Pre-Implementation Report - Hope School Dormitory Project

The University of Wyoming Chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB-WYO) traveled to Kenya this past summer to complete the chapter's largest project to date – the construction of a 60-bed dormitory. Over the past four years, EWB-WYO has been partnering with a primary school in Mbita, Kenya that serves orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) to develop a program that will provide a safe living and learning environment for the children who attend the school. Two assessment trips were conducted in the summers of 2014 and 2015 to evaluate the needs of the community, conduct a preliminary technical assessment and gather data required to design the structure. In the summer of 2016, under the leadership of project managers Brett Prettyman and Adam Block, a team of students, professionals, and faculty were able to proceed from contractor selection to structural completion of the dormitory in two-and-a-half months. The design proposed by faculty adviser, Dr. David Mukai, and professional advisers Erin Radosevich and Duncan Kline of Malone, Belton, Abel P.C. incorporated a confined masonry technique, a novel construction method used in seismic zones that has been found to be earthquake resistant. The successful completion of the design has the community singing its praises, claiming the dormitory is, "the strongest building we have ever seen." Following the successful implementation of an ablution block completed earlier this month, the dormitory is ready to be occupied.