you to a broader and more in-depth understanding of your discipline and how it connects to the world. With over 90 years of experience, we empower designers and artists to understand and harness their creative abilities and transition that energy into a career that allows them to inform and transform the world.
I look forward to meeting you soon!
All good things,
Tara McCrackin KCAD PresidentCheck-In Starts 12:30 PM
Woodbridge N. Ferris Building, entrance 17 Fountain St. NW building, entrance
Please check in with KCAD staff just inside the entrance of either the 17 Fountain St. NW building or Woodbridge N. Ferris Building.
Welcome to KCAD 1:10 PM
Woodbridge N. Ferris Building, Boyer Hall (Room 217)
President Tara McCrackin and Dean of Academic Affairs Stephen Halko welcome you to KCAD.
Learn about the Admissions Process
Woodbridge N. Ferris Building, Boyer Hall (Room 217)
1:15 PM
Our Admissions team is here to help you navigate the process of applying and answer any questions you might have.
Inside KCAD’s Student Life: Current Student Panel
Woodbridge N. Ferris Building, Boyer Hall (Room 217)
1:30 PM
Hear straight from current KCAD students about what life in our creative community is like.
All program-specific events are happening throughout the day - just drop by to participate!
2nd floor, Woodbridge N. Ferris Building
Connect with Art History and General Education faculty and learn how KCAD gives you the flexibility to explore creative career paths while building a strong foundation for your future.
7th floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Go inside the spaces and resources that power our Digital Art and Design program, including a professional audio studio and labs filled with Cintiq digital drawing tablets.
Atrium, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Give new purpose to old t-shirts by re-engineering and printing on them. Students and faculty from the Fashion Studies prgram, the Drawing program, and the Screenprinting class will be on hand reenvisioning and fabricating shirts and accessories.
Fashion Studies: Fashion Lab Tour Room 313, Woodbridge N. Ferris Building
Explore the workspaces where Fashion Studies students bring their original garment designs to life.
Fine Arts: Hands-On Screenprinting Activity
Atrium (main lobby), 17 Fountain St. NW building
Connect with faculty from our fine arts programs and dive into hands-on experimentation with screenprinting to create a unique takeaway.
Foundations First Year Experience: Student Work and Creative Process Showcase
1st Floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Connect with faculty from the First Year Experience courses to see how they unite first-year students in a shared experience that strengthens their core creative skills and fosters community on campus.
4th floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Connect with Graphic Design faculty and see the spaces and tools students use to craft compelling visual communication and forge their own identity as designers.
Illustration: Meet-and-Greet and Portrait Drawing Activity / Digital Painting
Portrait Drawing: 3rd floor balcony, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Digital Painting Demos: Room 317, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Connect with Professor Patricia Constantine while she draws your portrait. Adjunct instructors will also be doing live digital painting demos.
5th floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Connect with faculty and current students to see what life as a KCAD Interior Design student is like. Then, create a color and material palette for a mock client using actual samples from the Interior Design Resource Room.
17 Fountain St. NW building, Room 318
Explore the world of medical illustration through student and professional work, and see how our Life Sciences and Pre-Medical Illustration students go beyond art with interactive anatomy activities like “Pin the Organ on the Body.”
17 Fountain St. NW building, Room 502 Collaborate with current Master of Architecture students to create models of architectural structures using plaster, fabric, and gravity. Painting/Master of
3rd floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Explore the wealth of creative resources available to Photography students, have your portrait tak en by Photo Lab Assistants, and shoot a portrait of your guests using DSLR cameras, strobe flash equipment, and creative backgrounds.
2nd floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building Join Product Design students and faculty for live demonstrations of the digital sketching, digital modeling, and 3D printing processes used to make product ideas a reality.
Woodbridge N. Ferris Building, Room 025
Get up close and personal with the KCAD ceramics studio and learn how to use the process of wheel throwing to create limitless sculptural forms.
17 Fountain St. NW building, Room 103
Our Financial Aid team will help you understand your options when it comes to funding your education, demystify the FAFSA, and help you uncover opportunities you may not be aware of.
17 Fountain St. NW building, Room 103
Get feedback on your work with a supportive, pressure-free portfolio review. Our Admissions staff will also be available to answer any questions you might have about applying to KCAD.
Welcome Center, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Learn about the wealth of reources availabe to KCAD students, both on campus and out in the surrounding Grand Rapids community.
iRL: In Real Life (Student Exhibition)
Alluvium Gallery
1st floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Experimental and uncurated, featuring everything from prototypes and works in-progress to finished work created by all levels of our KCAD community.
3rd floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building Group exhibition centered around artwork that incorporates research and creative process.
1st floor, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Check out the digital fabrication tech available to KCAD students, from 3D printers and scanners to laser cutters and large-format printers, and even create a custom-engraved coin to take home.
1st floor, Woodbridge N. Ferris Building
Browse a diverse assortment of KCAD merch, creative supplies, and original pieces from local artists and designers.
Rear parking lot, 17 Fountain St. NW building
Upon check-in, every guest will receive a ticket for a free and undeniably delicious donut from our friends at Olly’s Donuts.
Home to the Digital Art and Design program, the 7th floor features an audio recording studio, 3D animation lab, Cintiq drawing lab, audio/video production lab, and green screen capture room.
Drawing and Painting students learn and create in a number of spacious facilities of the 6th floor, including our graduating painting studios, a figure painting room, and Gallery 602, where an ever-changing collection of student work is shared with the community.
The 5th floor is home to the Master of Architecture, Product Design, and Interior Design programs. Facilities include an array of studio space, design and drawing classrooms, and the Baker Furniture Library, an open and immense collection of historical and contemporary pieces that serves as a vital student resource.
The Graphic Design program occupies the 4th floor, which features a host of classrooms and tech labs as well as a full-service printing lab. The floor is filled with spaces that spark collaboration and problem solving between students and faculty.
The 3rd floor is the domain of the Illustration, Life Sciences and Pre-Medical Illustration, and Photography programs. Featured facilities include studios for undergraduate students, a large printmaking lab that caters to both digital and tra ditional processes, fully-equipped photography and lighting studios, a large format digital printer, and two full darkrooms – one for color film and another for black and white film.
The 2nd floor houses the Product Design program, as well as the KCAD Library, which places a wide variety of visual and digital resources right at students’ fingertips. In addition to a number of classrooms, this floor also contains a fully outfitted metals and jewelry design studio.
The 1st floor features the Alluvium Gallery and one room of the Dow Center FlexLab, a state-of-the-art facility featuring the latest in 3D printing, 3D scan ning, laser cutting, and large-format printing tech. KCAD’s Administration Offices are also located on this floor.
The lower level houses the Student Commons, student storage lockers, a full-service woodshop, and the second room of the Dow Center FlexLab.
In the early 2000s, KCAD began the long process of acquiring and renovating the Historic Federal Building at the corner of Pearl and Division in downtown Grand Rapids. In the fall of 2012, the building’s dazzling LEED-certified renovation was revealed to the public. All of the building’s historical Beaux-Arts aesthetics were preserved, while the interior was outfitted to meet the demands of the 21st century.
Highlights of this floor include classroom space for the Collaborative Design program and the Wege Center for Sustainable Design, a special collaborative space made possible through a generous gift from The Wege Foundation.
The 3rd floor is home to the Pamella Roland DeVos School of Fashion. Here, students in the Fashion Studies program have access to a number of resources, materials, and tools like industrial sewing machines and dress forms.
Art History and General Education comprise most of the second floor. Also featured are two lecture halls, both of which were formerly courtrooms. The larger of the two, Boyer Hall, is outfitted with a full-service audio/visual command center and is now used to host visiting speakers and public discourse events, while the smaller room, 221, hosts Art History lectures.
The 1st floor is home to KCAD’s Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts (UICA), which presents innovative art, events, and educational programs that represent our world today, and shopUICA, part gallery shop and part college bookstore that features an array of unique gifts and wares. Both the 1st floor and Garden Level also feature studio spaces supporting the Sculpture and Functional Art program, including an expansive metal fabrication and ceramics facilities.
17 Fountain St. NW Grand Rapids, MI 49503 kcad.edu 800.676.2787
Ferris State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion or creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran or military status, height, weight, protected disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable State or federal laws or regulations in education, employment, housing, public services, or other University operations, including, but not limited to, admissions, programs, activities, hiring, promotion, discharge, compensation, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral, or retention. Retaliation against any person making a charge, filing a legitimate complaint, testifying, or participating in any discrimination investigation or proceeding is prohibited.
Students with disabilities requiring assistance or accommodation may contact Educational Counseling & Disabilities Services at (231) 591-3057 in Big Rapids, or the Director of Counseling, Disability & Tutoring Services for Kendall College of Art and Design at (616) 299-3046 in Grand Rapids. Employees and other members of the University community with disabilities requiring assistance or accommodation may contact the Human Resources Department, 420 Oak St., Big Rapids, MI 49307 or call (231) 591-2150.
Inquiries or complaints of discrimination may be addressed to the Director of Equal Opportunity, 120 East Cedar St., Big Rapids, MI 49307 or by telephone at (231) 591-2152; or Title IX Coordinator, 805 Campus Dr., Big Rapids, MI 49307, or by telephone at (231) 591-2088.