TERRILL THOMAS

Terrill Thomas has spent his career proving that great design doesn't only happen in the city.

Rooted in Garden Grove and the Inland Empire and shaped by the scrappy, experimental energy of the late '90s dot-com boom. Terril brings a startup mindset to everything he touches: his professional practice, his classroom, and his ongoing research into how games can drive real social change and awareness.

As Chair of the Art+Design Department at La Sierra University, Terril has built a teaching philosophy grounded in real community and authenticity. He maintains an active design practice consulting for nonprofits, small businesses, and entertainment clients because he believes the best design education happens when the institutional organizations and the streets stay connected.

But what makes Terril's work especially resonant for this month's theme of LOCAL is his PLAY Project (Plan, Learn, Air, You)— a framework and philosophy built around a self-directed creative practice designed to support independent creatives outside the shadow of metros like LA. It's a simple but radical idea: that your creative life deserves structure, intention, and space to breathe wherever you are. Not just in the city. Right here, where you already live.