Kaw House: Providing Materials for a Home Built on Community

In North Lawrence, Kansas, a thoughtfully designed home has redefined what supportive housing can be, bringing environmental responsibility and inspired design together under one roof. University of Kansas architecture students designed and built the home through Dirt Works Studio, partnering with nonprofit Tenants to Homeowners to deliver a permanent, dignified space for someone transitioning out of homelessness.

That’s where we stepped in. Daltile supplied the tile, mosaic, and quartz surfaces used throughout the project. Where support reached far beyond product delivery, shaping how the home looks, how students learned to build it, and how a nonprofit budget stretched to meet an ambitious design vision.

Warmth and Light by Design

At Kaw House, every material was thoughtfully selected to balance lasting performance with a warm, welcoming feel. Elixir tile from our Remedy collection provided a soft, glazed white finish to the kitchen backsplash and bathroom walls, reflecting light through a compact interior, creating a brighter, more open feel. ONE Quartz Surfaces in Carrara Roma brings a creamy, subtly veined look to the countertops, complementing the natural warmth of the home’s exposed timber.

Outside, Assemble Proxy pavers help extend the living space onto a sunlit patio with a concrete-inspired look built to handle daily use. A matching mosaic covers the bathroom floor and adds slip resistance where it matters most. The design team leaned on Daltile's range of finishes to create a cohesive material story that carries from room to room, indoors to out.

A Partnership Worth Building On

Nonprofit affordable housing rarely leaves room in the budget for premium materials. Daltile's material support closed that gap, giving the design team access to finishes that would have otherwise stayed out of reach. This support helped the project team prioritize both design and durability, rather than trading one for the other to stay on budget.

The products also had to work for a construction team without professional tile experience. Much of the installation fell to architecture students working with tile for the first time, and Daltile's materials proved approachable enough to learn on while still meeting the standard required for a permanent home. Reliable, well-made materials gave the team one less variable to manage while they worked through added complexity.

Impact Beyond One Home

Kaw House delivered more than a finished home. Architecture students gained real installation experience under faculty supervision, learning skills that carry into their careers long after the semester ended. Tenants to Homeowners has praised the quality of the build, and the home's first resident has shared how the bright natural light and thoughtful craftsmanship has meant to them.

The impact extends beyond this one house. Kaw House marks the second collaboration between Dirt Works Studio and Tenants to Homeowners, and a third is already underway next door under Studio 804, KU's next-generation design-build program. Each new project gives another group of students hands-on experience while giving back to the community.

Tile That Supports a Community