Habitat for Humanity freshman design and build experience

The University of South Carolina has developed a new course that not only tackles the issue of retention from a student study skills point of view, but introduces the students to the world of engineering through a freshman design and build experience. The new course weaves together student success strategies, teamwork, and community service, by leading students through a Habitat for Humanity design project. The aim of the course is to excite freshman engineering students about the field of engineering by having them experience first hand what engineers do-design, create, build, and deliver solutions-while producing a design artifact that contributes to the local community. The paper illustrates how establishing a partnership with a local chapter of Habitat for Humanity (HFH) can provide a number of worthwhile design projects that freshman can easily tackle. The paper describes the successful implementation of constructing seven utility-tool-sheds for completed Habitat for Humanity homes. The team building process, the establishment of a freshman design and build shop, a spirited design competition, and the logistics of organizing such a project for 246 freshman engineering students are all described. The paper tells the story of how sixty teams participated in the project, and how the sheds were built on campus in a modular fashion, and then transported out to the Habitat site in an attempt to erect all sheds in a single hour. The paper then closes by suggesting other Habitat for Humanity projects involving playground equipment and pedestrian bridges that are planned for the future.