[adapted from an article by Anne Bromely, UVa News Services]

The ecoMOD project, a partnership of the University of Virginia's School of Architecture and School of Engineering and Applied Science, has won one of the inaugural U.S. Green Building Council Excellence in Green Building Curriculum Awards. Asst. Professor John Quale is the ecoMOD Project Director and Paxton Marshall, Assoc. Professor in the School of Engineering & Applied Science, is the ecoMOD Engineering Director.

The nationwide awards and grants program is a central component of council's commitment to locate and disseminate innovative green building curricula to educators across the country. The awards and grants recognize pre-K through college-level curricula that advance the green building ideals of transforming how buildings and communities are designed, built and operated.

The ecoMOD project, using research and a design/build/evaluate process, is creating a series of ecological, modular and affordable housing units. The program works with affordable housing organizations to ensure sustainable housing is no longer a luxury reserved for the wealthy.

Since 2004, ecoMOD has built five units for the Piedmont Housing Alliance and Habitat for Humanity. The housing units are designed and built by interdisciplinary teams of students, working closely with faculty and outside experts. After the homes are occupied, student evaluation teams monitor and evaluate them, with the results guiding subsequent designs. ecoMOD is imbedded in the curriculum and is structured to maximize educational opportunities.