Dear Dr. Taylor:

It was with both admiration and envy that I read the full report on
the Design School at UCI. My admiration is for the comprehensive and
carefully crafted study of existing design programs that the committee 
has
produced. It is one of the best that I have seen. It is heartening to
see that UCI has been so successful in making the case for the
establishment of the new design school. Your committee has been very
clear in its articulation of the design parameters used in the
development of the program's form.

I am a bit envious because I had observed the failure of a similar
attempt at UC Berkeley in the 70's. Horst Rittel and C. West Churchman
tried to establish a similar program, one that addressed the common
interests in design that could be found in that academic community.
The only tangible consequence of this effort was a design seminar that 
hosted
faculty and students from across campus and included the National Labs; 
all
who were interested in discussing design. The UCB Chancellor attended 
the
seminar for a period of time for consultation on the 'design' of 
Berkeley. As
an
architect, I was surprised to learn that 'design' was going on in 
diverse
disciplines and professional areas such as: public health, business,
transportation studies, environmental studies, public policy etc. The
insights presented by the participants in this diverse seminar gave a 
new
direction to my own professional development. I believe that the 
failure to
establish this formal design program was a major lost opportunity for 
UCB

For twelve years, I was the director of two graduate design programs
that I had the opportunity to design and manage at a private university 
.
One program was rated among the top 10 graduate programs in 
organizational
development, even though it was not an organizational development (OD)
program, but rather an organizational design program. Taken as an 
alternative
to traditional MBA programs, these graduate programs became popular with
managers and professionals in local corporations such as Boeing and
Microsoft, as well as government agencies. Because of this experience,
several questions come to mind in regard to your program.

My colleagues and I have been working with the idea that design is not
a subset or derivative of science, or a form of art, nor is it a mid 
point
between the two. We hold the idea that design is its own tradition of
inquiry, as well as action and is among the oldest of traditions. We do 
not
believe that it is merely a creative form of problem solving, planning 
etc.
although it has those aspects within its domain. Is this a 
consideration in
the design of the UCI Design School?

Also, 'composition' is a seminal principle of design. This implies
that 'emergence' and integration (i.e. relationships and 
interrelationships)
are key aspects to be considered in design learning. Since traditional
science based research does not address this, how does the UCI program 
engage
in academic inquiry, inquiry that addresses scholarship outside of the
science domain especially at the Ph.D. level? In the same vein, design
learning for design students needs to be an integrating experience—a
composition, which is unlike traditional academic programs. How does the
pedagogical design of the new school address this?

Also, one of the most important distinctions between design and other
traditions (science, art, the humanities etc.) is the concept of 
'service' to
stakeholders. Although this principle is somewhat obscured in consumer
related design, it is immediately visible in contract-based design. The
ability to serve other's desires and expectations, rather than one's 
own, is
a hallmark of design. How is this approached in the new program? These
questions are an expression of the belief that design is unique and 
holistic –
not merely a craft, applied science, or art.  As a consequence, academic
design programs will probably look different from traditional academic
programs.


Once again congratulations on your success.

Regards,

Harold Nelson



Harold G. Nelson, Ph.D., M. Arch.
President; Advanced Design Institute
www.advanceddesign.org
Past-President; International Society for Systems Science
www.isss.org
Affiliated faculty, Engineering, U. Wash.