Jan 28 2011

NYIT Students Design a School for Underserved Communities

Students at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), in collaboration with the Hostos Dream Project, are designing a sustainable model for school buildings in underserved school communities in the Dominican Republic.

The Hostos Dream Project, a non-profit organization that focuses on improving the quality of education and environmental conservation within the Dominican Republic, is developing a new paradigm for primary and secondary education in the country. Students in NYIT’s School of Architecture and Design, under the guidance of Michele Bertomen, associate professor of architecture, are responsible for completing a site plan and prototype design for the first school being developed. Students will implement the design in collaboration with architects in the Dominican Republic. 

“With this project and others, NYIT’s School of Architecture and Design encourages the formation of student-led multidisciplinary teams to implement significant and sustainable works of architecture,” said Bertomen. “These endeavors give our students the confidence in their education as they participate in the creation of a better world.”

The students currently involved in this initiative from the School of Architecture and Design are John Min, Eunjee Park, Mahesh Rana, Giovanni Avanzi, Brian Kerbeykian, Stephanie Susanto, Ben Constabile, Christine Alaimo, Lena Savigne, Tony Grullon, Leisdania Reyes, Maureen Tua, Dyana Berthaud, and Adele Schachner. Students from the School of Engineering and Computing Sciences are welcome to participate.

The goal of the Hostos Dream Project is to develop a successful, sustainable school model that can be built in underserved school communities within the Dominican Republic and can also be replicated in other parts of the world.