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Greening the Capstone

Abstract

The Senior Design Project course at George Mason University provides a capstone design experience that integrates the fundamental knowledge employed by a contemporary civil engineering design team in areas such as land use planning, transportation design, water and sewerage management, grading and storm water design, site analyses and layout, and economic, environmental and regulatory restrictions. In response to the growing need for civil engineers with a solid foundation in sustainable design principles, the Fall 2008 capstone course required seniors to design a neighborhood based on the concepts delineated in The LEED for Neighborhood Development Pilot Program. An actual site is used in the design to provide an experience for the students that is as realistic as possible within an academic setting. The target for the development was Silver Certification, or between 50 and 59 points out of a possible 106 points. The site selected was a parcel within an existing office park in Fairfax County, Virginia, already developed with an office building and surface parking. Students were required to redevelop the site for residential use to include 120 total units, with a roughly equal mix of townhouses and condominium units. In addition to meeting the requirements for LEED certification, the students were required to either meet the requirements of the jurisdiction or identify the waivers and modifications to the requirements that would be required to permit the development, including assessment of cost and schedule impacts to the developer. Students were directed to incorporate deconstruction practices for all existing structures and to obtain guidance from the Sustainable Sites Initiative. Evaluations from the project presentation by a panel of professional engineers and developers are presented, along with student evaluations and anecdotal results of the student learning experience. One significant finding was that the sustainable design requirement inspired great creativity in the students and a desire to perform well beyond articulated requirements. Another was that the students experienced some frustration in trying to create an environmentally conscious development in a highly regulated jurisdiction whose goals are not entirely in sync with LEED principles. Despite the challenges, the project proved to be a valuable exercise, providing a solid foundation for incorporation of sustainable design elements in the Senior Design Project course for following sessions.

The Green Capstone Description

The Senior Design Project course at George Mason University (GMU) provides a capstone design experience that integrates the fundamental knowledge employed by a contemporary civil engineering design team in areas such as land use planning, transportation design, water and sewerage management, grading and storm water design, site analyses and layout, and economic, environmental and regulatory restrictions. In response to the growing need for civil engineers

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deMonsabert, S., & Miller, L. (2009, June), Greening The Capstone Paper presented at 2009 Annual Conference & Exposition, Austin, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--4729