Five teams of high school students have been selected as finalists in the inaugural Students Design for Change program at Arkansas Tech University.
The finalists include four teams from Arkadelphia High School and one team from Little Rock Central High School. A total of 29 teams submitted project designs during the initial stage of the competition.
Students Design for Change is a challenge that encourages high school students from around Arkansas to explore issues of homelessness and poverty in the state and design and construct a small cabin intended to provide short-term shelter for a person who is homeless.
Each of the five finalist teams will receive up to $1,000 to fund construction of their short-term homeless cabins. The final products will be displayed at Arkansas Tech in Russellville during a symposium on April 7, 2017.
The project is led by four Arkansas Tech faculty members: Dr. Carl Greco, professor of electrical engineering; Dr. Julie Mikles-Schluterman, associate professor of sociology; Megan Toland, assistant professor of journalism; and Dr. Jessica Young, assistant professor of physics.
Arkansas Tech students Taylor Bleakley of Russellville, Sarah Bubniak of Farmington and Cody Butler of England are assisting in the administration of the program.
Students Design for Change is made possible through an interdisciplinary grant from Arkansas Tech and a community grant from the Walmart Foundation.
