This program expands a successful teaching mentorship program from Region 5 to a national scale, supporting instructors who teach masonry design across varied academic settings. The program mentors faculty and design professionals on masonry codes, design concepts and teaching methods, strengthening the understanding and use of concrete masonry nationwide through coordinated efforts across Regional Advisory Committees (RACs).
With regional support, an RFP will be issued for a Coordinator of University Education and Outreach to better organize and maximize over $1,000,000 in Checkoff resources dedicated to university engagement, incorporating initiatives such as the long-standing masonry course at Penn State and potential expansion to other institutions. Building on the successful integration of Direct Design Software in Penn State’s architectural engineering curriculum — and the continuing need for renewed licenses to support senior, master’s and doctoral students — this program aims to streamline outreach, provide consistent educational resources and equip emerging architects and engineers with practical masonry design skills they can immediately apply in their professional careers.
The University Construction Management program creates a four-part educational module designed to help university instructors integrate masonry into construction management courses. Each one-hour lesson covers materials, safety, on-site activities and masonry’s role in modern commercial projects, complete with videos, presentations and reference materials. The content also supports high school and industry training applications, building a stronger foundation of masonry knowledge among future project leaders.
Stimulates the market share of concrete masonry construction in Region 4 by generating and disseminating research data that demonstrate the resiliency and market competitiveness of concrete masonry for extreme storm surge events.
Provides reimbursement for full-time undergraduate students in their senior year who are interested or already engaged in concrete masonry technologies. This offsets the registration cost and travel expenses associated with attending the presentation segment of The Masonry Society (TMS) Annual Meeting.
Provides funding to Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville (SIUE) through The Masonry Institute of Southern Illinois (MISI) to ensure this course remains a part of its longstanding curriculum. This course has been celebrated by the local masonry industry and continually piques student interest.
Provides reimbursement for full-time undergraduate students in their senior year who are interested or already engaged in concrete masonry technologies. This offsets the registration cost and travel expenses associated with attending the presentation segment of The Masonry Society (TMS) Annual Meeting.
Establishes a comprehensive university outreach initiative in Region 2 to expand CMU education and research opportunities across the academic network. The program strengthens partnerships with universities to grow CMU-focused research, introduce new masonry courses and increase scholarship availability for students pursuing masonry-related studies. Through hands-on experiences like workshops, Blockfest events and a planned Masonry Design Summit, the initiative builds grassroots engagement and cultivates the next generation of designers and educators who understand and value concrete masonry
This program is designed to encourage hands-on learning, connecting the world of “thinking” with the world of “making” by creating an architectural artifact, strengthening collaboration and knowledge exchange between fabrication specialists, industry and academia. Students are asked to design, initially individually, then in small teams, a project that is aesthetically pleasing and technically feasible. By the end of the semester, two large teams will be formed, and a jury of masons, contractors and professionals will select one design to be constructed (at a designated location on campus, with the help of professional bricklayers at a two-day workshop event, following semester exams). It will be exhibited to the campus community to enjoy and experience the beauty of concrete masonry.
The Benefits of Energy Modeling for Concrete Masonry Building Code Compliance program educates building design professionals, primarily architects and mechanical engineers, on using energy modeling to meet energy code requirements with single-wythe concrete masonry construction.
