KU Engineering Self Fellows Design Bus Bench Prototype for City of Lawrence; Additional Projects in the Works
Engineering students at the University of Kansas have designed and built a prototype of a new bench for bus stops in the city of Lawrence. The project was part of a revamped leadership program for undergraduates in the School of Engineering, designed to give students hands-on design and project management experience on real-world projects.
Community leadership is especially emphasized during the SELF fellows’ sophomore year. In the past, students utilized their entrepreneurial skills to raise funds for local nonprofit agencies. However, in 2021-22, SELF Program Coordinator Gowri Nagarajan helped pivot the project to instead engage the fellows in unique training in project management. In addition to serving a local agency’s needs, SELF fellows use their community service project as an opportunity to hone their engineering and design expertise.
“It's always been a focus to develop leadership, to develop entrepreneurial and business skills,” said Paige Salas, a junior in civil engineering from Kansas City, Kansas, who led the bench design team. “With this academic term, I think we've been able to put that into practice while helping others.”