Educators and Students Step Up Amid COVID-19

At Chapman University, faculty and students alike powered their printers to contribute 3D printed critical PPE. From the combined endeavors of the Fowler School of Engineering, Schmid College of Science and Technology, and Grand Challenges Initiative, over a thousand printed models were donated. Their stunning success is further outlined in this article on Patch.com.

K-12 educators were also eager to get involved. Matt Miller, a 4th grade teacher who was also recently featured on CUE.org, volunteered to commit to Response #18, a targeted response effort in partnership with CRASH Space LA. This campaign required printing a unique, more challenging and time-consuming model than the standard visor to distribute this unique face shield to medical care providers in the Southern California area.

Beginner fabricators and professors at King University, Joe Strickland and Herbert Lee Jones, used an Ultimaker S3 to create dozens of PLA visors needed to make protective face shields for health care workers.  When first registering as a volunteer, Professor Strickland shared, “We are a small Christian liberal arts institution who just got into 3D printing from the Arts standpoint (not engineering) and we would like to do what we can to help.” Read more about their involvement at the Herald Courier.

Continuing education outside of the classroom has not been easy, but many students have made the best of distance learning by finding new practical applications for educational technology. In Rhode Island, a lesson about 3D printed face shields from high school teacher Michael Shunney spurred students like Seth Giguere into action, as featured in this article and video on ABC6. They and fellow West Warwick High School students Alec Monataquila, Johanna Gallo, and Jake Spencer all turned their education into action and helped supply their local hospital in need.

Lastly, we were proud to partner with members of the Capistrano Unified School District for Operation Capo Cares. Founded by Tesoro High School student Kyle Vallone and with the help of teachers and faculty members at CUSD (Mark Bowie, Chuck Hobbs, and Pati Romo) Capo Cares evolved into an unprecedented initiative uniting students throughout the district in this volunteer effort. See inspiring photos of their accomplishments at this link to the CCA webpage.

Thank you to all of the extraordinary educators and their students who have turned a challenging situation into an opportunity for excellence. MatterHackers appreciates and will continue to support all of your hard work this week and every other week of the year.