T
here are two pieces of furniture named after AU alumna Lindsey Gerlock in recognition of her hard work at interior design firm J Banks Design.
In a collection created by J Banks Design and Stanford Furniture, her name now graces the Lindsey Cocktail Ottoman and the Gerlock Chair. The latter recently premiered at the High Point Furniture Market—one of the world’s largest industry furnishings tradeshow, attracting over 85,000 people to its events every six months.
Gerlock, class of 2015, is not a furniture designer nor did she design the pieces. She explains J Banks’ owner and president Joni Vanderslice named all pieces of furniture in the new line after employees—something she agrees is pretty cool and flattering. Gerlock works as a Design Assistant and manages residential and commercial clients. Her tasks include budget management and pricing, construction drawing, coordinating clients and consultants, value engineering, space planning, and rendering, among other duties. She finds herself working in a lot of private golf clubs, but J Banks Design has clients and installations around the world.
“Anderson prepared me for the job I have now,” says Gerlock. “They prepared students to be really professional.”
Gerlock took her job at J Banks Design right after graduating.
“I had a lot of job offers before I even graduated,” she says, noting that most college grads around the nation find themselves underprepared after leaving school.
School of Interior Design Dean Anne Martin anticipated Gerlock’s professional success.
“I am not surprised that in a very short time frame following graduation and in the professional setting, Lindsey has been recognized in such an honor, as she has an immediate impact and adds value to whatever she undertakes,” says Martin, adding that Gerlock is “an amazing AU interior design graduate.” “For Lindsey’s employer…to acknowledge the value of an employee who has been working for her firm for less than a year speaks volumes about Lindsey as a professional interior designer and Lindsey as a person. Her work ethic, talent, creativity, culture fit with JBanks, ability to collaborate—the list goes on and on!”
Gerlock is interested in pursuing a master’s degree in business. For now, she’s looking forward to more work with J Banks and making the most of the skills and values she honed at Anderson.
Gerlock came to AU because she wanted a small, private school and loved the stable foundation the Christian university provided. “One of the benefits is that you have a lot of one-on-one with your professors,” she said. “The student-to-professor ratio is really good; I graduated in a class of nine.”
Classes such as architectural drawing, rendering, and art history were beneficial, but especially valuable was the real-world preparation.
“I was prepared not just from an academic standpoint but from a social and personal standpoint,” says Gerlock. She and her classmates put on several presentations, worked closely with successful professionals, and sharpened communication skills.
Even before an ottoman bore her name, Gerlock boasted a list of accomplishments while at AU. She received a School of Interior Design 2015 Academic Excellence Award, an International Interior Design Association Scholarship and served as Graduation Marshal. She also chaired an event called The Gathering, which won the American Society of Interior Designers’ Student Chapter Event of the Year award in 2015. The Gathering is an industry trade show hosted in the School of Interior Design and has been held annually for 17 years.