“High Schools Improving Lives with Engineering Projects
in Community Service-Learning”
Prepare
Serve
Succeed
Explore
http://epics-high.ecn.purdue.edu/
William Oakes
EPICS Program Director
Assoc. Professor, Engineering Education
Purdue University
Pamela Dexter
EPICS High School
Program Coordinator
Purdue University
Project Management: Working with a
Community Partner

What are the needs in the community that are
consistent with your project focus area?

What are the capabilities of the students?

What is the duration of the partnership? (quarter,
semester, trimester, multiple semesters)

Once a community partner is established, set
expectations at the beginning of the partnership:
Set one point of contact
Follow up regularly
Get feedback on their experiences
Project Management: Project
Planning
Among the many questions that can be
addressed in planning are:
1. What do you and/or your team does first?
2. How many people do you need to accomplish
your project?
3. What resources do you need to accomplish
your project?
4. How long will it take?
Project Management: Accountability
Short tasks allow team members to be
accountable
 Charting/organizing tasks

◦ Keeps projects moving and shifting resources as
needed

Deadlines- what is due this week?
◦ Prevent delays that span several weeks
Project Management: Artifacts to
Assess & Manage
Some of the artifacts that students can be
graded or assessed on during their EPICS
experience include:
•
•
•
•
•
Design Notebooks
Reflections
Self-assessments
Presentations
Reports
 Project documentation
• Delivered projects
 Manuals or other documentations with project
Project Management: Funds for
Project Expenses
Most projects are done for not-for-profits at
no cost to the partners. Some projects
require funding for materials, but not all.
Funding ideas:
• Look for local hardware stores, etc that might
donate materials
• Sponsorships of teams for supplies from local
companies or organizations
• Larger expenses from outside funding
 Students help write grants
The EPICS Consortium


20 University EPICS Programs
50 High School Programs in 10 states
California, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York,
Virginia, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Arizona
Flexible Program Models
EPICS High is flexible in helping schools implement.
A variety of successful existing models in rural, suburban
and urban areas are in place for replication. Current
models include:
• In-school Programs…
EPICS as a class or part of an existing class
• After-schools Programs…
also include clubs
• A mix of in-school and after-school…
allows more students to be involved
EPICS Projects

Education: K-12 schools, museums, afterschool programs

Access and abilities: clinics for children with
disabilities, programs for adults with disabilities,
assistive technology

Human services: Habitat for Humanity,
humane societies, food pantries, neighborhood
revitalization, local government

Environment: environmental organizations,
neighborhood associations, parks & recreation
Project Example:
McCutcheon High School, Indiana
Design Projects with an Educational Outreach and
Access and Abilities Focus

Designed software that gives welcome message & common
task menu for Hispanic speakers registering for classes, and
then reverts the information to English for
counselors/school use

Adapted a walker for a special needs student

Designed interactive & computerized
phonics lessons for the school
corporation utilized to teach young
learners and ESL students.
Project Example:
High Tech High, California
Projects for Educational Outreach
and Social Service Organizations
 Designed and built a mobile art cart so
the students could easily work outside
 Designed and built a custom sports
equipment rack for storage of school’s
P.E. equipment
 Raptor Cage for local wild bird rescue
organization
 Worked with the Ruben H. Fleet
Science Center to design and build new
interactive science exhibits and modify
existing ones.
Motorized
Copy
Holder
Raptor Cage
Project Example:
Agawam HS, Massachusetts
Design Projects with an Environmental and
Educational Outreach Focus




Saltwater tank designed and built with live rock and coral
400 Atlantic Salmon were cultivated in engineered tank and
released into local waterway
Rose Garden planted with local
middle school while mentoring
them on photosynthesis
Cherry Tree and garden planted with
a local school including engineered
irrigation system
Project Example:
Fredrick Douglass Academy, New York
Bioengineering:
 Designed and built green spaces within a Harlem Senior
Center to improve air quality and for beautification efforts.
Looking at Robotics project with Senior Center.
Environmental Engineering:
 Designed and monitor water quality
sampling station for the East River and
report findings to the city and local
organizations working to improve the
water quality
Project Example:
Chantilly High School Academy, Virginia
Partnered with the Adapted Physical Education Program for
Special Needs Students Within their School
Designing and building projects enabling students with special
needs to safely and participate in team and individual sports
with little assistance

Student teams designed,
prototyped and produced
ball tossing catapult toys to
be used in recreational play
by special needs students
Project Example:
Prospect Hill Academy, Massachusetts
Projects with an Environmental
Focus
 Students conducted an energy analysis
of their school, and used those results
to educate students and staff on how
to be more energy conscious with
educational signs and a movie
 Designed and built a portable green
roof cart to use for presentations to
high school, elementary and middle
school students on green roof
technologies
Project Example:
Pacific Ridge School, California
Educational Outreach and Environmental Projects

Designed and constructed
athletic equipment storage box,
garden equipment storage shed,
and field-side benches for new
campus

Designed and implemented a
campus recycling program then
educated feeder schools on their program and helped
them to implement a similar program at their schools

Working with Senior Center to diary stories from the
residents there to share with the community and store at
the local library.
Project Example:
Laker High School, Michigan
Greenhouse Project
 EPICS students designed and
built a greenhouse that
included an irrigation system
and heated floor system
 Greenhouse is used for
elementary/middle school, and
community tours
 Expanded greenhouse Vegetables grown are
transplanted to a local
community garden
Project Example:
Pleasant Grove HS
Access & Abilities and Education &
Outreach Projects



Working with an organization using horses in therapy
for special needs children. Riders pick up animal shaped
pieces and ride across the arena to place them in a
"puzzle" format that then makes the animal noise
Guitar racks were designed and built for the music
teacher to organize and store the guitars more securely
Currently designing and building prototypes of
interactive displays for a local world of wonders
museum
Project Example: Leicester High School,
Massachusetts
Elective within the school and after school
Project: Portable exhibit for
local science museum

Focused on building green exhibits
Project: Green Technologies



Using thermal imaging to conduct
energy audits of low income houses
Constructing insulation out of
recycled materials
Incorporating green technologies for
the middle school
Project Example:
Yerba Buena, California
Environmental and Social &
Human Services Focus
 Students visited with client and
researched needs and safety
requirements for a backyard
playhouse at the local JW House
(much like a Ronald McDonald
house near a local hospital).
Students then created model
designs to present, voted on a final
design and constructed the
playhouse.

Students are working with local
experts to design solar lighting for
their schools outdoor athletic
facilities.
Project Example:
R.L.Turner High School, Carrollton Texas
Students designed and built an efficient, modular
stage for a local church, with electrical wiring, and
a platform for drums.
http://prezi.com/-hkbmgfagq0i/stage

Helping local musicians find an audience
by creating a file sharing service
that will bring music by unlicensed artists
to an audience for free.
http://prezi.com/pbj6_hdrsiyc/capstonepresentation

Project Example:
Will C.Wood Middle School, Alameda CA
Environmental Focus

The Learning Waste Reduction
Project challenges students to
collaborate with other schools
to reduce waste on their
campus and spread the word to
reduce and use less in the
community.

Students designed a catapult
for the local library made from
recycled products to go with
their recycling project theme
Whitney Young Magnet HS
Chicago, Illinois
Jan Dudzik
Project 1: The follow bot project
Design and build a book carrier out of programmable
robotics parts to follow a student with crutches from
class to class.
Project 2: The biodiesel project
Design and build a system to create biodiesel fuel for a
food pantry bus.
Project 3: The electric bike project
Design and build an electric bike for an elderly
substitute teacher get back and forth to school
Project One
The Follow Bot
Designed infrared sensor on
student leg picked up signal
from the Follow bot.
Progress
The robot was programmed to
follow the student . It moved
forward, carried a bag of books,
and stopped when student
stopped.
Problems
The robot was hard to
maneuver.
It would follow student onto the
elevator, but then would be in
front of him and in the way for
him to get out of the elevator.
Not easily steered with crutches.
The FollowBot Project Students
Cyril, Kobe, Bendan, Karol, Tony, Florian, Jenny,
Electric Bike Project
Progress:
Students were able to
purchase a bike and
assembled the bike. It was a
pedal bike they were then
going to convert to an electric
bike
Problem:
Electric Conversion Kit
Ordered but didn’t arrive in
time to complete conversion.
Order cancelled and
rescheduled for late summer
or early fall.
The Electric Bike Team
Biodiesel Project
Progress:
The system originally built in 2010
worked and fully functional.
Problem:
Previous engineers left, and took
the equipment with them.
Space: the lab was taken over by
another instructor and a new
location had to be researched.
Expertise: The engineers working on
the original design, were unable to
help rebuild the system. Last week
a new volunteer committed to the
project
Still need permanent space and
equipment.
Biodiesel system
Working system
Post project pizza reflection
Plans for improvement
EPICS at Foxcroft
EPICS at Foxcroft School
 Foxcroft
is a private, girls boarding school
with about 160 students from 7 countries
 Taught as a semester science elective
 Students may take two semesters
 36 students in the 2011-2012 school year
 Projects completed with groups of 4 or 5
students
 Students are those not taking AP Science
courses and are not our strongest
math/science students
Projects at Foxcroft
Interactive museum
display for historic
grain mill
demonstrating motion
of grain throughout
the mill
Handicap-accessible
planting beds for facility
that provides
employment for
mentally and physically
handicapped adults
Projects at Foxcroft
3-D model and game to
help 2nd grade students
learn SOL content about
Ancient China
Investigated addition of
solar power to Foxcroft
School. Installed four
test panels. Using panel
data as resource for
teaching both science
and math courses
Projects at Foxcroft
Designed and built an outdoor
podium display for a local
elementary school to allow them
to display academic work on their
walking trail near their pond.
Other Projects
Underway…
• 3D latex model
of continental US
to teach 2nd
graders relevant
SOL content
• Geothermal
display and
model of new
dormitory
EPICS at Foxcroft
Some Lessons Learned…
Relevant to our program, but not to all
 Maximum of 6 to a team with some conscious team
assignments to break up certain groups
 Students have very little relevant background and
need lots of supervision
 Still struggling with assessment
 Finding a continual supply of project partners is
worrisome
Xavier College Prep, Phoenix
Rio Salado Habitat Projects
 “Leave
No Trace” bilingual
coloring book that was
used to teach local school
children about safe use of
the Habitat
 Rio
Salado Habitat Kiosk
 Butterfly
Garden
Construction