{"id":24422,"date":"2025-04-29T08:33:40","date_gmt":"2025-04-29T12:33:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/design.ncsu.edu\/industrial-design\/2025\/04\/29\/remembering-vincent-m-foote-fidsa\/"},"modified":"2025-08-21T03:26:44","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T07:26:44","slug":"remembering-vincent-m-foote-fidsa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/design.ncsu.edu\/industrial-design\/2025\/04\/29\/remembering-vincent-m-foote-fidsa\/","title":{"rendered":"Remembering Vincent M. Foote, FIDSA"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n

The College of Design is saddened to share that Vincent M. Foote, FIDSA passed away on April 25, 2025<\/a>. Vince was a longtime member of the College of Design\u2019s industrial design faculty, influencing countless students over his forty-year teaching career. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For his work influencing decades of design professionals, Vince received numerous awards from NC State, including the Outstanding Teacher Award, the Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor Award, the Board of Governors\u2019 Award for Teaching Excellence and the Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence, the university\u2019s highest honor bestowed upon teaching faculty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was made a fellow in the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) in 1981, serving as its vice president, member of the board of directors, member of its executive committee, as regional vice president and chapter chair. He was made a member of the IDSA Academy of Distinguished Industrial Design Educators in 1993.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVince Foote was a beloved mentor, teacher, designer and the best kind of rabble-rouser,\u201d says Audrey Barnes, former student of Vince, now holding his role as current department head of graphic design and industrial design at NC State. \u201cHe was hilarious, kinetic, and impossible to intimidate. He empowered generations of NC State design students to believe that not only we could be, but that we should be the leaders of the future. That we were worthy of being heard. That our ideas mattered regardless of who we were or where we came from.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Audrey
Audrey Barnes and Vince Foote<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor me, he taught me to lean into my moxie – especially in the ‘boys club’ of industrial design. This encouragement didn\u2019t stop at graduation. Like so many others, I cherished the messages I received from him throughout the years. To have someone you admire so much continue to check in on you, to move from saying \u2018way to go, kid\u2019 to \u2018proud of you, professor\u2019 was priceless,\u201d Barnes added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVince was absolutely a thread that tied together so many of us,\u201d said Kermit Bailey, associate professor of graphic & experience design. \u201cFor faculty and staff at every level \u2013 he was a light of positivity, always.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kermit
Vince Foote and Kermit Bailey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tim Buie, associate professor of industrial design and alumnus, shared this about Vince: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTough is a word I often associate with Vince. In studio, he was a tough…uh, instructor; especially so in critiques. No matter how thorough we were with a project, Vince would find all the thing wrongs with it and point them out with scathing criticism. But he was always, *infuriatingly* always, right. But he was also a strong advocate for student success. He fostered a collegial sense of friendly competition in the studio that pushed us to be our best. If a student asked to see his portfolio, he would always say, \u2018You are my portfolio.\u2019 After the \u2018awwwws\u2019 had died down, he would mutter, \u2018So don’t f*** up.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Vince
Vince Foote, Bryan Laffitte and Tim Buie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI also got to share an office with Vince for a few semesters, which, of course, was awesome in so many ways. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of design (he lived the early years of it, after all), he provided excellent wisdom and advice about teaching, and he shared anecdotes about the School of Design that were simultaneously thoughtful, insightful, and hilariously inappropriate. I am sure I am leaving out a lot. Just know that he was a great teacher, mentor, colleague, friend and the best industrial design educator I have ever known.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vince\u2019s family encourages those in Raleigh to think of Vince during their next visit to Player\u2019s Retreat, and are planning a group run\/walk to honor his lifelong love of running. We extend our deepest sympathies to his friends, family, and colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\n \n Read his obituary<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n \n\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Foote\u2019s family encourages those in Raleigh to think of Vince during their next visit to Player\u2019s Retreat, and are planning a group run\/walk to honor his lifelong love of running. We extend our deepest sympathies to his friends, family, and colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interview with the Libraries <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Leslie Arden Thornbury is a filmmaker and an alumnus of NC State. During the 1990s, he worked on a proposed video documentary of the history of the College of Design, which included video oral history interviews with early faculty and students<\/a>. These materials are available through the Special Collections Research Center at the NC State University Libraries. <\/p>\n\n\n