Serenity is a mobile VR experience created to support emotional regulation for students, especially those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The app offers calming, immersive environments that can be accessed through a headset during moments of stress, helping students reset and re-engage with their day. It was designed as an affordable alternative to traditional “calm down rooms” in schools — one that meets students where they are and gives them a sense of control.

Traditional calm-down spaces are often overstimulating, underfunded, or unavailable entirely. After speaking with educators and learning about the challenges students face when overwhelmed, our team saw an opportunity to improve the experience through virtual reality. The goal wasn’t just to create another app — it was to offer a practical, empathetic tool that could make a real difference in daily school life.

Serenity was built in Unity for use with Google Cardboard headsets, making it cost-effective and accessible for most classrooms. I led the product design, UI development, and testing process. Key features and contributions included:

Six Custom VR Environments
Students can choose from a selection of immersive calming spaces, including forests, beaches, underwater scenes, and gentle fantasy landscapes.

Color and Audio Customization
Users can adjust environment color tones and ambient sounds based on their personal sensory preferences, supporting self-regulation and choice.

Simple, Accessible Onboarding
I designed the interface to be minimal, intuitive, and age-flexible, with clean iconography and short guided interactions to reduce friction.

Built in Unity with Mobile Optimization
The app is optimized for use with low-cost VR headsets like Google Cardboard, using lightweight assets and modular UI for consistent performance.

Educator-Focused Testing and Iteration
We partnered with schools to test Serenity with students in real settings. Feedback was used to iterate on usability, environment transitions, and comfort.

The Result

Teachers noted that students were more willing to rejoin class activities after spending time in the app, and that it offered a sense of control during moments of stress. These outcomes helped validate the potential of immersive tools to support neurodiverse learners in a more personal and effective way.

Serenity’s design process and pilot study were later featured in the academic publication Information Systems and Neuroscience (Springer, 2024), where it was recognized as a proof-of-concept for integrating VR into classroom emotional regulation strategies. The published research detailed both our user-first development process and the initial outcomes observed during testing.

Those studies are continuing, and the app is currently in the process of seeking local approval for expanded use in schools. Feedback from educators and parents has been encouraging, and we’re working closely with decision-makers to explore broader implementation.

For me personally, Serenity represents the kind of work I want to keep building — thoughtful, accessible technology that serves a real need and puts people first.