Creative Innovation Lab opens, celebrates idea 10 years in the making

September 30, 2025 (Volume 49, Number 3)
Article by Matt Cooke

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Preparing to officially open the Creative Innovation Lab are, from left, Kim Kenward, Eric Kunnen, Emil Delgado, Sherri Fannon, Lori Houghton-Rahrig, Linda Lewandowski and Kevin Rahrig.

Photo Credit: Matt Cooke

GVSU celebrated the opening of the new Creative Innovation Lab, in the DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony September 17, during Tech Week Grand Rapids. 

Faculty and staff from across campus participated in the official opening of this collaborative space to celebrate this new resource and the story of how it grew from an idea into a reality.

The idea for the lab began over 10 years ago when a group of GVSU students from across disciplines won funding for a project. This new opportunity included input from students from the Kirkhof College of Nursing, Seidman College of Business, and the Padnos College of Engineering. 

Students involved in the project needed a highly technical, yet flexible, workspace that could accommodate their diverse areas of expertise. They made do with what was available then, but discussed what could be: What if GVSU had a creative workspace where students and faculty from across disciplines could meet and work together? 

Their idea caught the attention of Lori Houghton-Rahrig, now-retired nursing faculty, and her husband, Kevin, who helped these students take their idea and turn it into the Creative Innovation Lab.

Located on the second floor of DCIH, the lab provides GVSU faculty and students with state-of-the-art resources and knowledgeable staff to support a broad range of initiatives. Stocked with educational tools, like 3D printers, podcasting equipment, and a Lightboard recording studio, the lab can serve as a hub for those involved with workshops, research and creative educational experimentation. 

This new collaborative space represents a partnership among many colleges and departments, including Information Technology and The Bridge, the Kirkhof College of Nursing and the Interpersonal Simulation Center, Office of Innovation and Research, and University Libraries. 

Campus community members are invited to explore the resources available at the lab, or to tour of the space.

– Matt Cooke is the Director of Marketing, Communications and Recruitment for the Kirkhof College of Nursing.

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