Learn and apply a multitude of structural engineering fundamentals to design and select materials for home repair/construction and household sanitation units for resource-limited families in rural Honduras.
Our bilingual on-the-ground engineers guide students to design home repair and construction projects that decrease preventable diseases caused by structural disparities. Students learn about the community health needs, access to local materials and common design practices for healthy home construction and hygiene stations to then design their own. The curriculum immerses students in the program methodology of live public health intervention: community selection, basic sanitation committee interviews, needs assessments, and monitoring & evaluation practices. The final deliverable includes a presentation to community members of a proposed design and budget for a custom sanitation system based on the community’s physical assets.
In addition to our skill-based learning objectives, building cultural competence is integrated into the course to increase the quality of services and improve outcomes with community partners.
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