IUPUI student designs safe house for Swaziland orphans

IUPUI interior design student Hayley Earley’s blueprint became a reality when her safe house design was selected to be built in Swaziland for orphan children.

Children in Swaziland are orphaned at an increasing rate because of the high death rate due to AIDS in the country.

In an effort to help these children, IUPUI interior design students aligned with Saving Orphans Through Healthcare and Outreach to develop safe houses where they can live.

“IUPUI’s Interior Design and Architectural Technology programs are partnering with SOHO, to design housing units to accommodate six orphans of the same gender,” said Beth Huffman, lecturer of interior design technology and project organizer.

SOHO is a nonprofit organization that exists to improve the quality of life and life expectancy of child-headed households living in communities deeply affected by HIV/AIDS, according to its website.

Earley’s design was debuted at the “Hope Seekers: Survival of Southern African Child-Led Households in the Shadow of HIV” photography exhibit at IUPUI Feb. 18. Her design was selected out of 12 submissions.

“I wanted to make it a little bit different,” Earley said. “I wanted to make my blueprint around 600 square feet to make a loft area. I also wanted tall ceilings to make it a little more spacious.” 

Earley said the students had 800 square feet to work with in order to construct the blueprints for the safe house.

“Really, we were just told the sky’s the limit,” she said.

Earley said her class assignments normally include fake clients and no budgets. Although there was no budget, she had to design a cost-efficient safe house, which is why bars are on the windows. 

“It’s a home to live in and they don’t have one right now,” Earley said. “A lot of them have really, really sad stories and are barely making it every day — and I think a home will provide protection, and it will also provide land for them to grow food.”

Huffman said the project began in fall 2013 and will continue into spring and summer 2014.

“Each unit will include a communal living area, individual work stations and/or desks and personalized storage for clothing and other items,” she said.

Earley’s project was the only design to feature a water collection device.

The project became reality when Huffman was awarded a grant from the IUPUI Solution Center that would allow her to build a student’s winning design to full scale in February, she said.

“I made a connection with the local carpenters’ union, Indiana Kentucky Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters, and they generously agreed to allow IUPUI students to work alongside their students, called apprentices, to build Hayley’s prototype,” Huffman said. “IKORCC allowed us to use all of their equipment, labor and facilities to help this vision come to life.”

Earley said she and other students, as well as the carpenter’s union, hope to travel to Swaziland to help to see her vision in the making.

“This project is helping our students to become better global citizens,” Huffman said.

“By understanding the living conditions of people in another part of the world, I have witnessed the students becoming more empathetic towards other socioeconomic situations.”

Huffman said Swaziland has the highest AIDS death rate in the world, leaving children without parents and resources to survive. These homes provide opportunity and safety for the orphaned children.

Earley said the quality of life in Swaziland was a motivating factor for her project.

“This project definitely took hold with me because it is very missional,” Earley said. “I’ve been overseas and I’ve seen what poverty looks like. I don’t even think I’ve seen the amount in Swaziland.” 

The implementation of the safe house will be a factor of survival for orphaned children living in it, she said.

“It’s not very elegant,” Earley said. “But it is very practical to their needs.”