A new Civil Engineering and Architecture class debuted this week.
The course is part of the Engineering and Architecture pathway and is being taught by science teacher Mike Kurth, who said that the class takes a different approach to learning than the other engineering classes already offered. The first 10 weeks of the class will be taught normally, with lectures, presentations, tests, and projects.
The final 10 weeks of the course will consist of one project, called “Project Westview.” In this project, students will be split into groups of four, where they will then design a nature path on the Westview campus. The nature path will be built to follow the asphalt access road behind the L buildings to the stairs. It has 5 elements: the actual path, an observation tower and deck, a foot bridge, a cantilever—a junction between a fixed end and an unsupported one, and an archway.
The project will be split into five, two-week sections for each element they are required to model and build. Students will be divided into groups of four, then begin the process using computer-aided design (CAD) to create a replica of their plan. They will then create a physical model with acrylic and 3D printing.
Kurth has designed the curriculum in a way that everything the students learn throughout the course builds to this final 10-week project. Although this path won’t be built into Westview, Kurth said it provides a good exercise for his students to use everything they’ve learned. He also said he hopes that each group will use the different types of building styles, like a cupola, which is a type of archway, and an observation tower.
As Kurth was crafting the lesson plan for this class, he realized that he could present his students with another important opportunity.
“As I finished [with the curriculum,] it began to dawn on me that this course would lend itself beautifully to working with mentors,” he said. “So I began to think, I’m going to build the course around one major project that would lean heavily on actual architects and civil engineers who would partner with the students and help work through these authentic parts of an authentic project.”
Mentors from professional architecture companies like Studio WC Architecture, JB Pacific, DLR Group, and ATC Design Group will hold a Zoom meeting with their assigned student to discuss Project Westview every other week. The mentors will brainstorm with each group to produce the best layout, methods, and calculations.
Not only will the mentors provide a unique experience for students in class, but Kurth also said he believes that this will give them an opening for internships.
“The pool of potential internships taking place is very, very good,” he said. “This [project] cultivates opportunities for students who work with mentors to then the following year say, ‘Hey, we seem to work real well. You saw I had good skills. Can I move forward to an internship?’”
After the class is over, Kurth said he hopes to showcase each group’s finished scale model of their nature path in an art opening, and then remain on display in the front office.
“There’s an element of art in architecture and engineering: architects build beauty, engineers make sure it doesn’t fall down,” Kurth said. “It really is both of those pieces. It’s about students seeing their work in a public setting.”
