Spring 2024

Co-Works Research Lab is dedicated to interdisciplinary research and technology in art and design. Functioning as an incubator within the Office of the Associate Provost of Research & Strategic Partnerships (APRSP), Co-Works supports sponsored studios and APRSP research initiatives in collaboration with industry and other external partners. Co-Works also offers various co-curricular programs and prioritizes fostering an inclusive cross-departmental community where inquiry takes the form of making, teaching and discourse on art and design’s intersections with racial, gender, disability and economic justice.

Integral to this mission, we are deeply committed to the ongoing work, introspection and accountability required to be intentionally anti-discriminatory. Co-Works Research Lab prioritizes maintaining a team informed on issues of equity and access representing many identities and sociocultural literacies. We actively engage with diversity and inclusion in regards to race, ethnicity, nationality, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, physical ability, religion, age—all facets of identity that inform how, what and why we create as artists and designers.

See the Co-Works Anti-Oppression Plan.

Peer Tutoring & Training
Co-Works peer tutors and grad instructors provide project and research guidance, equipment training and help with design software, 3D modeling, popular programming languages and other making and digital literacies. Our team includes over 30 tutors and instructors that represent all majors and conduct over 500 appointments in a typical semester.

Tutoring & Training is open to all RISD students, staff and faculty.

Equipment Reservation
Individuals may make online reservations for Co-Works equipment after training and passing the corresponding authorization test. Co-Works supports over 2000 equipment reservations in a typical semester.

Equipment Reservation is open to all RISD students, staff and faculty.

Co-Works Courses
Co-Works supports sponsored studios with industry leaders and develops other interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary courses with internal and external collaborators.

See the RISD course catalog for Co-Works offerings in the coming academic year.

Research & Strategic Partnerships Initiatives
Co-Works supports initiatives spearheaded by the Division of Research & Strategic Partnerships. These includes various cross-departmental and cross-institutional projects, as well as collaborations with industry leaders such as Hyundai and Microsoft.

Orientations are about an hour long and led by a Co-Works team member. They cover how peer tutoring and equipment training work, safety and general policies, community values and conclude with a tour of lab resources and time to answer questions.

Please note, training is not given as part of orientations. Schedule training through peer tutoring.

Individual Orientation Sign-Up
Individuals may sign-up for prescheduled orientations. Please check back soon for times and sign-up link.

Group Orientations
Faculty, staff and students may request group orientations for their course, department, office or club.

1. Email Lab Manager Brynn Trusewicz at btruse01@risd.edu with “Co-Works Group Orientation” in the subject line.

2. Include the number of people attending. Groups may include 6-20 people.

3. Faculty, please include specific dates and full class times when requesting an orientation for your course. We will reply with available options within your class time blocks.

4. Other groups, please include at least 3 preferred dates/times to maximize scheduling compatibility.

Various RISD programs and sponsors offer a range of funding opportunities to support students in art and design projects, creative research, internships, residencies, entrepreneurship and more. For full details and application links:

• RISD Career Center’s Grants & Awards Page

• RISD InfoReady Funding Database

• RISD Graduate Study Funding Page

Programs include:

Students Provisional Ubiquity Research (SPUR) Fund
Supports RISD students and recent alumni as researchers and creative practitioners. $500-$5,000

Somerson Sustainability Innovation Fund (SSIF)
Supports RISD students with research and creative practices that address sustainability issues and seek to have global impact. $10,000

Material Fund
Assists RISD students with demonstrated financial need in purchasing resources needed to advance their art and design education. Amount varies.

Graduate Commons Grant
Supports RISD graduate students in open-ended research and goal-oriented projects. Amount varies.

Maharam Fellowship
Supports RISD students in summer internships that focus on social justice or sustainability. $5,000

Undergraduate Internship Grants
Supports RISD undergraduate students in internships that drive economic development or address social issues. $3,000

Internship Support Funds
Supports RISD students that have secured summer internships that are unpaid, low-paid or otherwise present financial challenges. $1000

Masks are encouraged when working within Co-Works in support of immunocompromised staff and community members.

Please see current RISD COVID-19 policies and resources here.

Co-Works is an interdisciplinary learning center and program incubator that supports experimentation and crossovers between emerging and traditional technologies. We fulfill our mission through providing peer instruction and tutoring, fostering inclusive cross-departmental community, and supporting Research & Strategic Partnerships divisional initiatives that include sponsored studios and other collaborations with industry partners.

Co-Works is a program within RISD’s Division of Research & Strategic Partnerships and is otherwise department-neutral.

All RISD students, staff and faculty have access to Co-Works tutoring, training and equipment reservation. Sponsored studio courses are specifically for enrolled students. Other divisional initiatives involve students, faculty and external industry partners.

After meeting the needs of Co-Works courses and divisional initiatives, our remaining capacity is made equally accessible to the full RISD community through our Peer Tutoring & Training program.

We support students, staff and faculty in learning technologies, design software, 3D modeling, programming languages and related making and digital literacies through our peer tutoring program, courses and divisional initiatives. After being trained and authorized, individuals are encouraged to utilize Co-Works resources through our established programs to develop their creative practices, making skills and interdisciplinary projects.

Please note, Co-Works is not structured as an all-campus shop or fabrication service provider for on-demand production. While we work hard to make our resources accessible, Co-Works is not equipped to accommodate projects, coursework, assignments or deadlines that do not fit into the structures and timelines of our programs. This includes large scales, multiples and commercial production.

If you have deadlines or production needs that Co-Works programs cannot accommodate, please refer to:

• RISD Print Centers located in the Design Center, CIT and BEB

• Local & Online Service Providers recommended by Co-Works

We offer instruction and reservation access across an eclectic range of traditional, digital and emerging technologies co-located to enable interdisciplinary crossovers and experimental applications. Lab resources evolve every semester in direct response to student demand and suggestions are welcome! Please contact Co-Works Director David Kim at dkim20@risd.edu.

Please be aware that reservation demand, maintenance cycles and repairs, Co-Works course needs and other factors may affect equipment and training availability.

Co-Works equipment categories include:

• 3D printing (FDM, SLA and ceramic) and scanning

• Industrial sewing, machine knitting and digital embroidery

• Laser cutting and CNC processes

• UV printing, large format inkjet and hot foil paper transfer

• Physical computing and electronics soldering

• Vinyl cutting and pen plotting

• Photo documentation backdrops and lighting kits

• Biomaterials, carpet tufting, bookbinding and more!

Refer to our Equipment List for specific models and specs of currently available technologies.

We understand that the testing requirement can seem inconvenient, especially when working under a deadline. Nonetheless, it is necessary for safety, equipment longevity and—most importantly—equitable campus-wide access. Policies are designed to best support all RISD students, staff and faculty regardless of major, background or skill level.

• Testing allows Co-Works to sustainably provide access to many more individuals.

• Testing supports effective management of a wide and interdisciplinary range of technologies.

• Testing reinforces proper use and significantly reduces breakdown that leaves equipment inaccessible to all.

• For equity and fairness, testing and other policies apply to everyone regardless of previous experience.

• Clear and consistent procedures minimize unconscious bias that can privilege some people over others.

• Co-Works is not responsible for academic deadlines, personal timelines or departmental demands.

Authorization Test Policies

• You must have a passed test on file to reserve most Co-Works equipment.

• Authorization tests are required of all students, staff and faculty.

• New tests are required each academic year but retraining is not. Visit the lab to renew tests and reservation access.

• Tests are open note and given at the end of Co-Works training.

• You may use your own notes but not another person’s or the internet.

• You may take a test if trained elsewhere but some questions are specific to Co-Works.

• Tests are graded within 3 days.

• Once a passed result is uploaded to Penji, reservation access begins the next day.

See graded test results and how to reserve equipment once authorized.

Tutoring, training and use of Co-Works equipment is free, however, individuals are responsible for their own materials.

• There are fees for some materials when provided by Co-Works.

• Students, staff and faculty all pay the same amount.

• Payment is via RISD Bucks only.

• Materials needed during training are provided at no cost.

We work to minimize and eliminate fees whenever possible and view this as a matter of equity. If you are a student that needs support to afford materials, please reach out to our staff. Additional sources of support include the RISD Materials Fund.