Students in Belize
Catawba Farm Restoration Project
Graduate Student Sushil Shenoy with local 4th graders
Professor Georg Reichard and his graduate assistant Sushil working with elementary students designing lego houses with sustainable solar systems.
The Myers-Lawson School of Construction is committed to an active role in the education of the community about the exciting career opportunities construction has to offer. Goals of the program include partnerships with faculty in community colleges, high schools and middle schools to promote interest in construction careers through hands-on learning experiences. Additionally, the school encourages student engagement in activities that give back to the community while being good stewards of the construction profession.
The Catawba Hospital Farm is a Virginia Tech owned facility located at the crossroads of State Route 311 and Catawba Creek Road. The farm was established in the early 20th century to provide food and milk for the Catawba Sanitarium, located one mile away. The farm was given to Virginia Tech in the mid- to late-20th century. At first, the university used it as part of the Agricultural curriculum, but in recent years the farm has been all but abandoned and fallen into disrepair. The responsibility for the farm transferred to the College of Natural Resouces which has partnered with a community group, Catawba Land Care, to re-purpose the facility to provide a sustainable technology showcase center as well as a facility for local farmers to store and distribute crops and livestock. The College of Natural Resources sought participation from other departments within the University, including Building Construction, to help restore and revitalize the Catawba Farm Facility.
The Building Construction student group, Constructor's Consortium, agreed to recruit student volunteers to help with a "Catawba Farm Cleanup Day" on October 18, 2008. The hay barn on the property needed immediate attention in the form of structural bracing and roofing - there were concerns that a high wind event would bring the barn down. The students, under the leadership of the Head of the School of Construction, Yvan Beliveau, replaced some of the structural members in the barn and began replacing the northwest side of the barn roof.
Catawba Land Care manager, Ned Yost described Beliveau's directing of the Building Construction volunteers by saying, "I've always been impressed by men and women who lead by example. And there {Beliveau} was, climbing around the interior of the hay barn, power hammer in one hand, measuring, putting in the braces and new boards, all the while directing other to their separate tasks."
Beliveau plans to coordinate an additional day to finish replacing the barn's structural members and to complete the installation of the northwestern section of the barn's roof.
Dr. Georg Reichard, along with three Building Construction graduate students,performed a pilot study for research for the Department of Energy during May and June. 4th grade students at Beeks Elementary School in Blacksburg, built houses with LEGO blocks which were equipped with thermo sensors. Houses were designed with two styles, one of which was a beach house with a store front. The structures were place on classroom window sills to expose them to sunlight. The purpose of the project was to educate youth about the energy efficiency of buildings using solar techniques. Students were able to read graphs, learn about solar systems, participate in actual research and have fun at the same time.
