Katrina Lewis

Rotary Peace Fellowships

Katrina Lewis

Rotary Peace Fellow 2012

 

Katrina M. Lewis was named a Rotary Peace Fellow in Summer of 2012, completing the Professional Development Certificate in Peace and Conflict Resolution at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. The fellowship transformed her understanding of how design can contribute to peacebuilding by fostering empathy, collaboration, and stronger communities. Since then, the principles of peacebuilding have become an integral part of her teaching, research, and service.

 

Lewis is an Associate Professor in the Department of Interior Architecture and Industrial Design at Kansas State University, where she has taught since 2001. She earned her Bachelor of Interior Architecture in 1998 and her Master of Regional and Community Planning in 2001 from Kansas State University.

 

Her international teaching experiences have further strengthened the connection between design and peace. Lewis has taught at universities in China, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, where she gained firsthand experience working in a variety of educational and cultural settings. These experiences reinforced her belief that design can serve as a catalyst for dialogue, problem-solving, and improving quality of life.

 

Her scholarship focuses on beginning design education and the role of design in fostering collaboration, creative thinking, and positive impact. She encourages her students to recognize that designers have a responsibility not only to create functional and beautiful environments yet also to strengthen communities through thoughtful and responsible design.

 

In 2014, Lewis was awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor. In 2020, she received the Commerce Bank and W. T. Kemper Foundation Undergraduate Outstanding Teaching Award, Kansas State University's highest honor for excellence in undergraduate teaching.

 

As a Rotary Peace Fellow, Lewis continues to integrate the principles of peacebuilding into design education while mentoring future designers to become thoughtful leaders who use creativity to address complex challenges and improve the built environment.