Organizers considering annual event after success of inaugural electronics camp

Posted June 07, 2016 Print

GREENVILLE, Pa.-- Organizers hope to build off the success of the inaugural Thiel College Electronics Camp and make it an annual event.

Fourteen students and their chaperones participated in the camp from May 16-21. Assistant Professor of Physics Eugene Torigoe, Ph.D., and Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Ronald Anderson ’07 facilitated the camp. It was conducted as a part of the Greenville Neuromodulation Center (GNC) Faculty/Student Research Institute.

Binary engineering major Dylan Squires ’18 assisted organizers. The 2014 graduate of Harbor Creek High School and resident of Erie, Pa. prepared electronics projects and materials used by students during the camp. He also assisted students and presented several projects throughout the week.

Nine middle school and five high school students from the area attended. They were taught to use an Arduino microcontroller to execute a wide variety of programs. Torigoe said the positive reception from students and parents has organizers exploring ways to expand the camp for next year.

“For a lot of people, the electronics they use are just ‘black boxes.’ They are so complex that they are indistinguishable from magic,” Torigoe said. “We want to show people through this camp that they can understand electronics, and that electronics can be used as a creative outlet. We also want to give students an early exposure to electronics, so that they might consider a future career in a [science, technology, engineering or mathematics] field.”

About the GNC Faculty/Student Research Institute

In 2015, Thiel College alumni Fred Haer ’65 and his wife, Jill (Shackett) ’66, pledged more than $400,000 to fund the institute from 2015-2017. It is open to all Thiel College faculty members and focuses on connecting science and the liberal arts. In its second year, six other research projects are a part of the institute.