College of

Engineering, Architecture and Technology

A team in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology's (CEAT) School of Architecture (SOA) was awarded the Director's Award in the Education Division at the 2023 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Decathlon Design Competition held in Golden, Colorado on April 20-23, 2023.  The Director's Award is given to a team chosen by the director of the Solar Decathlon Program among the presentations attended in all competition divisions.  

 

The interdisciplinary team consisted of multiple students and faculty across many disciplines at OSU.  

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STUDENTS:
Blake Fogg, School of Architecture
Emily Tran, School of Architecture

Jacey Watson, School of Architecture
Henry Xia, School of Architecture
Matt Yearout, School of Architecture
Shane Richards, Construction Engineering Technology
Averee McNear, History
Zahrasadat Hosseini, Interior Design
Ubhaya Perera, Interior Design
Amr Abdelmoneim, Mechanical Engineering
Pouria Moghimi, Mechanical Engineering

Faculty:
Dr. Khaled Mansy, School of Architecture
Professor Sarah Ra, School of Architecture
Dr. Heather Yates, Construction Engineering Technology
Dr. Laura Arata, History
Dr. Hebatalla Nazmy, Interior Design
Dr. Christian Bach, Mechanical Engineering 

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The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon collegiate competition prepares the next generation of building professionals to design and build high-performance, low-carbon buildings powered by renewables. The Design Challenge is a one- to two-semester, design-only competition, while the Build Challenge is a two-year design-build competition.

 

Collegiate students competing in the Solar Decathlon Design Challenge work in multidisciplinary teams to create innovative and high-performance building designs that address real-world issues related to climate change, affordability, and environmental justice.

 

Teams collaborate on a residential or commercial design project for one or two academic semesters, with the competition culminating each April at the Solar Decathlon Competition Event. The Competition Event provides an opportunity for teams to present their designs to expert jurors, network and build connections with industry professionals, and share ideas with other Decathletes from around the world.

 

Winning teams are recognized with awards on an international stage and winning design projects are shared through Solar Decathlon and U.S. Department of Energy channels. The Design Challenge builds on the 20+ year legacy of the Solar Decathlon in creating a global community of current and future professionals dedicated to tackling the most complex problems facing the buildings industry.

"This is a fantastic showing for our first time to complete in this arena," said Suzanne Bilbeisi, SOA professor and head.  "Their project was centered on the adaptive reuse of the Washington School in Stillwater."

 

"More than a thousand participating students attended in-person and virtual," said Dr. Khaled Mansy. "The trip was so enriching, eye-opening, and allowed us to get more familiar with the plans to move towards zero energy and zero carbon. Speeches by directors of NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory), DOE, and the Deputy of the U.S. Secretary of Energy. We also visited the zero-energy Research Support Facility (RSF) and the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF). The 360,000SF RSF is one of the largest zero-energy office buildings in the country, if not the world. The ESIF is where advanced research on systems testing and integration takes place and it houses three of the five fastest data centers in the world."