Cary Staples is a Professor of Graphic Design at the University of Tennessee. She is a Co-Founder + Creative Director of the APP.FARM, an interdisciplinary collaboration studio synthesizing design, data and technology.  Projects include collaborations with: Modern + Foreign Languages + Literatures (French), the College of Education (Autistic Learners), Microbiology (Bio remediation), an NSF grant projects to develop outreach experiences with Ecology + Evolutionary Biology (Bio Diversity) using VR, a computer game exploring succession on Mt St Helen’s and the impact of heat on nesting birds. 

Prof. Staples is interested in creating experience to help communicate complex ideas and data to audiences that might be able to  utilize content to affect change. She observed the positive effects of game design on her students in an 8:00 “The Idea of Design” lecture class. Her instincts told her to put students in the driver’s seat. “Game design colleagues helped me to develop a game where students transitioned from playing games for learning to making games utilizing learning to create understanding.” The students were creating new meaning through the game design process. Determined to “support them and then get out of their way,” she began “The APP.FARM,” an interdisciplinary studio that enables students and faculty to create innovative experiences while exploring complex content, interactive mechanics and technology. Her work has been presented at: SIGGRAPH, AIGA/DEC, Games 4 Change, Serious Games, GLS, INFO+, ACTFL, CALICO, Gathering 4 Gardner, CAA + UCDA.