Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Student teamwork on the Capstone projects begins in the late autumn and early
winter and proceeds through the remainder of the academic year, ending in early
June. Most of the student effort is focused in the field and on the development of a se-
ries of sequential required elements. These elements include (1) a proposal in re-
sponse to an RFP, (2) a work plan, (3) an as-built report, (4) a monitoring and mainte-
nance plan, and (5) a monitoring and maintenance training session held on-site for
their community partner. The student team conducts a structured site assessment of
the physical and biological features, as well as potential constraints, to facilitate their
development of a proposal in response to the community partner's RFP. The proposal
and work plan are reviewed by peers and faculty before they are submitted for com-
munity partner feedback. The detailed work plan is based upon design principles that
derive from a variety of areas of knowledge (e.g., ecological theory), connecting stu-
dents' academic experience to these hands-on projects. Following any necessary revi-
sions, student teams negotiate formal agreement of these documents with the com-
munity partner. These agreements allow the team to begin actual restoration work on
the site.
The student team undertakes site preparation (e.g., invasive plant removal, soil
and slope modifications), procures plant material, and installs the plants along with
other required elements (e.g., constructed habitat elements, slope stability features).
Student teams encounter a variety of project-specific experiences, such as volunteer
management, solicitation of material donations, bioengineering, and grant applica-
tions. Presentations to neighborhood groups, planning commissions, city councils,
and other groups are also common. At the end of each academic year, student teams
present posters at the annual UW-REN project symposium to which we invite former,
future, and current community partners, students, administrators, interested neigh-
bors, media, and faculty (fig. 24.1).
Projects that students undertake are usually small (less than a half acre), though
larger projects have been accomplished with large volunteer bases or by Capstone
teams in sequential years restoring adjacent areas. Since its start in 1999, we have
completed forty-eight projects. Community partners have included schools, private
citizens, municipalities, Native American tribes (fig. 24.2), counties, nongovernmen-
tal organizations, a public utility, and various institutions of higher education, includ-
ing the UW (table 24.1).
Community partners are required to actively engage the student groups, providing
feedback and assistance on documents, plans, and project implementation. Our ex-
perience has been that most community partners are happy to provide much more
than minimal feedback, and an ongoing and creative interaction between the com-
munity partner and the student group generally develops. This is not to say that the
process is free of setbacks, and improved communication skills and dispute resolution
are often some of the lessons that are learned in the process.
In a professional setting, nearly all restoration projects are accomplished by groups
of individuals working together. Students have often found teamwork one of the great-
est challenges in their project. They find themselves in teams with colleagues from an
array of different academic backgrounds (table 24.2). As in real-life projects, they are
