 "Photo: Courtesy Photo")
Though Aggies take pride in participating in Big Event every year and other projects for the community, others prefer to take service across nations. The Texas A&M chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) participated in a construction project during the winter break.
Students traveled to Acuña, Mexico, to build a library for the elementary school Escuela
Independencia. The project was planned, designed and funded by students. With the help of professional engineer adviser Jon Fripp, the idea came to light easily, said Jonathan Sterling, senior industrial distribution major and vice president of projects.
"He basically put us in contact with a ministry organization in Acuña, WIDE Ministries," he said. "We contacted them about potential projects in the community. That's when WIDE looked around, and the school suggested they needed some place to put their books. That's when we decided that would be our project."
The purpose of EWB is to use construction skills to help communities in need.
"The mission is to apply our resources, both monetary, academic and personal, to serve people in need and to develop sustainable and innovative solutions to the current needs in other parts of the world and locally," Sterling said.
The process took a few months to prepare and 12 days to construct. The parent organization, EWB-USA, approved the project and allowed students to take a preliminary assessment trip.
"The first time we went was last May," said John Zwerneman, junior civil engineering major and project leader. "We just got a lot of information about the site, a few of the beginning formations, and we got to know the person who we're staying with. Then we came back with all the information and started the design in the beginning of the fall semester."
Although helping the community is the main goal of EWB, the hands-on experience the students received was also beneficial.
"A lot of times you'll design something in a class the best you can and think it will work, but then you try to implement the design, and you find lots of little flaws in the design or things you didn't think about that you have to add or change," said Felipe Rendon, EWB president and senior chemical engineering major.
The group dealt with last minute on-site problems including changing the roof design because of time constraints and feasibility.
"It was a unique opportunity for engineering students to practically apply what we're doing in class. In an academic setting, you don't see the construction effect. In this project, students got the unique opportunity to see both sides of that," Sterling said.
The members of the organization were also in charge of funding the trip. They had fundraisers throughout the fall semester.
Financial help from the civil engineering department and a major contribution from Spectra Energy helped the students.
"We're not guaranteed any annual funding from EWB-USA. We basically just had to write a lot of letters and do proposals and approach different organizations. We got a huge donation from Spectra Energy, which was right at the end. It was key in completing the project. We wouldn't have been able to do it without them," Zwerneman said.
Students spent the fall semester designing the project before traveling in January to begin implementing their design.
"We didn't get to see the actual effects until we were actually down there. We spent a whole semester designing this abstract building and then actually getting to go down there and put it together, and then hand it over to the people was really amazing," Zwerneman said.
Students were also able to work side by side with local residents, including two men named Miguel and Trini.
"We got to hear about their families, hobbies and ambitions," Sterling said. "These guys were so glad to be working. I think it was mutually beneficial to work together."
After the library was completed, the school had an opening ceremony for the students. The children dressed in traditional Mexican clothing and had various dance performances.
"Overall, it was so far the most rewarding experience I've had in college. Giving back to the community definitely was rewarding, and to be able to implement something that you designed in order to help someone in need. Then just to see how grateful the school was for the library was amazing," Rendon said.
The A&M chapter of the EWB also participates in other projects and strives to have at least two international projects per year. They are planning a trip to Costa Rica in May and to return to Acuña to give the children books for the new library.
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