A new applied arts and technology course entitled Technical Engineer Makerspace will be available to students for next year. This class was created by Applied Arts teacher George Clarke and Technology/Engineering teacher Raymond Belanger.

“Makerspace is a growing trend; they’re popping up all over the place,” Clarke said. “They allow a wide variety of people to come together and work on a wide variety of projects. It really sparks ideas and is a place where people can invent all kinds of new things.”

The semester course will be offered only at the Honors level. It will focus primarily in hands-on activity and collaboration with fellow students.

“We hope students explore things they haven’t done before and tackle different challenges and do things they didn’t think were possible,” Belanger said.

“The objective is about inspiring kids to discover the possibilities in the world and spark creativity,” Clarke said.

The class will differ from the current applied arts and technology courses since it will encompass the use of many tools and materials, including wood, metals, textiles, and three-dimensional printing.

“We hope it expands the use of technology that hasn’t been done before [in the school] by using different tools and materials,” Belanger said.

The class is designed to enable students to follow the do-it-yourself project movement which has spurred the augmentation of makerspaces.

“I hope [students] get the experience of going through the process of making something cool,” Clarke said. “I hope they become inspired by what they see other people doing and discover what they can do themselves.”