The projects, part of Introduction to Design (ENGR 215), are designed and developed by students from Humboldt State University’s Environmental Resources Engineering department. Through a partnership with Zane Middle School, the innovative projects make use of the students’ design skills and provide long-term learning opportunities for the middle school’s students.
The projects will be unveiled during an event at Zane Middle School on Thursday, May 12, from 3:15 to 4:30 p.m. Zane Middle School is located at 2155 S St., in Eureka.
Ten teams from the Introduction to Design course, taught this semester by Camille Penny, have spent the fall semester working with faculty and staff from Zane Middle School to develop the projects. The process develops design, analysis, critical thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork skills required to complete the projects. Students’ imaginations are set free on the projects, but in order to meet the criteria of Zane Middle School, the projects must be safe, affordable, have minimal environmental impact, and be appropriate for the needs of a middle school campus.
The unique nature of the course gets HSU students working on real-world problems while providing Zane students with excellent learning opportunities. “Zane is dedicated to getting the best curriculum possible, so we work with their faculty and staff to see what projects will have the most impact and help them meet their needs,” says Penny. Throughout the semester, Zane staff and students provide feedback on the projects, while local businesses, community members, and student teams contributed funds and in-kind donations to support project development.
This year’s projects include:
- Vacuum bazooka to demonstrate the power of vacuums to middle school science students
- Watershed model will serve as a visual learning aid for students to learn about the function of watersheds
- Robotics table compatible with Lego Mindstorm sumo robots that will reduce the set-up time for competitions
- Square wheels to demonstrate mathematical concepts
- Lego Makerspace table to make it easier to transport Lego projects
- Concessions cart for selling snacks during school hours
- Gutter repair that addresses holes in the current gutters and prevents future clogging.
- Mobile greenhouse for use in biology lessons
- Wedging table to provide an area to wedge clay, a necessary step before beginning an art project
- Semi-permeable walkway to keep students from walking through parking lots and provide adequate drainage
Project descriptions are available on Appropedia, a website with thousands of articles on sustainable and appropriate technologies.
Zane Middle School is a STEAM Magnet School. The STEAM model integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics throughout the curriculum.