Spring Break Operations Manual

About

Design of a spring break program for 24 participants. \

Staff

• 4 hour staff training required beforehand for site staff.
• Admin - admissions and questions, coordination. Handles registration process and onboarding emails.
• Hospitality and Logistics - admissions admin, cooking and living space, signage, waste, garden, store runs. Prepares site for arrival.
• Co-teachers - 2 assistants required for teaching build process. 1 teacher allocated to PV on Hangar, and 2 allocated to cabin builds.
• Logistics - materials moving and handling with skid steer.

24 Unit Program

• Prototypes

Program

Narrative

Join an intensive, skill-building experience. In this one week session, we will learn to design and build an eco-friendly cabin with photovoltaics on the roof. We Will spend about 2-4 hours learning, and 4-6 hours building each day. We will also learn how to install a large array (100kw) of photovoltaics on the roof of a large workshop, so that anyone interested in solar power can see how the whole system works. In the class session, we will go over design basics for structure, PV, electrical, plumbing, finishing, and heat pump - such that anybody who wants to learn how to build can use our modular, human-sized build system to design and build a structure for themselves easily using modules, part libraries, and AI-assisted CAD workflows. We will work on teaching everyone a human-language based process where we instruct AI to produce technically correct design using FreeCAD, the open source CAD tool. Anyone will thus be able to design code-compliant buildings using our system - to build their own home, an ADU, or even start a business producing these scalable, modular homes for others.

Schedule

Each day, breakfast goes from 8-9, program starts at 9, lunch is 1-2 - and goes to 6 pm each day. Dinner is served 6-7 PM.

• Prep webinar - watch at your leisure. 1 hour describing the week.
• Day 1 - Welcome presentation, half hour, and half hour intros. 2 Hour Construction Boot Camp + practice wall module build - total 4 hours morning.
  • Afternoon: 2 hour production - Cabin 1. Then a 2 hour AI Assisted FreeCAD design intro: how to design just about anything. Part Library work - process overview, sample part generation.
• Day 2 - 2 Hour House Design Boot Camp. Starting Cabin 1 interior.
  • Afternoon - PV installation - Hangar. 2 hr CAD design - Part library work - designing plumbing.

• Day 3 - 2 Hour PV System + Roofless Roof Design Bootcamp and Design Session. Finishing Cabin 1.
  • Afternoon - PV installation - Hangar. 2 hr CAD design -Part library work - designing electrical.

• Day 4 - 2 Hour Heat Pump and Thermal Battery Design Boot Campand Design Session. Starting Cabin 2.
  • Afternoon - PV installation - Hangar. 2 hr CAD design - Part library work - designing power center.

• Day 5 - House Design Finalization Session Starting interior of Cabin 2.
  • Afternoon - PV installation - Hangar. 2 hr CAD design - Part library work - designing heat pump module.

• Day 6 - Village Design Boot camp and Design Session. Building Cabin 5.
  • Afternoon - PV installation - Hangar. 2 hr CAD design - Part library work - designing PV system in detail.

• Day 7 - project day: we build a new cabin model that we designed collaboratively in the last 5 days. Depending on the number and ambition of team - we will buils something from 120 to 240 square feet in size - either 1 or 2 modules. We will debrief and review progress at the end.

Cost

About 50/50

• Admin - $1450 - coordinates with Hospitality
• Hospitality - food, dorm prep, trash - $1450. Comes in 2 days early to prepare site for arrival.
• Food Budget for 24 - $2688
• Support Staff - 3 instructors at $1450 each, $4350 total. Come in 1 day early for training and airport pickups.
• Materials - 2 cabins - $6k. Cabin Cost

Total cost - $7250 people, $2688 food, $6000 materials

• Tuition - $415 to $664 per student for 7 days. 4 scholarships available based on need.
• Marketing - $650 early bird, $750 regular (2 weeks)

Application

To keep the cohort focused on people who can operate in a fast-paced build + design environment, we ask for one quick proof of prior making or building experience. This can be CAD, build, or anything that shows that you have agency in the world.

Link to one project (or short description) - one thing you’ve made or completed (any domain). If you’re brand new, briefly describe something you’ve taken from idea → finished outcome.

Also state in 1–2 sentences on what they want to ship/learn this week. This is a full-day, physically demanding build sprint. Are you able to participate for full days for all 7 days?

Future Infrastructure Upgrades

• Production aquaponic greenhouse
• Pervious paver driveways, with 3D printed block