Case Study: Design Build Master’s Program Prior to working in Notasulga, Alabama, the Design Build Master’s Program engaged a community organization to partner in achieving their combined mission. The East Alabama Aids Outreach (EAOO), serving Chambers, Lee, Macon, Russell, andTallapoosa Counties, provides educational opportunities for the community and resources for those affected by HIV and AIDS. Over the span of four years, different groups of students completed a series of building projects, providing housing and community-centered needs for individuals in transition. The project began with the construction of a transitional men’s home, seen as a retreat and place for men to live for one to two years and understand how to return to society while coping with their disease. The second structure provides a place for social gathering and recreational space in a screened porch. Continuing a focus on gathering space, the third of four structures is a community center that was the first collaboration between Auburn University’s School of Architecture and Department of Building Science. The final building, completed in the summer of 2007, provides housing for women and children. All projects were completed with limited budgets and with the continuous engagement of EAOO. The extended partnership led to a cohesive campus that continues to provide for the needs of individuals and families coping with HIV/AIDS.7
Case Study: ecoMOD The University of Virginia offers a designbuild program called ecoMOD that focuses on residential construction. In order to ensure implementation of the core principles of modular, affordable, and sustainable housing, ecoMOD has formed partnerships with several organizations in Charlottesville, Virginia, including Habitat for
Humanity and the Piedmont Housing Alliance. These partners identify potential homeowners and offer a framework within which the students focus their design efforts. Students carefully monitor project costs to conform to the financial requirements of the affordable housing partners while offering environmentally responsible upgrades with clear cost/benefit analyses. Grants and gifts defray administrative costs, equipment, and strategic sustainable upgrades to individual units. From an educational standpoint, crossdisciplinary partnerships are central to ecoMOD. The UVA School of Architecture and the School of Engineering and Applied Science offer students the opportunity to participate in a variety of classes and also take part in construction. Engineering and architecture students work together during all phases of the project. Students engage in design seminars, study engineering benefits, and execute the built form as project teams. Students then follow these lessons by evaluating the successes and failures of finished products. Equally as important as initial design, environmental systems are monitored, building components are checked, and recommendations are made to the homeowners to maximize the impact of sustainable design strategies. The partnerships formed with the engineering school allow for more thorough and detailed analysis of the successes and failures of the final project.8
Ideas for the Future: Baltimore Design School The Baltimore Design School is a new charter school with a curriculum centered on design, providing a different learning opportunity for middle and high school students in Baltimore City Schools. BDS currently includes 6th-8th graders and will soon expand to a new facility offering shared space for both middle and high school students. While in middle school, 78