AMES, Iowa — Khushi Jain, from Pune, India, will represent the Iowa State University College of Design as its student marshal at the university’s Fall 2024 Undergraduate Ceremony Saturday, Dec. 21, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. The ceremony will also be livestreamed online.

Jain will graduate magna cum laude with a bachelor of architecture and a minor in entrepreneurship. Her university escort will be Ayodele Iyanalu, associate professor of teaching in the Department of Architecture.

Jain was a member of the Dean’s List and in the top 2 percent of her class for seven semesters at Iowa State. She received the 2024-2025 American Institute of Architects Iowa Chapter Scholarship, 2023-2024 Paul M. Heffernan Travel Scholarship, three-year ISU Transfer Achievement Award, 2022-2023 ISU Grant and 2022-2023 ISU Program of Study Award.

A recognized leader on campus, Jain held roles as Honors Student Board transfer chair, American Institute of Architecture Students events coordinator, BUILD learning community peer mentor, Habitat for Humanity Collegiate Challenge leader and Real Estate Development Club treasurer.

Jain and her project partner, Fatemah Almahmeed, also a graduating senior in architecture, won the fall 2023 DLR Group Prize in the Department of Architecture with their project titled “Flow.” In spring 2024, Jain’s team won a Spectacular Studio Award in the unbuilt category with their project “Vacant to Vibrant.” She was also a member of the Iowa State teams that participated in the NAIOP Commercial Real Estate Development competition the past two years.

Jain studied in Italy with the College of Design’s 2024 summer program and completed internships with architecture firms in Ames and Cranbury, New Jersey.

She chose Iyanalu as her faculty escort for commencement in appreciation for his vital support throughout her academic journey, she said.

“His guidance has helped me see beyond the surface of each design,” Jain said. “From the start, he encouraged me to focus on the deeper intentions of space, questioning not just ‘how’ but ‘why’ behind every concept.”

After graduation from Iowa State, Jain will relocate to New Jersey and pursue licensure as an architect.

Jain graduated from high school in India in 2019 and transferred to Iowa State in 2021. She is the daughter of Archana and Manish Jain of Plainsboro, New Jersey.

Contacts

Khushi Jain, Graduating Senior, Architecture, khushij@iastate.edu
Ayodele Iyanalu, Associate Professor of Teaching, Architecture, aiyanalu@iastate.edu
Heather Sauer, Director of Strategic Communications, College of Design, hsauer@iastate.edu

-30-