UCSI ARchitecture
The CSR Project: Public Aid For An Education Institution
Paul Cheng Mao Zheng
Situated in the sleepy town of Klang, SJK(C) Peng Ming was built in the 1920’s and has since faithfully catered to the primary educational needs of the residents in that area. It has laid the first foundations in formal education for generations of young children and whilst the students and the teachers have come and gone, the school itself has largely remained unchanged. A survey of the school revealed walls with peeling paint, unkempt gardens and dilapidated gazebos. With this in mind, UCSI University realized the need of the school to maintain itself as an educational institution and provide adequate facilities and learning environments for its students. Thus, the notion to provide SJK(C) Peng Ming with a much needed face-lift was conceived and the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Community Service Project was set in motion.
The Faculty of Engineering, Technology and Built Environment of USCI University collaborated with the Student Affairs and Alumni Department and the staff of SJK(C) Peng Ming to coordinate and organize a team who would be the driving workforce behind this community service project. This project team consisting of the students, lecturers and alumni from the Architecture Degree and Interior Architecture Degree programme was assigned with improving and reconstructing specific elements in the infrastructure of the aging primary school.
The morning of 8th of September 2014 brought a ripple of excitement spread through the school when the CSR Project team arrived bright and early lugging along their tools and equipment ready for a days work. For the team, it was a nostalgic opportunity to be operating a community service program in a primary school, where they had once been little children themselves, and they were eager to contribute to the cause. Students were carefully divided based on the resources available for each pre-selected task to optimize the individual abilities. Repainting walls, rebuilding furniture and replanting gardens required distinctive areas of expertise and skills compelling a diverse range of talents among the groups.
New plants to spice up the garden.
Sustenance for a days work.
Upon receiving their instructions, work began right away with each groups responsible for their respective areas. The hive of activity on the little plot of garden revealed the landscaping team taking up arms against the roots and rocks that littered the patch of ground. With simple gardening tools and dedicated elbow grease, they sifted through the earth to clear away the weeds and stones that would hinder their objective, retaining the fertile soil for the new saplings and shrubs standing at the ready in planter bags. Supervising lecturers hovered among the hustle and bustle keeping a close eye on progress and lending a hand when needed.
Discussing placement of garden structure.
Supervising the green thumbs.
The mural team turned an old blank wall into their canvas, dabbing bright splotches of paint and cutting wide swathes of colour across a stenciled template to produce their piece de resistance. Even the humble flight of stairs leading to the offices were not spared the stroke of the paintbrush when a few individuals banded together to patch up the cracks and gaps in the time-worn steps and bestow upon its risers abstract patterns that would merge to form a complete mural from the right perspective. At the outer wall, standing armed with paint scrapers and lugging buckets of paint, the painting team donned gloves and went to work removing the peeling, weather-beaten paint in preparation of the next step, repainting the 400 foot long wall. By no means a small feat, the team was lucky to be assisted by eager hands from the school. Working hand in hand, the fresh coat of orange and white paint was layered up in record time.
Strength in numbers.
Getting the exact tinge can be rocket science!
Eager volunteers getting instructions from a team leader.
Meanwhile a workbench took up residence in a corner of the courtyard, manned by the senior students from the Interior Architecture programme, it churned out shelves and racks throughout the day. Working with recycled timber and equipped with power tools emanating a myriad of sounds, they produced sturdy pieces of furniture crafted for the petite anthropometry of a primary student. Existing furniture in the need of desperate repair found new life in the hands of the amateur carpenters who mended them back to prime condition. Even a rustic plant stand complete with trilingual, hand-painted signs took shape under their diligent fingers.
The plant stand: Before and After
Custom rack, tailored to precise height.
In between the blocks of classrooms, a construction team was busy constructing a gazebo for a sheltered gathering area. This labour intensive project was executed by senior year students experienced in the technical details of minor construction works. Curious faces followed their every move as the primary students peeped out of their classes drawn by the sounds of rasping saws and buzzing drills, admonishments from the teachers to pay attention unfortunately fell on deaf ears. By the end of the day, a new area for students to find respite from the midday sun would be ready for use and the team even had been working on a proposed concept for the relocation of the school canteen to ease congestion during recess and after school hours. Utilizing 3-dimensional modeling and rendering software, a solution was proposed based on crowd flow analysis and the suitable spacing, to speed up any future renovations.
Building the gazebo by hand, nail by nail.
Dimension acquisition for design proposal.
In an interview with the Headmistress of the school, Ms Yew, enlightened the team on the challenges in running and maintaining a school in accordance with its vision and mission to raise educated young children with healthy, disciplined lifestyles and well developed talents. Based on her experiences as a teacher for nearly 30 years and a headmistress for half a decade, the current younger generation has entirely different behavior and disciplinary issues as compared to previous generations. With some children growing up in the fast paced world of technology, comfort and household helpers, they lead sheltered lives and are less proactive when faced with problems. On the other hand, the lack of moral principles and sense of responsibility seemed to be more prevalent in children growing up in homes neglected by their working parents.
The Headmistress, Ms Yew proposing minor adjustments to the mural.
Besides the vision of the school, Ms Yew also took it upon her own shoulders to provide her students with a more comfortable and appropriate place for learning. The school had recently implemented the E-classroom system, installing large screens in every classroom to make the teaching and learning process easier. A visionary person, Ms Yew is constantly faced with the problem of inadequate manpower to accomplish her often ambitious proposals to develop the school. When she learned of the CSR Project and of the voluntary crew that would be assisting the school with improvements, it was an opportunity that could not be turned down. When asked about the impact this project would have on the teachers and students, she stated ‘’More than anything else, you have all brought encouragement and motivation to my teachers students, the exposure to older role models will spark the interest in this younger generation to study hard for their future. ‘’
Tossing a Frisbee is a welcome break between painting sessions.
As dusk fell, the last of the project team workers put their finishing touches and wrapped up the event with a final photo session before trudging back to the bus for a long journey home. It had been an eye-opener for many, and a chance to give back to society and to enrich the next generation. Exhausted and weary from the days labour, they laid back in their seats and shut their eyes, resting assured that the sun would rise on a better place tomorrow.
The mural team with their masterpiece.