25-26 Week of 9/1-9/5

As we settle into the new school year, students have been diving back into both shop maintenance and project work. These first weeks are always about reestablishing routines, organizing tools, and getting back into the rhythm of problem-solving. We are so happy everybody is back in the shop and getting busy.

Senior Kim Dao began the week with a focus on organization and shop upkeep. She inventoried tools, labeled quantities, and cleaned up supply boxes to ensure everything was in order for the weeks ahead. Beyond shop chores, she continued work on her LED word clock project. While coding, Kim encountered issues with the LittleFS file system, which caused her program to fail. Instead of being discouraged, she turned to tutorials, tested different approaches, and began narrowing down the source of the problem. Her persistence shows how students learn to tackle obstacles by researching, experimenting, and troubleshooting independently.

Junior Alex Bress began his week with shop responsibilities. He took on the challenge of improving our cable hangers, which had become bent and uneven over time. He measured, designed, and created prototypes, even moving to the waterjet for final fabrication. Alex then deburred, sanded, and bent the new hangers before mounting one and starting two more. In addition, he explored new uses for 555 timers in electronics, which could help expand future projects like his keyboard design. His work reflects both practical problem-solving and creative thinking about future innovations.

Together, these updates highlight the balance in our classroom between maintaining an organized, safe workspace and developing individual projects. Students are not only learning technical skills but also resilience, adaptability, and independence as they face real challenges.

**Below are some photos from the week. You can see Quinn Dufour using the WaterJet and Adam Dangi and Dom Lyons learning the lathe. Additionally, we’ve included 2 photos of recent graduates Aaron BenDaniel at Syracuse University and Milo Austin at Wentworth Institute of Technology.