081: Erike De Veyre: Empowering Philly Communities Through Design Education

Mar 30

Erike De Veyra, Assoc. AIA, SEED, is a designer, seasoned project manager, and the founder of Design Gym. Her career spans architecture, public programming, and design education; bringing together creative practice with a strong focus on community impact. She recently earned a Master of Science in Design Thinking and Entrepreneurship, further shaping her interdisciplinary approach to design and leadership.

Design Gym is a platform that provides design education, workshops, educational programming, and design project leadership for clients and teams. Erike believes design is part of everyday life, that it should feel accessible, and that it should not be limited by cost or background.

Through her work, Erike empowers people to better understand the world around them and recognize their own ability to design. The individuals she works with leave more confident, more curious, and better equipped to be thoughtful stewards of design in their own communities.

We talk about:

- Erike’s non-linear path in architecture which started with graduating during the Recession. We talk about the challenges of the job market at that time and how she leveraged her volunteer leadership and extracurricular work to build skills, visibility, and career momentum.

- She speaks candidly about licensure, identity, and self-worth, unpacking the emotional realities of exams, motherhood, and redefining success beyond traditional firm roles.

- We highlight some of Erike’s most exciting roles, the impact she has had on the Philadelphia community, and how these opportunities led to the founding of Design Gym which blends architecture, design thinking, entrepreneurship, and education to help people of all ages build creativity and problem-solving confidence.

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Connect with Erike:

⁠Design Gym Website⁠

⁠Design Gym LinkedIn⁠

⁠Design Gym Instagram⁠

⁠Erike on Pinterest⁠

⁠Erike on LinkedIn⁠

⁠Meet Erike⁠

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