Homdemade Electric Motor
Doug is an innovator in K12 STEM education. He specializes in design-based learning, and is passionate about teaching engineering design thinking to kids. Originally, he went to school for Mechanical Engineering, but after just a few years working as an engineer he became a middle school Engineering & Technology teacher. The majority of Doug’s teaching career has been spent developing and teaching informal, out-of-school, STEM enrichment programs. For 30 years, Doug has developed and taught a wide range of challenging, authentic, hands-on STEM projects and workshops for middle and high school students. He is best known for creating the DESIGNCAMP summer program at UMass Lowell, which then led to the founding of the Future Engineers Center, the umbrella for several major K12 engineering education programs that he developed and managed. All totaled, the K-12 STEM programs Doug ran at UMass Lowell engaged more than 5600 students and 200 teachers between 2000-2012. If you are interested in learning more about these programs you can link to: Future Engineers Center Portfolio
In 2014, Doug joined the Youth Development Organization (YDO) in Lawrence, set-up a new cadillac lab suite, and now teaches hands-on, project-based STEM programs for Lawrence youth, grades 4 - 12, who are primarily underserved minority students. YDO offers a wide-range of after school and summer enrichment programs that cater largely to students who are motivated and academically-talented, but generally not challenged in school. YDO offers the opportunity for these kids to explore their interests and find their passion; we engage students in progressively more challenging, more in-depth learning experiences to develop their talent over the course of multiple years.
what a NICE set-up! (it never looked this clean again)...but what a tough looking building crew
here's Doug laying on the lab bench with a back spasm...
and here's his awesome boss Mark Kampert, who looks like he just graduated high school!
Doug's mission has always been to get more students excited about learning math, science and technology with the hope of inspriring more students to pursue careers in STEM. He has done this by engaging students in interesting, real-world, challenging and creative “kid-engineering” projects in order to build their technical and design skills, get them to use math and science, and help them become more independent problem solvers. Over the years, his students have designed and built all kinds of technological creations, including:
Below you can see examples of the projects that Doug has done with his students - big and small, in no particular order:
...as our first project at YDO? What are you $!@#/#$?@!!% CRAZY!!??
well, it's something I've wanted to do for a long time
OH YA, we know how to use tools
building the platforms...and finally, in just 8 weeks, opening day
CHALLENGE: design a laser projector that pivots the laser beam back and forth horizontally across a mirror that is tilting back and forth vertically - the x & y motions combined with independent speed controls for the motors, allow you to project varying 2D shapes on a screen"
students created a 3D model in Solidworks as they built the machine
they needed algebra, geometry & trig to do design calculations for the mechanisms
Alligator Dentistry (just like the game Operation)
the penguin's eyes light up & his wings flap when you feed him a fish...
and check out this monkey...
these zombies would make a lovely couple
dancing Christmas tree - be sure to watch this to the very end...
Whack-a-Mole & Laser Duck Hunt Game
skittles or jolly ranchers?
CONCEPT: design & build scale models of rides for an outdoor field-trip installation... human-scale physics experiments that engage students in active, kinesthetic experiences, where they investigate & predict the the behavior of physical systems
students roll different sized balls down ramps of varying heights
and calculate the distance from the ramp where the ball will land
students sit in flat sleds on a large rotating platform that slowly increases speed - the bottom of each sled is made of a different material, so the friction coefficients vary - the goal is to calculate the roational speed at which your sled will slide off the spinning platform
unfortunately, we never got to the radio control part...next time
CHALLENGE: design, build & race a human-powered amphibious vehicle that can go over bumpy terrain, through mud & sand, & 500' up the Merrimack River - and it has to have a cool,artistic, whacky theme - like a parade float. This is a REALLY tough project that pushed our engineering skills to the limit. YDO kids have built 4 vehicles over the past two years - - two were successful & finished the race...the other two crashed & burned.
it all starts with an idea...uuh guys...a little more detail here
...and remember what our lab looked like in the beginning
step 1: frame built - wow, that only took us 60 hrs!...then on to sea trials
Squirtle Squad - this beast with water cannons finished 2nd place!
...Neptune's Whip - this beast did not, but it was a cool idea actualized
this awesome UFO with Area 51 aliens never got off the ground...
but this pirate ship had a great voyage thanks to its four-oar rowing mechanism
hand-pushed cart w/ steering that Sam Ruiz (left-top) built for a school project...
& a cool bedroom security system designed by Giancarlos Jaime-Guzman
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