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Gibbs College of Architecture is pleased to announce Esther Thorp, Tyler Boydstun and Chukwuma Nwokoye as the winners of the 2026 Construction Innovation Translation Hub (CIThub) Student Ideas Competition. Each student’s construction innovation was selected to receive up to $5,000 in funding following a pitch event held Sept. 10, 2026.
Chukwuma Nwokoye presents SafeRoof Clip. Photo credit: Kiel Kondrick.
Thorp proposed a hard hat designed to fit workers with long or thick hair more comfortably. Boydstun presented “Punch Monkey,” a telescoping tool that tags punch-list items while capturing voice notes and photos. Nwokoye’s “SafeRoof Clip” would help supervisors monitor when workers disconnect from existing fall-protection equipment. The three winners were among seven finalists selected from 86 submissions from students in the Construction Science Division. Emerson Blevins and team, Megan Bauknight, Aakriti Pradhan, and Noah Ennis also presented their ideas to an audience of construction industry professionals, faculty, and students. Judges evaluated the pitches for novelty, market pull, feasibility, and implementation plans.
Tyler Boydstun presents Punch Monkey project.
The CIThub helps students translate construction ideas and research into industry-ready solutions through faculty and industry guidance. Its principal investigators are Dr. Kofi Asare, Dr. Ben Bigelow, Dr. Somik Ghosh, and Professor Terry Clinefelter. CIThub extends special thanks to Professor Bryan Bloom and industry judges Greg O’Bryan of The Beck Group, Tyler Sublett of JE Dunn, and Josh Carson for supporting the competition.
Esther Thorp presents project.
CIThub is funded through the STAR-D program as part of the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Accelerating Research Translation (ART) program (award 2331409).
Gibbs College of Architecture is pleased to announce Esther Thorp, Tyler Boydstun and Chukwuma Nwokoye as the winners of the 2026 Construction Innovation Translation Hub (CIThub) Student Ideas Competition.
Gibbs College of Architecture Assistant Professor Dr. Ladan Mozzafarian in the Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture and Design (PLAD) recently published a new research article in Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives with former RCPL student and co-author Tahsin Tabassum.
A project designed by Gibbs College of Architecture faculty member Austin Lightle has been selected for BuildFest 2026, a national art and architecture festival held at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in New York, on the historic grounds of the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival.
