Mike Armintrout (he/him)

Senior Associate Director, Purdue Convocations

My focus on the StairWELL project is that of programming and general producing; to help keep the project and it’s sub-teams moving forward towards completion. I have always believed that performing & visual arts have a way of inspiring and impacting our daily lives; well outside of the scope of simple entertainment. The StairWELL project has the ability to go well beyond any expectations I have ever had.

Armond Bigler

Purdue Mechanical Engineering Graduate/Undergraduate Student

I worked on script development, and I am so glad to be working on a project that provides a fun way to reflect and play.

Esteban Garcia Bravo

Associate Professor, Department of Computer Graphics Technology

My area of focus on the project is art direction and designing the visual concept of the sculpture and animations, as well as mentoring students to develop the technology and animations. I am inspired by being able to make something engaging in our campus and taking a creative step towards making our community a better place. This project started many years ago because a group of instructors were concerned with the amount of students who were struggling with depression and were looking for a creative outlet to express their feelings.

Dorothy Chan (she/her)

Innovators in Residence/ Collaborating Artists, Chromic Duo

I am a musician and sound designer, and my work with Chromic Duo involves finding interactive solutions to build community using music and technology. Together, we will bring our experience in creating geo-location soundwalks and motion-reactive soundscapes to the StairWELL project. It inspires me to see a team coming together to find a creative solution that helps connect with a site specific community – especially a campus! The ability of being able to reach the students and community in this fun, interactive yet thoughtful way really excites me.

Trey Cluff (he/him)

Graduate Teaching Assistant, Purdue Polytechnic

My area of focus or expertise with the StairWELL project is backend data processing and visualization. I love how StairWELL has the potential to lower the barrier for self expression.

Nandhini Giri, PhD (she/her)

Assistant Professor of Human Computer Interaction, Computer Graphics Technology, Purdue Polytechnic Institute

My area of focus is Interaction Design & User Experience. The StairWELL project’s goals of community building and sense of belonging inspire me.

Abrar Hammoud

Clinical Assistant Professor, Polytechnic Institute – Departmentt of Technology Leadership & Innovation

My areas of focus with the StairWELL project are on wellness, belongingness, and the interactions between art, technology, and community. The energy surrounding StairWELL is refreshing and the community’s interest in the project and their support has been wonderful. To pour so much of your passion into a project and have it warmly received is incredibly inspiring!

Chris Hanes (he/him/his)

Senior Director, Counseling and Psychological Services

My area of expertise with the StairWELL project is college mental health. The project inspires me because innovative ways to engage our community around mental health and creating healthy dialogues and connections are so important.

Roslyn Harold (they/them)

Graduate Student, HHS/Dept of Psychological Sciences

My area of focus or expertise with the StairWELL project is how to measure emotion. I love that StairWELL shows how others around you are feeling– that it’s normal to have even big, uncomfortable emotions and you aren’t alone.

Aidan Janes (she/her)

Purdue Polytechnic Institute student in Animation & VFX, Art & Design minor

My role was creating and developing animations. It was an incredible honor and experience to work on a project with such a meaningful message. 

Kyle Kittleson (he/him/his)

Associate Director of Operations, Clinical Services Director, Counseling and Psychological Services

My area of focus is psychological and emotional well-being and the student experience. The integration of art, well-being and community in a way that encourages student interaction inspires me. I am also inspired by the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues on campus to support student well-being.

Carl Krieger

Director of Residential Education for Student Life, Strategic Initiatives and Assessment

My area of focus is connecting students with educational resources. I love the idea of normalizing how students are feeling and showing them that there are resources at Purdue to help them no matter what.

Vince Lobello (he/him/his)

Scenery Construction Supervisor, College of Liberal Arts – Theatre

My area of expertise with the StairWELL project is sculpture budgeting, structural design, and fabrication. Society in itself is folks from all different walks of life combining for the greater good. StairWELL shows the extent to which artists, engineers, and health professionals coexist in society on a daily basis.

Andrea Medina Moreno (she/her)

Purdue Polytechnic Institute student in Game Design

Hello! I made some of the animations for StairWELL. It was challenging, but very fun! This project was done from the bottom of our hearts, and we hope it connects with more people on a heartfelt level.

Ellen McLean (she/her)

Graduate Student in Technical Direction, Theatre

Planning the build of the sculpture is my area of focus. I am inspired by the collaboration between the different areas. I have gotten the chance to work with several people outside of the Theatre Department that I would have otherwise probably would not have gotten the opportunity to work with. Their creativity and collaborative mindset has inspired me throughout this project.

Maddy Wilcox (she/her)

Student in Purdue Polytechnic Institute

My focus on the StairWELL project is full stack programming. I love the idea of this project brightening someone’s day.

Lucy Yao (she/her)

Innovator-In-Residence, Visiting Artist

My duo has led a variety of multidisciplinary projects involving the community, using music composition, technology, and the ritual of performance, to create space for stories to be shared. We are creative directors, prototypers, and multidisciplinary artists specializing in creating the soundworld and space for students to feel like they are being heard. I am inspired by the collaboration. I love that we are bringing such a wide variety of skillsets and disciplines into this project, so that we can create something for the students that will truly be meaningful and fun for them. By working closely with the teams at Purdue, creating ways to test and revise, we are creating something that is shaped by the student community it is built for.

Todd Wetzel

Asst. Vice Provost, Division of Student Life/Executive Director, Purdue Convocations and Hall of Music Productions

Along with my Convocations colleague, Mike Armintrout, my role has been to serve in the classic producer function, which is to create a platform in which a talented team of creative experts can come together to make something new—something greater than the sum of the parts. I love that we function as equal partners in the artistic, technical, conceptual, and organizational aspects of the project, while we manage the details so that StairWELL can deliver on its promise. The fact that this project has been focused on a very important topic for students has been a major motivation for all of us, but I have to say that I’m also thrilled about the unique opportunity to build this project at Purdue from the ground up. The creative team is an amazing collection of faculty, staff, and students, and we’ve had wide-ranging, interdisciplinary discussions about mental health strategy, the role of art, human perception and meaning making, and the creation of community. Life is not a single discipline—it is many things all at once—and this project captures that dynamic.