Pittsburg State University seniors in construction management have been working on projects at Pitt State and within the community this semester for their senior projects. Recently, a crew of students have been working on the sidewalk near the Garfield Weede Building. Students have also been to Four Oaks Golf Course, making concrete sidewalks between the brand-new pickleball courts, providing better access for those who use them.
Dr. Christopher Pross, associate professor at the school of construction, has helped supervise the sidewalk project near the Weede. He states that the project serves more than one purpose.
“The importance of the project is twofold,” Pross said. “Not only do our students get the hands-on component that really makes a difference when they get their internships with their full-time jobs. It also is an opportunity to give back to not only the community, but it also is kind of a pride factor, with it being Pitt State oriented. They get to come back and see it when they bring their kids back you know for maybe a football game or whatever.”
This sidewalk project came about when the university contacted the faculty about this old asphalt sidewalk needing to be updated and knew that the students did this type of work in class.
Emily Bright, a senior majoring in construction management, said that it was good to give back.
“It’s kind of neat as our senior project to help improve the campus in a way,” Bright said. “The asphalt sidewalk had tons of tripping hazards. It’s kind of nice to give back and make things nicer around campus, like the sidewalk.”
The school of construction has about 35 to 36 students in senior projects, currently. The faculty tries to link them up with different projects around the community, so they are currently running 11 projects according to Pross. They typically run four to five students on a project.
There is also a group of students working on pickleball courts. It is a different project, owner, and crew than the sidewalk project. The pickleball court construction is also part of senior projects and is being completed with the Pittsburg Parks and Recreation.
“For Pittsburg Parks and recreation, we have had a really good relationship with them. They have work for us to complete, and we have the people to help them do that,” Pross said. “We’ve done some other car paths out there; we’ve also done some shade structures. But with that one, it’s pretty important so that there’s accessibility to those pickleball courts that they obviously just got done.”
For Bright, working on this project has been good practice in communication.
“Working hands-on comes with a lot of communication,” Bright said. “You’re working with people, your peers, and those are not always the same type of people. We are college students, not professionals in the industry. So I feel like you kind of get an idea of how to communicate well with each other.”
Senior projects are hands-on practice for students going into the industry. Pross explained the “start to finish” effort students put in.
“Our senior project side of things is a little bit unique, and that is not just necessarily in our region, but it is across the country,” Pross said. “It would be pretty hard for us to find another university and program that does senior projects like we do, where it is 100% start to finish. They (the students) are going to come in and going to meet the owners day one. They’re going to put together a conceptual design, a budget, a schedule, and also a contract. Then, they physically come out here and complete the labor component as well as coordinate and maybe manage some underclassmen that come out and assist on that too.”
With senior projects and beyond, Bright appreciated the opportunities the program has given her.
“The program is awesome,” Bright said. “It is very hands on. There are so many opportunities networking wise and outside of school in clubs and other organizations the school of construction offers. There are a lot of opportunities that I don’t think you really get anywhere else. So, the School of Construction program here is pretty nice. I’m from west of Des Moines, Iowa and I came all the way down here to go to school.”
Pross finds the program to be more than some view construction.
“When everybody thinks of construction, they think of swinging a hammer, plumbers, and things along those lines,” Pross said. “While we have a large hands-on component to our program, that could not be further from what we actually do. Students are actually getting the professional side, the management side, just like anybody else. What we do impacts so many people, not just in our community. Whether it be 69 Highway that some of our students would be on, whether that be building the new College of Business that our students are on, there are huge impacts throughout everywhere.”