DALLAS, TX -- Daltile, in conjunction with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Foundation, is pleased to announce Lauren Henrie as the winner of the second annual Daltile Interior Design Scholarship. As the grand-prize winner of the competition, Henrie was presented with a $10,000 scholarship at Surfaces 2013 to continue her education in the field of interior design. Lauren’s winning design was on display at Surfaces 2013, where she was present as Daltile’s guest of honor. First-, Second- and Third-prize winners each received a $2,500 scholarship, and ten Merit Winners received $1,000 in scholarships, for a total of $27,500 in scholarships awarded.

Lauren Henrie is the winner of the second annual Daltile Interior Design Scholarship. As the grand-prize winner of the competition, Henrie was presented with a $10,000 scholarship at Surfaces 2013.

"On behalf of Dal-Tile Corporation and the ASID Foundation, we congratulate Lauren Henrie on winning the Daltile Interior Design Competition," said Lori Kirk-Rolley, Senior Marketing Director of Dal-Tile Corporation. "Once again, students from around the country rose up to our design challenge, demonstrating that the future of interior design is bright indeed. We feel confident that Miss Henrie, the runners up and merit winners, are once again shining examples of what the next generation of interior designers has to offer." 

This year’s challenge was to design a bathroom using Daltile products that addressed the needs of multi-generational users and exhibited excellence in design and creativity. Students were challenged to feature at least one of Daltile’s new product lines, encouraging them to select from various product categories, including Natural Stone. Their design could span commercial or residential interior design, and focus on several categories, including corporate, hospitality, residence, retail, education, healthcare or institutional. Once a design space was selected, students were encouraged to explore and address all issues facing the space and its inhabitants.

"We challenged students to create an environment that embraced the principles of universal design that would allow their client to live a better, happier and healthier life," said Donna Vining, FASID, IIDA, RID CAPS, ASID Foundation Chair. "The results were tremendous, and we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to showcase this great work with the help of the entire interior design community." 

The grand prize winner and four finalists were selected by Daltile with the help of a panel of industry experts, including Julie Schulte, ASID, Juli Catlin, FASID, Michael A. Thomas, FASID, CAPS, Robert Nieminen, Editor of Interiors & Sources, Eric Wiedegreen, Allied ASID, FIDEC and Home Industry Consultant, Gale Steves. This year’s top scholarship recipients include:

• Grand Prize, $10,000 Scholarship Winner: Lauren Henrie, Utah State University
• 1st Runner Up, $2,500 Scholarship Winner Cassondra Meldrum, Utah State University
• 2nd Runner Up, $2,500 Scholarship Winner: Katelyn Lindstrom, Utah State University
• 3rd Runner Up, $2,500 Scholarship Winner: Rebeca de la Torre, Savannah College of Art & Design

To make this year’s competition even more exciting, Daltile turned to its Facebook fans and followers to help determine these winners. From November 30 to December 18, the Facebook community was invited to vote and decide which student design entries would win the ten, $1,000 Merit prize scholarships. The public was able to vote by visiting the Daltile Facebook page, selecting the Daltile ASID Contest app, and voting for their favorite entries. Nearly a quarter-million votes were cast on Daltile’s Facebook page, and when the dust settled and the votes were counted, ten merit prizewinners were selected. These ten winners are now on display on the Daltile Facebook page, and have won Merit scholarships.

Daltile is currently in the planning stages for the 2013 Daltile Interior Design Scholarship, again partnering with the ASID Foundation. The upcoming competition will continue to challenge students to push the design envelope and prepare them for the critical thinking and competitive nature of the world of interior design.

 For more information on the 2012 Daltile Interior Design Scholarship, presented by the ASID Foundation, and to view this year’s winners, visit the Daltile Facebook page.