Architecture Students Use Design Thinking to Tackle Issue of Homelessness

Students in the "Architectural Approach to Homelessness" elective are working in teams and using design-thinking strategies to come up with a solution to the issue of homelessness. They began this spring semester elective by researching and learning about homelessness and current proposed solutions. Students explored what homelessness is and who becomes homeless. They also drew pictures of their ideal home and discussed the basic needs of every human. The design thinking element of this project allows students to build empathy for this issue and explore out-of-the-box architectural solutions.

 

By the end of the semester, students will have created mock-ups of their own research solutions. “The goal of this class is for students to present their ideas so they can educate the community about what is going on and how it can be handled through the design thinking process,” says teacher Cathy Withrington. MORE PHOTOS