Biography and education
Grayson was born in Austin, Tx and earned his BFA and MFA in Communication Design from Texas State University. After working in the field as a brand, advertising, interaction, and game designer, he returned to TxState to teach in 2004.
Other than wearing geeky t-shirts, slinging tons of “dad-jokes”, and drooling over British motorbikes, Grayson loves to teach Web and Mobile Application Design in both the graduate and undergraduate programs. He also teaches User Experience in our MFA graduate program. Grayson co-hosts an annual hackathon, creating teams of Communication Design and Computer Science students to solve real-world interaction design problems.
From a research perspective, Grayson has created mobile applications for museums, physician-physician communication, and campus safety. Currently, he is developing new rapid prototyping techniques for virtual reality (VR) and working with his students and co-researchers, designing environments to help veterans cope with PTSD and studying the affects of alcohol on sexual aggression via an NIH funded VR environment.
Other than wearing geeky t-shirts, slinging tons of “dad-jokes”, and drooling over British motorbikes, Grayson loves to teach Web and Mobile Application Design in both the graduate and undergraduate programs. He also teaches User Experience in our MFA graduate program. Grayson co-hosts an annual hackathon, creating teams of Communication Design and Computer Science students to solve real-world interaction design problems.
From a research perspective, Grayson has created mobile applications for museums, physician-physician communication, and campus safety. Currently, he is developing new rapid prototyping techniques for virtual reality (VR) and working with his students and co-researchers, designing environments to help veterans cope with PTSD and studying the affects of alcohol on sexual aggression via an NIH funded VR environment.
Teaching Interests
Research Interests
Featured grants
- Antonia, Abby (Principal), Smith, Kenneth S (Principal), Nason, Erica (Co-Principal), Lawrence, Grayson B (Co-Principal), Koutitas, George (Co-Principal), Tiura, Angela (Co-Principal), Zawaki, Tina (Supporting), Wegner, Rhiana (Supporting). Alcohol's Effects on Affective, Cognitive, and Behavioral Responses in a Virtual Reality Dating Simulation, National Institute Of Health, Federal, $2375752. (Submitted: February 5, 2020, Funded: January 1, 2022 - Present). Grant.
- Howard, Krista J (Principal), Ceballos, Natalie A (Supporting), Grimes, Thomas (Supporting), Dailey, Stephanie Layne (Supporting), Lu, Yongmei (Supporting), Lee, Hsun Ming (Supporting), Sharma, Shobhit (Supporting), Lawrence, Grayson B (Other). Does Social Media Make Us Sick? A Pilot Study on the Effects of Social Media on Physiological Reactivity and Mental Health, MIRG, Texas State University, $23784. (Funded: July 2018 - February 2020). Grant.
- Irani, Farzan (Principal), Smith, Kenneth Scott (Co-Principal), Lawrence, Grayson B. Therapeutic and Training Applications of Virtual Reality for Speech-related Social Anxiety in Stuttering, Texas State University, $27962. (Funded: May 16, 2022 - August 31, 2024). Grant.
- Koutitas, Georgios (Principal), Percent Contribution: %20, Spencer, Bobbi J (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %20, Lawrence, Grayson B (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %20, Smith, Kenneth Scott (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %20, Zong, Ziliang (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %20. CO-Search AR/VR Training for Safety in Construction, Texas State University, Texas State University, $10000. (Submitted: May 2019, Funded: July 2019 - July 2020). Grant.
- Koutitas, Georgios (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %25, Lawrence, Grayson B (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %25, Smith, Kenneth Scott (Co-Principal), Percent Contribution: %25, Blair, John P (Principal), Percent Contribution: %25. Big Ideas Training with AR/VR in Law Enforcement Areas, Texas State University. (Funded: June 2019 - Present). Grant.
Featured scholarly/creative works
- Antonia Abbey, A., Jacques-Tiura, A. J., VanParis, E., Hart, J., John, D. A., Nason, E. E., … Smith, K. S. (2024). Using Virtual Reality in Sexual Aggression Alcohol Administration Research: Opportunities and Challenges. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. https://doi.org/10.15288
- UX Designer, Therapeutic and Training Applications of Virtual Reality for Speech-related Social Anxiety in Stuttering\. January 1, 2022 - November 2, 2023.
- UX Designer, Virtual Workplace Violence Training. November 18, 2022 - January 1, 2023.
- UX Designer, Project Manager, Virtual Reality Ambulance Bay Mass Casualty Incident training. April 1, 2021 - January 1, 2023.
- UX Designer, UI Designer, ATS Hero Analytics Control Panel. June 1, 2019 - January 1, 2023.
Featured awards
- Award / Honor Recipient: American Graphic Design Awards for Camp Howdy-Do! Branding System, Graphic Design USA. December 2019
- Award / Honor Recipient: American Graphic Design Awards for Augmented Training Systems Logo, Graphic Design USA. December 1, 2019
- Award / Honor Recipient: Texas State Quarterly Team Award, Team Recognition Committee (Nancy Nusbaum, Chair). November 1, 2018
- Award / Honor Recipient: American Graphic Design Award for Govely Political App for High School Students, Graphic Design USA. November 1, 2016
- Award / Honor Recipient: Favorite Professor Award, Alpha Chi National College Honor Society. January 1, 2015
Featured service activities
- Chair
School of Art & Design Scholarship Committee
- Member
College of Fine Arts and Communication Scholarship Committee
- Volunteer
Rideshare to Vote
- Participant
Bobcat Day Representative
- Participant
ComDes First Year Student Orientation
- Member
College Promotion and Tenure Review Committee