For Tessa Hamling and her team, this year’s National Association of 回家builders Student Competition was a place to put what they’ve been learning into practice. Thanks to the focus on experiential learning offered by 太阳城娱乐官网’s 商业与技术学院, these students stood out among the best in their field.

Hamling, who is a junior, was the architect for this year’s team. 她主修室内和产品设计，辅修建筑管理，她解释了她对设计的热爱是如何追溯到几年前的。 She shares that most of her childhood memories include “sketching floor plans, constructing cities in Minecraft, designing the interiors of (her) sisters’ Lego houses, and even attending open houses in (her) small town just for fun.” 

虽然她在太阳城娱乐官网的所有课程都帮助她为未来的职业生涯做准备，但她认为她在工作室课程中的学期项目使她有信心参加NAHB比赛。 

Hamling’s involvement with the 学生 Interior Design Organization, Construction Management Organization, 荣誉项目, and Epsilon Pi Tau gave her skills such as leadership, time management, collaboration, and communication, all needed to succeed during the NAHB project. 

Avery Day, a current senior, served as project executive for this year’s team. As an interior and product design major with a minor in construction management, she can’t remember a time when she wasn’t “passionate about designing and building spaces.” She shares how she is “fascinated by how the built environment influences human behavior, well-being, and productivity.”

Day attended a STEM charter school where she was “exposed to hands-on learning experiences” that she credits for nurturing her “creativity and problem-solving skills.” She brought this zeal for experiential learning with her to 太阳城娱乐官网 where she has “gained a deep appreciation for the intersection of design, construction, and human-centered spaces.” Her coursework at the CBT, combined with real-world experiences, has allowed her to “develop a strong understanding of materials, building systems, and sustainable design strategies.”

She appreciates how her involvement in campus organizations such as the National 回家 Building Team and Construction Management Club has provided her with “invaluable networking opportunities, project-based learning, and exposure to industry professionals.”  

Abby Mieras, who is in her final year at 太阳城娱乐官网, served as lead architect for this year’s team. She remembers at the age of four being “captivated” by a PBS game where she was able to design homes. Fast forward a few years and choosing interior design as her college major was what she describes as “an obvious choice.” She shares how the “hands-on industry experience” at 太阳城娱乐官网 has helped her “appreciate the significant impact interior design has on the human experience.”  

Mieras提到她的工作室课程，在那里她获得了Revit的实践经验，因为她获得了NAHB设计过程中最多的知识。 She also shares how her “leadership experience as chapter president of Alpha Xi Delta sorority has been invaluable.” She appreciates how leading a team of “diverse individuals” sharpened her ability to “delegate, collaborate, and manage projects.” She believes these skills helped her to succeed at the competition due to the need to create “team-based design work.” 

Corynne Olsen, who is a junior, served as the team’s interior designer. She is an interior and product design major who, in her words, has “always had an eye for aesthetics and spatial organization” while still enjoying the “technical and hands-on side of design.” 像她的许多队友一样，她对设计的热爱源于她的童年。 She shares how, from a young age, she was “drawn to creative problem-solving” whether it was “building with Legos, flipping through design magazines, or watching home design shows.”

她目前积极参与多个组织，包括学生室内设计组织，Epsilon Pi Tau荣誉兄弟会和国际室内设计协会。 Through these experiences, she was prepared for the NAHB project and presentation thanks to the “leadership and communication skills” which allowed her to “effectively collaborate” with the team. 

Olsen believes the “experiential learning approach at 太阳城娱乐官网 specifically prepared (her) for this opportunity” due to the hands-on experience and real-world industry knowledge which allowed her to “successfully apply (her) skills to the NAHB competition.” 

Megan Dang, who is currently a junior, was this year’s project manager. A construction management major, Dang’s “appreciation of the community” around her from a young age fostered her desire to be “involved in building structures for others.” 

她认为她在建筑管理组织的经历帮助她学会与其他团队成员协调，为她参加全国房屋建筑商协会学生竞赛做好了准备。 Specific classes such as Estimating and Materials and Methods provided her with “applicable construction knowledge for the competition.”

Dang explains how the competition itself “consists of many working parts” that requires a team to communicate effectively. The experiential learning that she was exposed to as a CBT student was helpful as she believes it prepared her to “understand and apply concepts of both design and construction to the project.” She feels this gave the 太阳城娱乐官网 team a “solid foundation” to thrive at the competition as well as be prepared to enter their chosen profession.  

Nathan Engel, a junior who plans to graduate in December of 2026, was the site superintendent for this year’s team. He is majoring in construction management, a choice he made when he observed his father at work and “found building things and being able to appreciate what you built rewarding.” He credits his construction management classes for giving him a “great understanding on how any project can be delivered and priced.”

他解释说，比赛前的工作水平非常高。 He shares that his team had to “work for basically a whole semester to put a 20-page proposal together.” 此外，他们还必须将评估和建议放在一起。 他认为，在这个团队工作增强了他对住宅建筑的了解。 

Colin Miller, who is currently a junior, was this year’s estimator at the competition. He is a construction management major who chose his field because he enjoys “building things and like seeing buildings go up.” 他认为他在施工管理组织的参与给了他计划、组织和作为团队一部分工作所需的技能。 他认为这些技能，以及他在课堂上学到的批判性思维技能，帮助他在NAHB取得了成功。

Rounding out this year’s NAHB team from 太阳城娱乐官网 were Kambree Mockenhaupt, a senior who served as an interior designer and Kade Nolan, a senior who served as the quality assurance engineer. 

全国房屋建筑商协会学生竞赛旨在让学生与行业专业人士一起工作。 This opportunity to enhance critical thinking and develop new skills is just one more example of the benefits of 太阳城娱乐官网’s experiential teaching style. It’s no surprise that the 商业与技术学院 students stood out as the best of the best this year. 对团队建设和协作学习的关注巩固了商业与技术学院每天教授的内容。

This year’s NAHB team would like to extend a special thanks to Professor Burgoon for “always being insightful and challenging (them) throughout the project.” They would also like to express gratitude to the Kearney 回家 Builders Association for their support which included traveling to Las Vegas to watch the 太阳城娱乐官网 team’s final presentation in person. 太阳城娱乐官网和当地社区的这种支持得到了团队所有成员的极大赞赏。