The MakerSpace gives students a place for creativity
The MakerSpace is an island of misfit toys, filled with an array of unused gizmos and gadgets. This year the Commons Lab was renamed the “MakerSpace,”and equipped with an array of electronic equipment. The goal of the MakerSpace is to give students a new space where they can create projects using school provided resources.
Computer Science teacher Emma Anderson is an advocate for the opportunities for creativity that the MakerSpace gives students.
“The purpose of the MakerSpace is to give students a place to explore digital and physical tools, both for the creation of inventive electronics and also for the creation of art,” Anderson said.
All the equipment in the MakerSpace is paid for by the school and available to students who want to use it for engineering and artistic projects alike. With tools ranging from a vinyl cutter to soldering irons and even robotics equipment, the MakerSpace is filled with possibilities.
Unfortunately, according to Anderson, this is unused potential.
“There haven’t been any large-scale projects so far this year, mostly just students tinkering with what is in there,” Anderson said. “One part of this is the fact that the MakerSpace is a very new part of U Prep, and not a lot of people know how they can use it.”
Along with being new, many students do not know what uses the MakerSpace may hold for curious students.
Director of Academic Technology and Digital Media teacher, Jeff Tillinghast, thinks it is not widely used because students have not thought of the possibilities the resources can provide to them.
“I think that part of why people haven’t done any projects is that people may not know what’s possible with it [the resources]. Its hard to approach, so we haven’t seen a whole lot of it so far, and it will take time for people to envision what they can do with the resources we provide,” Tillinghast said, “The most important entry point is just being a little curious and wanting to learn something.”
Although some students spend lunch in the MakerSpace, as of now, no one has started a large-scale project in the MakerSpace.
Junior David Michelman, who regularly visits the MakerSpace, there is a small group of students who use it regularly, however other than that not many students use the MakerSpace.
“I think a large part of why students don’t use the MakerSpace is because they just don’t know about its existence. There is a tight knit group of people who use it, but other than them, not many people know,” Michelman said. “I can’t speak for the other students who hang around the MakerSpace, but personally I have a lot of the same stuff the MakerSpace has, it’s just not particularly useful for me.”
In order to inspire students to start projects of their own, Tillinghast and Anderson are working together to hold some workshops showing students how to use the different equipment in the Makerspace. Their ideas include a screenprinting workshop using the vinyl cutter, and potentially a joint project with the library for bookmaking with leds for decoration.
By: Shawn Owens