Christina Tuong, a rising senior in Marymount University’s Interior Design program, never expected to win a national design contest.
“I was just blown away, especially since I knew how amazing the designs of my classmates were,” said the winner of the “2015 I Like Design” competition.
Those other designs were so strong that six of the 10 competition finalists were Marymount students, selected from 119 entries from across the country.
The competition challenge was to design a 21st century hotel lobby that provided a unique travel opportunity. The jury consisted of the editors at the magazine Interiors & Sources and the principals of Studio 3877, a design firm in Washington, D.C.
As the contest winner, Tuong, of Centreville, earned a paid summer internship with Studio 3877. Douglas Seidler, chair of the school’s Interior Design program, called it a well-deserved opportunity.
“Christina is a wonderful person with a great attitude who is just a delight to have in class,” Seidler said. “She’s always looking to learn a little bit more, always digging deeper into the issues and asking good questions.”
In addition to Tuong, other Marymount finalists included
- Kristen Eyler of Jarrettsville, Maryland
- Lauren Funk of Southbury, Connecticut
- Allison Kalder of Fairfax
- Camila Molina of Manassas
- Kathleen Scheer of Cary, North Carolina.
“We’ve always known this particular group is talented,” Seidler said. “I also think it validates the strength of our program and the caliber of students we have here.”
Seidler noted that Tuong also attended Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), which has a transfer agreement that guarantees admission to Marymount for NOVA students who meet set requirements.
“To me, this is a success for both programs,” he said.
Tuong said the transition from NOVA to Marymount was seamless.
“I’ve always liked interior design, even when I was a little kid,” she said. “I’m pretty excited about the internship, which I just started, and my upcoming senior year at Marymount.”
