High School Summer Maker Academy
For high school students looking to explore the intricacies of technology and expand their skill sets, the High School Summer Maker Academy is the ultimate destination. Designed with high school students ages 14–18 in mind, this hands-on week-long summer program on New York Institute of Technology’s Long Island campus will teach you how to make, fabricate, and code, culminating in an exciting derby car race by your own design.
Team-based and individual design and build exercises will engage you in the exciting worlds of 3-D modeling, 3-D printing, Arduino prototyping and coding, laser cutting and engraving, electronics, PCB design, and soldering. Our experienced instructors will be there to guide you throughout your journey and can also assist in obtaining software and hardware so you can continue to learn and grow after the program is complete.
Gain New Skills
- 3-D modeling
- 3-D printing
- Arduino prototyping and coding
- Laser cutting and engraving
- Electronics, PCB design, and soldering
- Individual and team-based projects
- Hands-on mechanical, electrical, and programming
- Integration of multiple disciplines
- Test, tune, and race your final derby car
May the Best Cars Win
During this week-long program, you will learn and work through fun challenges at New York Tech with the final goal of building your unique technology infused downhill derby car. On the final day of the program teams will present their completed cars and compete against the others for overall presentation, speed, elapsed time, tech upgrades, and performance. Based on the final results, awards will be presented to the winning teams.
Session Dates
July 8 – 12: Monday–Friday (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.)
The program runs Monday through Friday for one week on the Long Island campus. It is expected that if you apply to this program, your child is committing to attend the full week-long academy from July 8–12, including the final presentation on July 12.
Registration
Registration for the program is on a rolling basis. Once the program has reached capacity, you will be put on a waiting list.
- Application deadline: June 21
- All forms due: June 28
Parents must complete and return all the required forms to finalize registration.
Meet the Instructors
Christopher Springston
Christopher Springston is assistant director for graduate admissions in the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences at New York Institute of Technology. He has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering from New York Tech. He has an FE Electrical and Computer Engineering Certification from the state of New York and an AutoCAD Certification from the American Institute of Architects.
For the past four years Springston has worked as a graduate advisement specialist on New York Tech’s Long Island campus, where he advises new and continuing graduate students in the computer science, electrical and computer engineering, cybersecurity, and data science programs. He is also an instructor for undergraduate programs and currently teaches Career Discovery, a course geared toward providing incoming first-year students with the skills and tools necessary for an engineering career.
Saverio Marsicano
Saverio Marsicano is the senior lab engineer for the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences at New York Institute of Technology.
With more than 10 years of college-level teaching experience, Marsicano assists students in the engineering lab with the implementation of their design projects and lab experiments. He currently maintains more than eight engineering labs, plus the Data and Cyber Centers, where faculty perform research.
Marsicano holds a master's degree in electrical and computer engineering and a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from New York Institute of Technology. He has taught courses at the university in Career Discovery, Fundamentals of Digital Logic, Electrical Circuits, Engineering Tools, and Electronics Laboratories.
David Fanning
David Fanning is a laboratory engineer in the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences at New York Institute of Technology. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Stony Brook University. He is EPA 608 Universal Certified to work on Type I, 11, and 111 stationary refrigeration equipment. Over the past 18 years, his career has included architecture, manufacturing, professional educational training, management, and teaching in higher education.
For the past seven years he has been the lab engineer in the Mechanical Engineering department at New York Tech, managing the mechanical engineering student machine shop and student lab areas. He has taught at the college level as an adjunct professor in Career Discovery, Graphical Design (AutoCAD), Thermo-Fluids, Automotive Chassis Systems, Applied Mechanics and Engineering Materials, and Quality Management. He is also the advisor for the university’s Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) student organization.