Gala 2022 the Most Successful Gala in NYSID’s History!

On Tuesday, May 3, the New York School of Interior Design held its Gala 2022 at the University Club of New York, securing $700,000 for scholarships, a record-breaking number of funds raised at this annual event. The vanguard of the interior design industry turned out in a kaleidoscope of finery at Gala 2022. Conversations buzzed under the coffered ceilings of the University Club. Waitstaff had to strike a xylophone many times to signal the end of the cocktail reception and to call people to dinner, because people were so happy to be face to face again. It was the first in-person celebration for the NYSID community in more than 2 years. Gala 2022 resulted in $120,000 more scholarship funds than the last on-site gala, which was in 2020. 

Perhaps one reason for the exuberance of the crowd (of 380 attendees) was the evening’s outstanding honorees. NYSID awarded Jamie Drake, founder of Drake/Anderson, with the NYSID Centennial Medal, an award the College does not give every year because it’s intended for the rarest of individuals who has had an impact on interior design over the course of decades, and an altruist who has used interior design to make the world a better place. Former New York City mayor, philanthropist, and entrepreneur Michael Bloomberg introduced Jamie Drake, sharing his perspective as both a longtime friend and client of Mr. Drake, and also bestowed the medal alongside NYSID President David Sprouls. 

The incomparable design journalist Wendy Goodman introduced her friend Young Huh, principal and owner of Young Huh Interior Design, who was this year’s winner of the Larry Kravet Design Industry Leadership Award.  Ellen Kravet, NYSID’s board chair and vice president of Kravet, Inc., presented Ms. Huh with this award that honors her father Larry Kravet’s memory. 

David Sprouls presented NYSID alumna Laura Hodges ‘09 with the Rising Star Award, sponsored for the fourth year in a row by The Shade Store. Zach Gibbs, co-founder of The Shade Store, introduced Ms. Hodges. In her acceptance speech, Ms. Hodges revealed that Jamie Drake had been one of her early mentors, and that she had interned for his firm while at NYSID, before launching her own company, Laura Hodges Studio. She also said, “NYSID was my first significant step into the design world and formed the groundwork for everything that I have since built with our design firm.”     

Not one of the honorees lost sight of the main purpose of the night: raising money for scholarships in order to draw the most diverse, deserving, and talented students to NYSID and the interior design industry. 

The evening’s student speaker, Chazzten Pettiford ‘22 (MFA1), recipient of the Holland & Sherry Diversity in Design Scholarship and NYSID Diversity Scholarship, spoke out about why it can be so difficult for some BIPOC students to pursue careers in the arts and design, and why her first career was in advertising even though she has loved interior design since she was a child. She said, “For many of us BIPOC students, the need to prioritize the attainment of generational wealth often demands that we set aside our personal goals and desires for whatever is the bigger, more dependable paycheck.” She spoke with emotion about what receiving the first of two scholarships meant to her:  “The day I received my first scholarship had been a bad day. Thanks to the pandemic, I was back home in Maryland. I missed my classmates tremendously. I was working constantly and yet, being a perfectionist, was beating myself up about the work I was creating. I was up late, mentally debating whether or not I should go back into advertising, when I opened an email from NYSID. Confetti and ‘Congratulations’ crossed my screen. At exactly the right moment, I had received a sign that I was truly on the right path, and I haven’t doubted myself since.” Scholarships not only attract the brightest minds to design, they keep students on track and focused on their studies. 

About the outpouring of generosity at Gala 2022,  NYSID President David Sprouls said, “Some of these newcomers to our industry will be able to finish their degrees as a direct result of your donations . . . .Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” 

If you could not make it and want to support the next generation of design innovators, it’s never too late to support NYSID scholarships.    

Many thanks to Baccarat for being an award sponsor for NYSID’s 2022 Gala. Our deepest appreciation to Baccarat for donating and engraving the stunning crystal OCTOGONE vases for our distinguished honorees. We are pleased to be associated with Baccarat for the second year in a row.

For more information:

Please contact Joy Cooper at joy.cooper@nysid.edu or 212.452.4197. You can also contact Samantha Fingleton at samantha.fingleton@nysid.edu or 212.472.1500 ext. 431.