The YouthQuest Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2005 and based in Chantilly, Virginia, that provides academic and vocational opportunities, and life-enriching experiences, for America’s at-risk youth. The foundation’s signature STEAM education project is the 3D ThinkLink Initiative, which uses instruction in 3D design and printing as a vehicle to teach at-risk youth critical thinking and problem-solving skills, encourage creativity and boost their self-confidence.
“Teacher training was especially significant this time,” said YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks. “The cross-pollination of project ideas from the five different sites using our 3D ThinkLink curriculum was very helpful to our new teachers and rejuvenating to our experienced teachers.”
Germaine Rasberry and Ikeya Robinson set up a 3D printer
The group was evenly split between first-timers and veterans. We were especially pleased to welcome Germaine Rasberry and Ikeya Robinson from South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academy, which is reactivating its 3D ThinkLink classes after a hiatus last year. The other newcomers were Nicole Atchley and Maxine Brown-Davis from Capital Guardian Youth ChalleNGe Academy, Ellen Brigham from the PHILLIPS School in Fairfax, Virginia, and Hugo Duran from the PHILLIPS School in Annandale.
The returning teachers who brought their experience and insights to the training sessions were Jonathon Brown and Jamarr Dennis from Freestate ChalleNGe Academy, CGYCA’s La-Toya Hamilton and Keith Hammond, and Jim Fields and Joseph Phillips from the PHILLIPS schools.
Much of the training time was devoted to reviewing our curriculum, which is built around an innovative noun/verb approach to teaching Moment of Inspiration, a professional-level CAD (computer-aided design) program. This method makes it easy for students to understand 3D design concepts in much the same way that they learn language.
Tom Meeks reviews 3D ThinkLink curriculum updates with teachers
Each lesson introduces a “noun” – a 2D object such as a circle or rectangle – and a “verb” – an action in the CAD software that turns the noun into a 3D object like a pipe or box. The more nouns and verbs the students learn, the more complex their 3D creations can be.
Along with mastering Moment of Inspiration, our teachers must be able to operate 3D printers so students can transform their ideas into tangible objects. It’s essential for them to see how their designs turn out, evaluate problems, make improvements and print again until they’re satisfied.
This is how we teach at-risk kids not to fear mistakes, but to see them as a natural part of the learning process. To do that effectively, we need 3D printers that are simple, fast and reliable, so students don’t get bogged down waiting to see results. That’s why we work to keep up with the latest hardware innovations and find the printers that best meet the needs of our students and teachers.
We are in the process of transitioning from the 3D Systems Cube printers we used the launch our program five years ago to newer, more versatile machines.
The teachers spent a full day working with PowerSpec printers. After setting up and calibrating the machines, they ran test prints and learned common troubleshooting techniques. At the end of training, we gave a PowerSpec i3 Plus printer to each of our five class sites for evaluation.
Lynda Mann gathers ideas about selecting students
The final day of training included a “teachers teach teachers” session. The experienced instructors demonstrated some of the benchmark projects such as cookie cutters and personalized keychain tags that students must complete periodically to show that they understand the nouns and verbs they’ve covered so far. As they go deeper into the curriculum, the projects become more complex.
Besides sessions about the nuts and bolts of 3D design and printing, there was plenty of lively discussion about the best ways to serve the at-risk kids in our classes. It was an opportunity for the teachers to get to know each other and to understand the various needs and strengths of the students. They learned what’s unique about each partner program, as well as what they have in common.
YouthQuest Co-Founder and President Lynda Mann led discussions about best practices for selecting students for 3D classes, and ways to improve our program and meet the needs of our partner schools. The teachers gave valuable feedback about what’s going well in their classes and what needs improvement.
The February training sessions laid the foundation for what promises to be the best year ever for our 3D ThinkLink Initiative. The teachers returned to their schools energized and ready to apply what they learned in our lab.
Most important, this was a chance to remind everyone – whether they’ve been working with us for years or are just starting – that the real purpose of our program goes far beyond teaching 3D printing. It’s all about using the technology as a vehicle to develop the essential life skills at-risk youth lack. In the process of mastering the CAD software and printers, our students learn that their failures are not final and they can accomplish more than they ever imagined.
One of the many highlights of 2017 for our foundation was being nominated as Public Service Innovator of the Year by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce for our 3D ThinkLink Initiative in March. The months that followed were filled with examples of our program’s value in building better lives for at-risk youth.
“Our innovation is not that we introduce kids to 3D design and printing, it’s how we use this technology as a vehicle to teach the important life skills at-risk youth lack, such as critical thinking, problem solving, creativity and the confidence to fail,” said YouthQuest Co-Founder and President Lynda Mann. “3D printing is perfectly suited for showing kids who’ve failed in school that mistakes are part of the learning process – that they are the beginning of something good, not the end of something bad.”
Greater Washington Innovation Awards Showcase in March
Being a Greater Washington Innovation Awards nominee gave us the opportunity to tell regional leaders about YouthQuest’s life-changing work with young people like Aunya’ Jones, a top student in our 3D ThinkLink class at Maryland’s Freestate ChalleNGe Academy.
“Before 3D printing, I did not believe in myself, and I had accepted the opinion that I was not good enough,” Aunya’ wrote in an essay that earned her a $500 YouthQuest scholarship to continue her education.
“3D printing has helped guide me into making better decisions and gave me a new life skill along the way. It has really helped me understand my self-worth because now I know I can design my own future,” she explained. “I now see the bigger picture to my life’s problems and I’m not afraid to face them.”
In his essay, LaMarcus described how the 3D ThinkLink experience changed his way of thinking. He said it helped him control his anger and improve his concentration.
“When I come to class, my whole mood changes,” LaMarcus wrote. “I become happy because I know that I’m in a good place.”
LaMarcus also said our class brought out the creativity he used to keep “all bottled in” and taught him how to “think about stuff differently.”
A YEAR OF ACHIEVEMENT
Aunya’ and LaMarcus are also two of the ChalleNGe Cadets who took part advanced training this year in the 3D ThinkLink Creativity Lab at our headquarters in Chantilly, Virginia.
Advanced Training in the 3D ThinkLink Creativity Lab in June
The June lab sessions focused on our project to train 3D ThinkLink graduates as Youth Mentors, giving them the skills and equipment to teach others about 3D printing and serve as positive role models in their communities. LaMarcus was there along with fellow Capital Guardian Cadet Adrian Vasquez, and David Kelly and Stephen Brown from Freestate.
Adrian told us during lab week that he used to have problems in school and our class helped get him back on track.
“I would get good grades, but my mind would always be on something else. So I got caught up with stuff I wasn’t supposed to be around. But ever since I started 3D, my mind has been nowhere near that stuff,” he said. “It’s like therapy, a type of therapy. Working on 3D designs keeps me focused, not on the other nonsense stuff.”
In December, we tried something different by taking our advanced training out of our lab and into the classroom at Camp Schwartz on the Capital Guardian campus. Cadets Keyonte Alston, Quadaija Hudgens and Alexander Price honed their design and printing skills during three days of training. A couple of weeks later, they graduated from Capital Guardian along with four other Cadets who completed our 3D ThinkLink class; Divine Carr, Markus Kemp, Keith Pettiford, and Herman Signou.
Throughout 2017, we repeatedly saw proof that what works for the teens in ChalleNGe academies also works for at-risk kids in other kinds of programs we serve.
PHILLIPS students and teachers explore the 3D ThinkLink Creativity Lab
The PHILLIPS Programs for Children and Families has seen great success tailoring our curriculum for students on the autism spectrum. PHILLIPS was so pleased with the results of last year’s 3D ThinkLink pilot project at its Annandale, Virginia, school that it expanded the class to its Fairfax campus this year. Some of the students from last year’s class are now involved in a 3D printing club at the Annandale campus, too. It was a pleasure to have PHILLIPS students visit our 3D ThinkLink Creativity Lab in April.
It’s also been gratifying to watch the growth of our partnership with Horizons Hampton Roads, an academic, cultural, and recreational program for kids from low-income families in Virginia’s Tidewater area. We started with last year’s Summer Enrichment Program, providing a 3D ThinkLink class for sixth-graders at a single site in Portsmouth. This summer, the project expanded to sites in Norfolk and Virginia Beach, reaching a total of 32 kids. The students were “engaged and challenged” by our curriculum, according to the annual report from Horizons Hampton Roads, and teachers were excited to try some new projects they’d developed that used 3D design and printing to support STEM lessons, such as creating a paddlewheel for a ferryboat.
“The 3D printing was a great experience,” HHR teacher Franklin Baker reported. “From the design portion to troubleshooting, our students had to problem-solve from the first step to the last.”
Highly skilled, enthusiastic teachers are the key to our program’s success. That’s why our teacher training sessions are so important. Teachers from several partner programs came to our lab for a week in February and October this year to learn about curriculum changes, software updates, and new printers and materials.
“We want to give them the best tools and motivate them to learn how to use those tools so they can be the best teachers for the at-risk students we serve,” explained YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks.
A YEAR OF GIVING
Giving back to the community is one of YouthQuest’s core values.
One of the ways our organization gives back locally is by sponsoring the annual Step Up Loudoun Youth Competition. This was the sixth straight year we’ve provided the prize money for the contest, which challenges teens in Loudoun County, Virginia, to identify problems in their community and implement solutions.
Top 10 teams in the 2017 Step Up Loudoun Youth Competition
Kriti Ganotra from Broad Run High School earned the $1,000 top prize this year for developing a free device that detects computer network vulnerabilities.
“I want to bring it to Loudoun County, using high schoolers to create a community where everyone is educated about cyber-bullying, cyber-security, cyber-threats and technology,” Kriti said in an interview with Loudoun Youth. “I want to bring this to every single house and eventually patent this into something that we can develop all around the nation.”
YouthQuest supporters also gave back generously this year to make our 12th annual golf tournament a success. Even though it rained for the first time in the history of our signature fundraising event, more than 100 players and volunteers turned out at Trump National Golf Club on August 7.
We were especially pleased to welcome Insperity, Pure Storage and ePlus as new sponsors this year.
For the first time, the winning team received 3D-printed trophies that were designed and produced in our lab by Tom Meeks.
YouthQuest Co-Founder Allen Cage putts at the golf tournament in August
The tournament’s Silent Auction raised more money than ever and we collected an additional $2,500 through a new fundraising tool, the Giving Tree. The tree displayed at the post-tournament reception and the August 3 VIP Reception hosted by Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in Tysons was decorated with tags that were 3D printed in our lab. Each tag gave donors an easy way to provide equipment, supplies and other resources for our 3D ThinkLink students.
Also at the reception, we presented our 2017 Volunteer of the Year Award to Tammy Haug, National Sales Manager for AOC Solutions. Not only does Tammy volunteer at the golf tournament every year, she assisted us with our 10th Anniversary Celebration in Chantilly and the 3D printing workshops we conducted at the National Society of Black Engineers Convention in Anaheim, California, in 2015.
Our 2017 Community Partner Award went to Copy General in Sterling, Virginia, whose constant support for YouthQuest includes printing the program for the golf tournament every year. IMADE3D won the Strategic Partner Award. We’ve worked with IMADE3D since 2015 and are big fans of their JellyBox 3D printer kit. We have several of the printers in our lab and our advanced students always enjoy building and using them.
Volunteers in the clubhouse at the golf tournament in August
Our donors also gave generously on November 28, when we participated for the second year in #GivingTuesday, a global celebration of philanthropy. We also became part of AmazonSmile this year, giving Amazon users the ability to select YouthQuest as their charity. For every purchase they make, the AmazonSmile Foundation makes a donation to us.
2018 promises to be another year filled with innovations and expansion for us. We’re eager to start the next round of teacher training in February, as that will be a major step toward reactivating our 3D ThinkLink program at South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academy, which has been on hiatus for a year. In previous years, SCYCA has been our largest 3D class site.
We are also working toward opening the 3D ThinkLInk Creativity Lab for use by the general public and we’re planning a new fundraiser that we expect will be quite lucrative for us as well as for one lucky raffle winner. Stay tuned for details in the new year.
There’s no need to wait to help us, though. We welcome contributions at any time of the year. Please click here or contact Operations Manager Juan Louro at juan.louro@youthquestfoundation.org or 703-234-4633.
It’s always exciting to take our 3D ThinkLink students beyond their classrooms and show them some of the many ways they can use the CAD (computer-aided design) and 3D printing skills they’re learning.
A Capital Guardian Cadet looks at 3D-printed objects at the University of Maryland’s Terrapin Works
Terrapin Works encompasses a collection of digital design and production resources located throughout the College Park campus. The equipment ranges from consumer-grade 3D printers like the ones our students use in class to highly sophisticated, specialized systems that can print objects using all sorts of materials such as plastics, metal, ceramics and even living cells.
The University of Maryland tour included a stop at the Fischell Department of Bioengineering’s Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials Laboratory, where 3D printing helps scientists develop materials that can be implanted in the body. The lab has hosted Vocational Orientation events for us since 2014 and our students are always fascinated to learn how researchers combine life sciences and engineering to create things like bone and blood vessel replacements.
After a busy morning in College Park, the Cadets headed north to Baltimore to spend the afternoon at The Foundery, an industrial makerspace that’s another favorite Vocational Orientation destination.
Cadets watch a computer-controlled machine cut steel with a high-pressure water jet at The Foundery
At The Foundery, our students see how their knowledge of CAD software gives them opportunities to work in traditional subtractive manufacturing fields as well as the new realm of additive manufacturing. Whether they’re working with a desktop 3D printer, a laser engraver or a giant industrial cutting machine, it all comes down to giving a computer-controlled device the instructions needed to make the object you want.
Even more important for our students than learning about the various machines they saw during Vocational Orientation was meeting the people who use those machines to turn ideas into reality. It was gratifying to watch the personal interaction between the Cadets and the staff members at UMD and The Foundery.
These tours are intended to open the eyes of at-risk teens whose view of career opportunities is often quite limited. By exposing them to new ideas and experiences, we encourage them to see themselves going on to do things they didn’t think were possible. Whatever their goals may be, the thinking skills our 3D ThinkLink Initiative teaches will help our students achieve them.
Even though it rained for the first time in the event’s 12-year history, more than 100 players and volunteers turned out for our annual fundraiser on August 7.
YouthQuest Co-Founder Allen Cage putts
Washington Redskins alumni and first responders from Loudoun County, Virginia, were among the VIP guests who joined two dozen teams on the links at Trump National Golf Club’s Championship Course, which was the site of the Senior PGA Championship earlier this year.
“We were pleased to welcome three new sponsors this year; Insperity, Pure Storage and ePlus,” said YouthQuest Foundation Board Secretary and Tournament Committee Chairman Bill Hall.
Returning sponsors were AOC Solutions, 3Delta Systems, FEDAC Processing, Insurance Associates, the Poole Foundation, PNC, Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, Jones Lang LaSalle, Ritzert & Leyton PC, CrossFit PR Star, Experis Technology Group, AC Properties and Valley Forge Acquisition Corporation.
The tournament’s Silent Auction raised more money than ever and we collected an additional $2,500 through a new fundraising tool, the Giving Tree. The tree displayed at the post-tournament reception was decorated with tags that were 3D printed in our lab. Each tag gave donors an easy way to provide equipment, supplies and other resources for students in our 3D ThinkLink Initiative for at-risk youth.
Volunteer of the Year Tammy Haug (center) with volunteers Erica Stewart and Carol Schick from AOC Solutions
During the post-tournament reception, AOC Solutions National Sales Manager Tammy Haug was presented with YouthQuest’s Volunteer of the Year Award. In addition to working the golf tournament every year, she helped with our 10th Anniversary Celebration and the workshops we ran to introduce kids to 3D printing at the National Society of Black Engineers Convention in Anaheim, California, in 2015.
Laura d’All, general manager of Copy General’s East Coast Production Center in Sterling, Virginia, also was on hand to accept YouthQuest’s 2017 Community Partner Award. Copy General prints the golf tournament program each year and has made many generous contributions to advance our programs that serve America’s at-risk youth.
Supporters also gathered at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in Tysons Corner on August 3 for our annual VIP Reception, where we showcased our 3D ThinkLink Youth Mentor project. Guests watched a video about top graduates of our 3D design and printing classes at Maryland’s Freestate and DC’s Capital Guardian Youth ChalleNGe Academies who completed a week of training in our lab to share their skills and serve as positive role models in their communities.
IMADE3D owners Ladi Goc and his wife, Ivana Gocova, accept our Strategic Partner Award from YouthQuest Co-Founders Allen Cage and Lynda Mann
Also at the VIP Reception, we announced IMADE3D as the winner of our 2017 Strategic Partner Award. The company makes the JellyBox, a unique, easy-to-assemble 3D printer kit designed especially for education. YouthQuest and IMADE3D have worked together since 2015. Advanced 3D ThinkLink students in our lab were the first group to test-build JellyBoxes with the inventors, Ladi Goc and his son Filip Goc, observing the process. The feedback from the students helped IMADE3D perfect the design and refine the assembly instructions before putting the JellyBox on the market. Now we have several of them in our lab.
Tournament volunteers in the clubhouse
New York Times bestselling author John Gilstrap was at both receptions to sign copies of Final Target, the latest book in his Jonathan Grave thriller series. John supports the 3D ThinkLink Initiative by serving as the judge in our essay contests. Twice a year, we invite ChalleNGe Academy students to write about how being in our 3D class affected them personally. The winners receive $500 scholarships to pursue higher education or vocational training.
Missing from this year’s tournament was Golf Entertainer Brad Denton, who has been part of the event for several years. Brad was injured in a serious car crash the week before the tournament, but he’s on the road to recovery now. To show our appreciation for him, tournament participants made donations to buy a $750 Tech Pack (3D printer, software and laptop), which will be given to a Youth Mentor on Brad’s behalf.
We look forward to having Brad back in action at our next tournament, scheduled for August 6, 2018.
“As far as I’m concerned, this was the most successful immersion experience we’ve done,” said YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks. “We were totally focused this time on how to use their skills to be mentors to young people in their families and neighborhoods, and how to work in the community to demonstrate what 3D design and printing is.”
The 3D ThinkLink Initiative uses instruction in 3D design and printing as a vehicle for teaching at-risk youth about critical thinking, problem solving, creativity and confidence. The Youth ChalleNGe Program, run by the National Guard, gives dropouts a second chance to get their lives back on track and earn a high school degree.
Advanced students work in the 3D ThinkLink Creativity Lab
For teens who have struggled in school, the experience of learning something cool like 3D printing and teaching it to others does wonders for their self-esteem.
“Now I can do things to help people who were in my shoes,” said Freestate Cadet David Kelly, 16, from Baltimore.
During daylong sessions in the lab, our advanced students became thoroughly familiar with the setup, operation and troubleshooting of the M3D Micro 3D printers they’ll be using as mentors. They also worked with new types of materials they hadn’t used in their on-campus classes, such flexible and color-changing filaments.
For the first time, the students made designs to be built in the lab’s full-color powder bed printer, so they could experience a professional level of 3D printing.
Staying motivated all week was no problem for these students. After a full day in the lab, they would take their laptop computers back to their hotel rooms and work on designs until 9:00 or 10:00 at night, then come back the next morning eager to print their creations.
‘It’s Like Therapy’
All four cadets said being involved in our program benefited them in ways that go far beyond gaining technical skills. They described 3D ThinkLink class as a respite from the regimented life at their ChalleNGe academies, where they spent 5 ½ months away from home.
David Kelly holds a frame for a fidget spinner he 3D printed
David explained that he would get frustrated in other classes sometimes, but having the opportunity to use his imagination and design whatever he liked in 3D class every week always made him feel better.
“Making stuff calmed me down,” he said. “Whenever I make new things, I generally get happy. It lightens my mood.”
The same was true for Capital Guardian Cadet LaMarcus Corley.
“It has helped me control my anger,” the 17 year old from Washington, DC, wrote in a scholarship-winning essay about his 3D ThinkLink experience. “When I come to class, my whole mood changes. I become happy because I know that I’m in a good place.”
Adrian Vasquez uses Moment of Inspiration 3D design software
LaMarcus also said our class brought out the creativity he used to keep “all bottled in” and taught him how to “think about stuff differently.”
“It helped me with focusing more — paying attention to detail, getting everything right,” said Freestate Cadet Stephen Brown, 16, from Upper Marlboro, Maryland. “It taught me to never give up and to focus on your goal.”
It also helped keep them out of trouble. All the cadets said they appreciated being chosen for the 3D ThinkLink program and enjoyed it so much that they wouldn’t risk being kicked out for misbehaving.
Before he enrolled at Capital Guardian, Cadet Adrian Vasquez said, he had problems in school.
“I would get good grades, but my mind would always be on something else. So I got caught up with stuff I wasn’t supposed to be around,” the 16-year-old from DC said. “But ever since I started 3D, my mind has been nowhere near that stuff.”
“It’s like therapy, a type of therapy. Working on 3D designs keeps me focused, not on the other nonsense stuff,” Adrian explained.
“And my mom is cheering me on,” he added. “She’s seen all the posts about us on Facebook and she’s never been so happy. She knows the rough times I had.”
Thinking Differently About the Future
The 3D ThinkLink experience opened these at-risk teens’ eyes to new opportunities and changed their view of what’s possible for them.
“I’ve never really been so confident about the things I’m doing,” said Adrian, who plans to become a master automotive technician.
Stephen Brown checks one of his designs printing on an M3D Micro
Stephen is aiming for a career as a fashion designer and entrepreneur. With 3D printing playing an ever-increasing role in the fashion industry, he realizes the value of the hands-on experience he gained in our classes.
“It really helped me think outside the box and I can use that to my advantage in the future,” he said. “As I pursue my career, the 3D printer will really help me print out prototypes of designs.”
Learning 3D printing gave LaMarcus a new perspective about his options after graduating from Capital Guardian and he’s looking forward to being a Youth Mentor.
“I know it changed me, so I want to make a change in people’s lives,” he said.
So does Adrian, who was reminded of the importance of giving back when he discovered how 3D-printed prosthetic devices help people who’ve lost limbs.
“I had a mindset thinking that this was just for me or for my family,” he explained. “It’s not always for yourself. You can always improve someone else’s life.”
LaMarcus Corley uses the lab’s full-color powder printer for the first time
The work these students do as Youth Mentors will support YouthQuest’s goal of reducing America’s dropout rate.
David hopes the children he reaches will share his excitement about 3D printing and decide to learn more about it.
“This isn’t easy stuff. There’s a bunch of math in it, so you really have to stay in school to understand this,” he said.
David added that he’s eager to inspire younger kids “because they’re going to be the future for us.”
“I understand I’m the future now, but they’re going to be the future for me.”
YouthQuest’s dream is for all the young people we reach to become successful adults who give back to their communities.
That’s why Youth ChalleNGe Cadets in our 3D ThinkLink classes are required to complete a community service project. It’s why we’re training students to use their 3D printing, critical thinking and problem solving skills to serve their communities as Youth Mentors.
And it’s why we support the Step Up Loudoun Youth Competition, which challenges teens to give back by solving problems in their communities.
The goal of the annual event presented by Loudoun Youth, Inc. and Loudoun County Parks, Recreation and Community Services is to encourage, support and reward teens in Loudoun County, Virginia, for making positive changes in their own lives and the lives of others. YouthQuest has been the primary prize money sponsor of the contest since 2012.
Judges listen to a team’s presentation at the Step Up Loudoun Youth Competition
Eighty teams submitted ideas last fall and 40 gave presentations during preliminary judging on March 27 at Trailside Middle School in Ashburn. Ten were chosen for the finals, held on April 5 at The Club at One Loudoun. More than two dozen local business and community leaders, including YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks, volunteered as judges.
The students choose the issues and develop the projects to address them, so Step Up gives adults a fresh view of the world through the eyes of the next generation of leaders. This year, the environment, physical and mental health, education, bullying and traffic were among the students’ concerns.
The topics often are a reflection of current events. After a year filled with news about hacking and other cyber-shenanigans, Kriti Ganotra from Broad Run High School came up with the idea for Call of Security. She earned the $1,000 top prize in the Step Up contest by developing a free device that detects computer network vulnerabilities.
Loudoun County is home to the East Coast’s version of Silicon Valley. Up to 70 percent of the world’s Internet traffic moves through data centers in the Dulles Tech Corridor, so a breakdown in Loudoun’s network can have widespread impact, Kriti explained in her presentation to the judges.
Kriti Ganotra presents her winning project, Call of Security, at the Step Up Loudoun Youth Competition finals
Kriti went online to research vulnerability scanning systems and find open-source code, which she modified to create a program that checks for weaknesses in all devices connected to a router by wifi, even TVs and appliances. Then she tested her scanner against Nessus, a leading professional service.
“Nessus is a vulnerability scanner used by the DoD (Department of Defense) costing about $50,000 a year and I found out my machine actually performs better than Nessus,” Kriti said in an interview with Loudoun Youth.
“I want to bring it to Loudoun County, using high schoolers to create a community where everyone is educated about cyber-bullying, cyber-security, cyber-threats and technology,” she added. “I want to bring this to every single house and eventually patent this into something that we can develop all around the nation.”
This year’s $750 second-place project was inspired a different sort of technological threat — the potentially deadly mix of smart phones and Northern Virginia’s notorious traffic congestion. The Put It Down team of Freya Panchamia, Saumya Sharma, Paras Sarjapur and Iyush Hoysal from Eagle Ridge, Mercer and Stone Middle Schools targeted the dangers of distracted driving by encouraging people to sign a pledge not to text while driving. They’ve reached more than 200 drivers so far and plan to continue the project.
The Put It Down team was excited to be picked as one of 10 finalists
“We know that we’re making a significant impact on Loudoun County because we’ve reached out to many people and we’ve gotten many pledges,” said Freya.
The Clean Kits team of Palak Shah and Areej Khan from John Champe High School made it to the top ten last year and went home with this $500 third-place prize this time. They have provided personal hygiene and sanitary products for homeless women in Loudoun and Fairfax Counties and Washington, DC, since last year.
“The reason we chose to tackle feminine hygiene is because people are afraid to talk about it. People are afraid to donate these products because they feel uncomfortable buying them,” Palak said. “The thing is, these are simple products that all women need.”
The Every Voice Heard project won the $150 fourth-place prize. Isabelle Nikkho and Tammy Niyomtes from Harper Park Middle School, responding to a recent rash of teen suicides in Loudoun, created website to raise awareness about depression and suicide and provide resources. They also raised funds for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
The remaining six finalists all won $100 prizes for their projects.
Be Me for a Day – Anna Nguyen from Broad Run High School created “day in the life” videos to help students and adults choose a profession.
Clean Up Beaverdam Creek Reservoir – Lacey Tanner from Rock Ridge High School organized cleanup events and raised community awareness about protecting the reservoir.
Environment Rescuers – Shiril Yedhara, Rajul Vadera, Mira Warries, Keerthi Dasoju from Rock Ridge High School raised awareness among local students of the global water crisis.
Loudoun Purity – Priyanshi Jeevagan and Ananya Gahlot from East Ridge and Stone Hill Middle Schools organized a 3K walk to raise money for hygiene kits for people at the Leesburg Homeless Shelter.
Personal Teach – Ari Dixit from Stone Hill Middle School created a program with a voice interface fpr the Internet to help students improve their scores on standardized tests.
UnSalted – Taylor Jackson from Riverside High School developed an app to help students reduce stress.
“I love it!” Dalonta, 21, told us in a phone call from the campus in Louisville.
He’s attending Kentucky on a basketball scholarship and plans to double-major in architecture and computer graphics. As if that’s not enough, this energetic freshman is also working on his autobiography.
“I’m writing a book. It’s basically about my life and how I grew up,” Dalonta said. “I’ve got eight chapters already.”
Dalonta Crudup (third from left) with other members of the first 3D ThinkLink class at Capital Guardian
There’s plenty of compelling material for the story of how he went from the streets of DC to the campus of UK; problems in high school, the killing of his best friend, a life-changing 22 weeks at Capital Guardian, completing high school and prep school, earning a full scholarship to play for one of the nation’s winningest basketball teams. And that’s just the last four years.
His experience in our 3D design and printing class at CGYCA is part of Dalonta’s story, too.
“I do tell people about 3D class. When I tell people my name and you look up Dalonta Crudup on Google, my picture pops up in the 3D printing class,” he said. “And I tell them taking that class has helped me a lot because it showed me how get through obstacles in life.”
3D ThinkLink taught him not to give up, to ask for help and “keep trying until it’s done.” Dalonta said the experience gave him the confidence to take on other challenges.
He fell short of passing his GED exam by a few points at Capital Guardian, so he enrolled in high school in Frenchburg, Kentucky, and earned his diploma. Then it was on to Ridgeview Preparatory and Sports Academy in Hickory, North Carolina, to hone his skills as a point guard and shooting guard while taking classes to get ready for college-level academics. In his first year at the University of Kentucky, he’s been working to recover from a knee injury so he can start playing for legendary coach John Calipari next season.
Besides basketball, architecture has been part of Dalonta’s plan for years.
“I want to build my own house from the ground up,” he told us at CGYCA in 2013 when he was 17.
Looking back now, Dalonta said, learning to use CAD (computer-aided design) software in our class helped convince him that he could handle architecture and design classes in college.
“After I learned 3D in class, I kept on doing it,” he said. “I actually practiced at home with a program I use on my laptop computer.”
A FINAL PROJECT, A LASTING LESSON
Dalonta’s strongest memory from 3D ThinkLink class was creating a tribute to his best friend, Malik Spears – known as “Wiz” – who was fatally shot the day Dalonta entered CGYCA.
“He was like a brother and I was with him every single day,” Dalonta recalled. “I was very sad. I was very frustrated.”
Toward the end of the class cycle, Dalonta found an outlet for his emotions when the 3D ThinkLink students got their final assignment. They had to use the skills they’d learned to create any kind of ornament they liked.
Dalonta decided to make a memorial to Wiz with a poem he’d written about his friend. He wanted to make something that would “show appreciation from me to his family.”
3D printing projects rarely turn out right the first time and putting text on an object can be especially tricky. It took three weeks for Dalonta to perfect his ornament.
“I was getting mad because we printed a lot and the words kept being smashed together and we had to keep switching up the size and the font to make sure you could read each and every letter and every word,” he explained.
Dalonta’s persistence paid off a few weeks later when he gave the ornament to Wiz’s mother for Christmas.
“She actually started crying,” he said. “It was a candlelight service and I stood in the middle of the crowd and read the poem.”
Rest in Peace, Wiz. We miss you.
We thought of you with love today
But that is nothing new.
We thought about you yesterday
And days before that, too.
Dalonta’s experience helped YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks realize the importance of teaching our students to use text in their 3D designs. Now it’s one of the first things they learn because students always want to personalize items with names or initials and give them to someone they love. Giving at-risk kids the skills and tools to create things that are emotionally meaningful motivates them to work through problems and achieve success.
“I used to be worried all about myself. Now, I think different. I look at life different.” Dalonta said. “I worry about myself still, but now I worry about others around me, too. “
“3D printing has helped guide me into making better decisions and gave me a new life skill along the way. It has really helped me understand my self-worth because now I know I can design my own future,” Aunya’, 17, wrote in her award-winning essay. “I now see the bigger picture to my life’s problems and I’m not afraid to face them.”
“I can make anything if I put my mind to it,” wrote Brock, 17, who described his 3D ThinkLink experience as “awe-inspiring.”
Both Cadets were awarded $500 scholarships for their essays during a ceremony at Freestate on December 9.
Aunya’ and Brock try blacksmithing during a Vocational Orientation tour of The Foundery in Baltimore
Our program “transformed my way of thinking,” said Aunya’, who plans to join the Navy and become a nurse.
“Before 3D printing I did not believe in myself, and I had accepted the opinion that I was not good enough,” she explained.
Like most of the at-risk youth we serve, Aunya doubted herself when she started our class this fall.
“Everything seemed so foreign to me. I could barely work the program on the computer,” she recalled.
When she printed her first 3D design and it came out nothing like she had intended, she admitted feeling frustrated and wanting to give up. Instead, she made up her mind to work harder so she could “make things that I could be proud to show off.”
Aunya’ started paying close attention to every instruction, asking questions and testing every new design skill she learned.
“One day my instructor Mrs. Metzger said that my design was the only successful one to print. It brought me so much joy because that meant that I was finally getting it,” she wrote. “Joining 3D printing has taught me to never give up.”
Brock’s essay highlighted the effect his class’s community service project had on his self-esteem.
The Freestate Cadets went to a library to demonstrate designing and 3d printing small, personalized objects such as ornaments and keychain tags.
“It was an amazing experience to see how interested and impressed the kids and adults were at the library when we showed them how to make 3D prints,” wrote Brock.
“3D printing is important to me because now I can express myself in a form of art that I’m talented in. Also, I am more able to educate my community through my new learned skill in 3D printing,” added Brock, who wants to become a Marine.
Brock and Aunya’s essays were chosen from among 13 submitted by students from Freestate, DC’s Capital Guardian and South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academies. The semi-annual scholarship competition is judged by bestselling author John Gilstrap, whose novels include the Jonathan Grave thriller series.
Introducing at-risk youth to 3D design and printing is only one part of YouthQuest’s 3D ThinkLink Initiative. Our larger purpose is to help troubled teens learn to think in new ways and dream big.
One way we do that is through Vocational Orientation events, which are a requirement for completion of the 3D ThinkLink training we provide for National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Programs in South Carolina, Maryland and Washington, DC. Students spend a day touring businesses and universities to see real-world applications for the concepts they’re learning about in class.
3D printers in the University of Maryland Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Lab
Many of the kids we serve have struggled with academics and their life experience is severely limited. Before they enrolled in a ChalleNGe Academy, few imagined themselves pursuing higher education or a career in a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math)-related field.
That’s why being in a college lab or a high-tech manufacturing facility for the first time can be a life-changing moment for these at-risk teens. In essays they write about how our 3D ThinkLink training affected their lives, students frequently mention being inspired by something they saw during Vocational Orientation.
In October, our Maryland and DC students enjoyed a full day of eye-opening experiences, starting with a visit to the newly opened City Garage in South Baltimore. The former bus garage has been transformed into a wonderland of innovation, anchored by Under Armour’s Lighthouse, a 35,000-square-foot design and manufacturing center. The UA Lighthouse includes a room equipped with more than 50 cameras for 3D scanning of athletes. Designers use the scans to create individually tailored sportswear. The students also learned that UA uses 3D design and printing to prototype footwear and apparel.
Josh Dunn explains how Bustin Boards makes skateboards
Elsewhere in the City Garage complex, the kids had fun at the Bustin Boards skateboard company. Along with trying out the boards, they discovered that the Moment of Inspiration software they’re learning to use in class is the same type of CAD (Computer Aided Design) program the company’s designers use. That led to a discussion about how CAD skills are needed for both 3D printing, or “additive manufacturing,” in which machines build objects by putting material only where it is needed, and traditional “subtractive manufacturing,” in which machines cut away material to form objects.
All kinds of additive and subtractive manufacturing devices were on display next door at The Foundery, a large makerspace. In the midst of all that modern technology, the kids also got some hands-on experience with one of the oldest manufacturing methods – blacksmithing. After heating, pounding and bending red-hot steel, the kids surely gained an appreciation for 3D software that can turn a simple shape into something useful or decorative with just a few clicks of a mouse.
Students visit Duncan-Parnell’s 3D printing shop in Charlotte
Students from South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academy also saw additive and subtractive manufacturing processes in action as they visited Duncan-Parnell’s 3D printing department in Charlotte, NC, 3D Systems headquarters in Rock Hill, SC and the University of South Carolina Department of Mechanical Engineering in Columbia.
The medical uses for 3D printing often strike a chord with our 3D ThinkLink students.
The kids from Maryland’s Freestate and DC’s Capital Guardian Youth ChalleNGe Academies were fascinated to see how 3D printing is used to develop things like bone and vascular replacements in the University of Maryland’s Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Lab.
Medical technology display at 3D Systems
At 3D Systems, the South Carolina students learned about the company’s work in the fast-growing specialty of pre-surgery modeling. A 3D Systems team recently worked with doctors at Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in New York who separated baby brothers joined at the head. They were able to plan and practice every step of the complex surgery thanks to precise 3D-printed models made from MRIs and CT scans of the boys’ skulls.
We often remind students that being exposed to new ideas and experiences literally makes their brains grow, as new connections between neurons are formed. Our field trips also open students’ minds and expand their view of what’s possible. Vocational Orientation events make these at-risk teens aware of opportunities they had never imagined. While they may not end up working on the cutting edge of technology, the thinking skills and confidence they develop during their 3D ThinkLink experience will help them make the most of any opportunity they choose to pursue.
