Who is Kate?
Kate grew up in Mattawan, Michigan and graduated from Mattawan High School in 2021. After graduation, she made the trip north to attend Northern Michigan University for the next step in her academic career. She’d already fallen in love with the environment that surrounded the university in Marquette and was excited to be able to easily participate in the outdoor activities that she enjoys. At the start of her college career, she knew that it was important for her to find a program that would allow her to utilize her creativity and soon discovered industrial design. This field almost immediately felt like the right fit for her, as it combined her interests in art, science, technology, and problem solving. This led to her graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Human-Centered Design and a minor in Engineering Design four years later.
Connecting With Innovate
While still at Northern, Kate began working within the Invent@NMU program during her junior year. In that role, she was able to deepen her understanding of 3D printing, as well as the business processes that support product development. She remained in this role until graduating from NMU in May of 2025, after which she transitioned to doing contract work for Innovate Marquette as a Junior Industrial Designer. After working successfully in that capacity for a few months, Kate was officially brought onto the team full-time as Design Coordinator in October of this year.
Her Time Outside
Her passion for design and its processes extends well beyond the Innovate office. Despite being out of college, she welcomes any opportunity to expand her creative knowledge and connect with other designers across the country. Most recently, she traveled to San Francisco for the Square One Design Conference, while also taking multiple online classes through Offsite Design over the course of the fall.
When she’s not at work or in class, Kate loves taking part in just about any activity that will get her outdoors. Her free time is often full of camping, hiking, gardening, biking, and skiing. If there’s ever a chance for her to take a trip up to Mount Bohemia during the winter, she takes it and she hopes to be able to do more ski touring this year.
We are so excited to have Kate as a full-time member of our team! Her design skills and expertise are an incredible asset for our clients and she plays an integral part in the success of a variety of projects. We already know that she will continue to be a valuable part of the Innovate team and the greater Marquette economic ecosystem.