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Council for Interior Design Qualification (CIDQ) Board of Directors
The CIDQ Board of Directors is the leadership body that sets CIDQ’s strategic direction. With legal accountability and fiduciary responsibility for CIDQ, the Board’s purpose is to establish the goals for the organization and ensure that it has the necessary human and financial resources to achieve them. The Board selects and supports CIDQ’s Chief Executive Officer, who is delegated the authority to lead and manage the organization's affairs on a day-to-day basis.
CIDQ's Board is made up of seven NCIDQ Certified designers and one public member (who is not an interior designer) to serve as the voice of the public. The CEO serves as an ex-officio member of the Board (see Team listing). Nominees for the Board are selected by a nominating committee and elected by CIDQ’s Assembly of Delegates. Board members serve two-year staggered terms beginning each January. The President serves a three-year term, first as President-Elect, then as President, and the third year as Past-President. The Board includes representatives from the group of State and Provincial Regulatory Boards that collectively make up CIDQ’s membership (i.e., Member Boards), as well as other interior designers who reflect the diversity of practice in the field.
If you serve or have served on your jurisdictional Board and have been its representative Delegate or Alternate Delegate, please consider applying for future service to CIDQ. If you have served CIDQ as a committee or task force member or chair, please consider this as a possible next step in your CIDQ volunteer path. Knowledgeable and experienced Board members wanted!
PRESIDENT
Siavash Madani
NCIDQ Certificate No. 32277
Siavash is an interior designer with over a decade of experience in the field. Over the past 11 years he has practiced interior design progressively in a variety of boutique, medium and large multi-disciplinary firms in Montréal with projects spread across North America. Developing an exceptionally diverse portfolio, Siavash has designed high-end residential projects, commercial, retail and corporate work space projects. He has served as the CIDQ delegate for the province of Quebec, as well as an NCIDQ Ambassador since the inception of the program.
PRESIDENT ELECT
Carol Erklouts
NCIDQ Certificate No. 32368
Carol is a Project Manager at JLL in Minneapolis. She has a broad range of expertise in commercial design and project management. Over the last ten years, she has designed and managed projects for numerous corporate clients across the globe with an emphasis on providing data-driven results. Carol is also an educator and advocate for emerging design professionals as an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota College of Design.
PAST PRESIDENT
Erin Jennings
NCIDQ Certificate No. 30952
Erin is a Market Leader for Luminaut, with studio locations in Cincinnati and Indianapolis. She leads a creative team focused on educational spaces and places. She attended Ball State University, where she graduated with a double major in both architecture and interior design. After her time at BSU, she traveled to Buffalo, New York for two years to complete her Master of Architecture from The State University of New York at Buffalo. She has since studied abroad in Costa Rica, participating in a sustainable design futures program, with an emphasis on sustainable interiors and inclusive design.
DIRECTOR
Charrisse Johnston
NCIDQ Certificate No. 23101
Charrisse is a former Wall Street strategic planning exec turned interior designer. After more than a decade leading workplace, higher education, and multifamily projects in LA, she moved to Cape Town, South Africa, where she now designs residences and teaches online for two masters programs in the US and Spain. Charrisse is a Fellow and former Chair of ASID and the present Chair of the IID, the African Institute of Interior Design Professions, as well as a LEED AP and WELL AP. She firmly believes in the ability of interior design to improve human performance and well-being, both physical and mental.
DIRECTOR
Ashley Kirkland
NCIDQ Certificate No. 31437
Ashley is a Partner and Managing Principal of Wyn Design Company based in Washington, DC. With nearly two decades of design experience, Ashley brings a strategic and empathetic view to the future of the profession. Ashley is known by her clients as a talented designer and organized project manager. She’s known by her colleagues and peers in the profession as a generous mentor and leader; she sets the bar, documents the standard, and brings the team up to a new level of delivery. Since earning her Bachelor of Science in Interior Architecture from Ohio University, Ashley has worked in a variety of environments designing and managing hospitality, multi-family, and corporate interiors projects. Her experience at large firms, small firms, and in managing her own business have created a holistic perspective on the profession. Her passion for equity, diversity, and inclusion in the profession has made Ashley a great resource for emerging professionals and students seeking licensure. Ashley has served as an NCIDQ Ambassador since 2016 and has served as an NCIDQ Practicum exam writer since 2020, balancing her high standards for the profession with her advocacy to encourage licensure in the interior design industry.
DIRECTOR
Melanie Doss
NCIDQ Certificate No. 6878
Melanie is an interior designer, acknowledged by 35+ years as a professional interior design consultant to major architectural and engineering firms in the southeast. She has also been an academician in interior architecture and interior design programs over a span of 25 years at institutes of higher learning including the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Chattanooga, East Tennessee State University, and Pellissippi State Community College.
DIRECTOR
Amanda Rienth
NCIDQ Certificate No. 29817
Amanda is a Principal and Interiors Studio Leader at Steinberg Hart with over 13 years of experience. She guides cultural, civic, and higher education institutions through the planning and design process, with a particular focus on libraries and performing arts spaces. Based in NYC, Amanda is a dedicated advocate for client and community engagement, ethical design, and upholding rigorous interior design standards. Her empathetic approach and dedication to understanding her client's needs ensure that achieving client goals remains her primary focus.
PUBLIC MEMBER
David Cox
David is the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) who retired October 1, 2024. During his tenure as CEO, he has led the organization in several key events including the transitioning of exams from pencil-and-paper format to computer-based testing, being a founding member of the Alliance for Responsible Professional Licensing, the establishment of the NCEES Foundation, and the signing of a mutual recognition agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom, which provides a more direct path for licensed engineers to practice in each country. In recognition of his contributions, David was honored with the prestigious NCEES President’s Award.