I came home, at least in a sense.

After 5 years of college, where they essentially taught us to work in an urban environment in order to become successful, I still followed my gut – I came back home. Throughout school they trained us how to build art museums, dance studios, and skyscrapers. They pushed us on the art of designing for the masses, for the people in the city and what would be appealing to them. It wasn’t until my 5th and final year in school that I had the potential to take a studio that shifted the spectrum of design from the urban setting to the rural. I jumped at the opportunity, hoping to use the skills and knowledge I spent countless hours developing and honing.

“It’s opener there, in the wide open air. Out there things can happen, and frequently do…”

-Dr. Seuss, Oh The Places You’ll Go

When the fall of final year rolled around, I was hot off a nine month internship that had me immersed in the design of schools and healthcare facilities. I was ready for a project with a different pace. A joint project with Habitat for Humanity in small rural Kansas town provided just the opportunity I craved. Having worked in economic development before hand – in which I took a deep dive into understanding the rural housing issue – I was able to take a leading role in developing the research and analysis for our senior thesis project. As the year progressed, the research turned to a design, and from there into a pile of  2×4 boards, insulation sheets,  and plywood on the shop floor. I spent numerous days diligently working on the construction documents for our pre-fab panel construction design, but now it was time to but that digital model to the test. With just three weeks left in the semester, it was a race against time, but that pile of supplies transformed into a standing house by the time graduation rolled around. 

When I came home, I came back to make a difference. I returned to provide a service in an area lacking a strong tie to the architecture job sector. I came back to apply those skills and knowledge I had, in combination with the real world experience I now possessed. I took a leap of faith to work in a rural area, to make tangible improvements to the area I grew up in – to strive to change the notion that thoughtful architecture can only exist in urban environments.