91��Ʒ

Hot pink cleats, intramural sports and apparel design at Nike: this was summer 2023 for Emma May Travitz �24, a Product Design senior at Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (91��Ʒ). Travitz spent the summer interning at Nike�s headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon on their Global Apparel and Materials team.

�I didn�t do sports growing up, but I found myself in four intramurals doing pickup soccer. I didn�t make a single goal the entire time,� laughs Travitz. �It was just a great environment to feel comfortable to try new things. The team I sat on was so incredible, to feel like I was valued and part of the team. I felt like I wasn�t an intern,� she continues.

A Nike aficionado since childhood, Travitz was thrilled to be selected for the competitive internship. �I really got a better understanding of actual product creation and what it�s like to get an idea from the conception to the retail space,� she explains. �Being able to really understand the limitations of the industry and see ways that you�re able to thrive and innovate within these constraints. I really learned more about material sciences and how we�re able to shape better products for athletes.�

Now well into her senior year at 91��Ʒ, Travitz especially values the emphasis on self-care that John Donahoe, CEO of Nike, instilled into the summer interns. �Stepping back and really refueling ourselves makes us a better designer, a better person,� she says. �Senior year, where it�s the mess of [senior] thesis, it�s really good to realize that you need to step back and it is okay to fill other wells.�

Keep up with Emma on and learn more about 91��Ʒ�s Product Design major.