EXTREME SERVICE-LEARNING: ENGAGING A UNIVERSITY DESIGN-BUILD COURSE WITH A BROADCAST NETWORK TELEVISION SHOW IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE JOPLIN TORNADO

摘要

On May 22, 2011, an EF5 tornado ripped a mile wide, six-mile long path of destruction through Joplin, Missouri. The nearby Hammons School of Architecture was asked to design and build a tribute to the more than 170,000 registered volunteers who have selflessly contributed to the rescue, recovery, demolition, and rebirth of Joplin. The site was Cunningham Park, where the tornado reached its maximum intensity. The tribute was coordinated and built within the timeline set forth by the ABC television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition who was building seven houses in seven days near the park. Typical design-build learning experiences materialize in design, construction materials and methods, client communications, programming and budgeting, soliciting donations, an understanding of giving to a community, and personal growth and maturity. The aforementioned occurred, but under the backdrop of a disaster event and the umbrella of a network television show. This led to new developments in design-build strategies for the school. There is an abundance of service-learning and Design-Build scholarship, but very little is known about engaging network television and disaster relief simultaneously. This paper provides educational and life lessons of students and professors that frame future course structure.