DU Lecturer Joins ‘Engaged Scholars’ Cohort

Theresa “Nacho” Montiel-O'Donnell, lecturer of graphic design, has been named to the 2026-27 class of Campus Compact’s Engaged Scholars.

Over the next academic year, Montiel-O'Donnell will join 21 faculty, staff and administrators from across 13 states for virtual meetings, in-person retreats and collaborative scholarly work, all aimed at strengthening each individual’s critical, community-engaged scholarship.

Campus Compact is a national coalition of colleges and universities dedicated to the advancement of civic and community engagement in higher education.

“I'm hoping the Engaged Scholars program gives me more frameworks, collaborators and probably some productive challenges to my own assumptions that I can bring directly back into the Senior Capstone course and the broader graphic design curriculum,” Montiel-O'Donnell said.

Montiel-O'Donnell joined Dominican University as a lecturer in 2021. She teaches courses across graphic design, from introductory design to the Senior Capstone course. In the latter, graphic design majors complete a final project incorporating the skills and insights they have learned over the course of their study.

Montiel-O'Donnell says she centers her curriculum on professional practice, social responsibility, community engagement and the value of design.

“A big part of my teaching focuses on helping students make the transition from learning how to design, to understanding what and who design is for—and how their skills can create value for other people,” she said.

For the last four years she has connected Capstone students with the Willenborg Civic Learning Academy's Design for Public Good Internship, creating real-world opportunities to participate in community-engaged design work and learning beyond the classroom.

Montiel-O'Donnell hopes to further develop and enhance this internship experience for students through her work with the Engaged Scholars initiative.

Outside the classroom, she serves as a faculty advisor to the DU Star, Dominican’s student newspaper, and the DU SK8 Club.