Carolyn DePew
Staff Writer
The University of Houston College of Architecture held a graduation ceremony for its third annual Summer Discovery Program Friday. Approximately 40 high school students from the greater Houston area completed the program.
The Summer Discovery Program was created to reach out to high school students, give them an opportunity to learn about and experience architecture and create an interest in these students to pursue architecture in college, according to Kathleen Lechon of the College of Architecture.
The six-week class involved a combination of lectures, field trips and projects. Several professional architects spoke to the students, "giving them different perspectives on architecture," said Lechon.
The participants took field trips to an architect's office as well as to architectural sites in and around Houston, Austin and Ft. Worth, including the famous Waxahachie Bridge.
The students also completed several projects during the program. They were given a type of building to create and some suggested dimensions, and from those the students created sketches, blueprints and three-dimensional models of their ideas. These projects, including a first learning center for small children three to five years old and a home merging the buildings with the landscape, were displayed at the graduation ceremony.
The participants were asked what they learned about design and its process from their projects. Jones High School senior Jerilyn Hanohano said she learned "that everything has to be considered, every person's point of view and experiences ... how to keep a design and how not to upset a composition."
Jones High School senior Tonzi Canestaro-Garcia said that she enjoyed the experience. "I like architecture, how it mixes art and math ... the two minds."
Lechon said that the program is planned to be offered again next summer. This year's cost was $285, and scholarships are available to those who need them. Most applicants were accepted this year. For more information, please contact the College of Architecture.