On Saturday, October 26th, SOM’s San Francisco office joined local architects, contractors, and engineers at Ocean Beach for the 37th annual Sandcastle Classic, which benefits LEAP Arts in Education, a local nonprofit that funds arts education in Bay Area schools. SOM’s team was awarded “Best in Show Gold,” Best Student Participation, and Best Video Game Reference, as part of this year’s theme—”Let’s Play!”
Individuals from SOM, Whiting-Turner, Syska Hennessy Group, Integral Group, Stantec, and BuroHappold Engineering partnered with 4th and 5th graders from the Japanese Bilingual Bicultural Program at Clarendon Alternative Elementary School to form team “Press Play.”
Beginning in July, team “Press Play” met weekly at SOM’s office to develop the sandcastle’s design. The group also visited the students to explain the basic principles of architecture and engineering, illustrating sections, plans, elevations, and scale through interactive activities. In September, the students ventured to SOM for a collaborative brainstorming and design session.
SOM is grateful to all the organizers, parents, students, contributors, and volunteers who helped make this year’s Leap Sandcastle Classic a success!