Design Your Future-A Higher Calling.(Column)

Byline: Dutch Mandel

Wanted: Creative car-enthused businessman with international experience; will need to lead automotive product design wave into next century. Candidates should have strong car-biz relationships and a willingness to spread the gospel for leading-edge design. "Matchmaker'' talent is a plus.

If this sounds like a classified ad for a car company, it should, yet it is a call for a key person who can influence not one car company, but every one of them. And motorcycle firms and boat builders, too.

The College for Creative Studies, a design-world mainstay, seeks a transportation design department chief. It comes with academia's associated fun: curriculum oversight, faculty management and budget crunching. But there is also responsibility for student work quality and the opportunity to teach one class a semester.

In all, not a bad gig, especially knowing the cars, trucks, sport/utes and flying ships (or whatever future students will draw) are much better for your efforts. Talk about filling the psychic bank.

Bryon Fitzpatrick, who has been chair of the transportation department for the last five years, moves on to the next phase of his life next May. Fitzpatrick, who had been a faculty member at other ...