Baldi Makerspace Gives Students the Skills to Solve Tomorrow’s Challenges
With the skills gap in manufacturing growing wider, there has never been a more critical time for skill builders to give their students access to digital fabrication tools that will prepare them for the future. One such skill builder is Christopher Sweeney, the head of the Baldi Makerspace at Baldi CCA Middle School in Philadelphia. The moment Chris got the Bantam Tools Desktop CNC Milling Machine in his makerspace, he dove head first into CNC machining to learn the workflows, so he could get his students up and running. Since day 1, Chris has been tagging us on social media, and when we saw all the beautiful designs he was milling, we had to reach out. We caught up with Chris to learn more about his experience.
At the Baldi Makerspace, Chris’ students do a wide variety of work with digital fabrication tools, such as 3D printing and laser cutting. Students also get to use augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), printmaking, and 8-bit animation tools. Using these tools empowers students to make physical objects from digital designs. Through projects like coding, robotics, art and design, and more, Chris’s courses are bringing shop class into the 21st century. The skills and interests of the students who take Chris’s courses vary greatly, but there are many avenues for discovery and sparking interest in CNC machining and digital fabrication. “Besides the wow factor,” Chris says, “I’d like them to take their art and designs to the next level by better understanding measurement, precision, and how to use their hands to make what’s in their minds.”
When asked about the challenges makespaces face, Chris says, “I’m very blessed that I have a tremendous space with both fabrication tools that were here when I was hired and ones I was able to bring with me, like the Ultimakers. But one of my biggest challenges is workflows.” Chris is responsible for large groups of students who want to create and fabricate, and while Baldi has a ton of digital fabrication tools, it’s difficult to make sure everyone gets time to use them. So when he’s deciding on a machine, ease of use is a key factor. Having reliable machines like the Ultimaker, Glowforge, and now the Bantam Tools Desktop CNC Milling Machine makes his life and his students' workflows much easier.
Chris Sweeney and his students have been rapidly prototyping designs using both laser cutting and the Bantam Tools Desktop CNC Milling Machine.
The Bantam Tools Desktop CNC Milling Machine fits into his existing workflows for Cartesian pathways and reinforces how the students think about X,Y, and Z coordinates they use in 3D modeling. It also helps them think about drawing in a 2D space. The workflow with the Bantam Tools Milling Machine Software complements the other software (e.g. Scratch and MakeCode) they use with various tools in the makerspace.
Since getting the machine, Chris has been regularly using the SVG workflows in the Bantam Tools Milling Machine Software to mill dog tags, and now so are his students.
“The dog tag idea came straight from the Bantam Tools project guide, but I put my own twist on it by having students use sacred geometry created in the Morphi app on our iPads,” Chris says. He plans to run these projects with his 8th graders and gifted students.
Chris has also been milling tessellation plates to determine the easiest workflow so that students can learn the most efficient way to engrave a successful design. He plans to run this as a printmaking project. He also wants to explore linoleum relief prints.
His advice to his fellow skill builders? Mistakes are going to happen. When he first got started, he worked through the resources in the Bantam Tools Support Center, and machining wax was—and still is—a go-to material whenever he’s dialing workflows. “Experiment and use the knowledge you’ve used with other design software and extend it to the Bantam Tools Desktop CNC Milling Machine,” Chris says. “You’ll be rewarded and very pleased with your finished products in the end.”
About Chris Sweeney
Chris is a 1996 graduate of University of the Arts’ Philadelphia College of Art and Design, earning a B.F.A. in Fine Arts/Painting and Drawing/Art Education. He also received his M.A. from Uarts in 2012. Recently, he was awarded the 2019 National Art Education Association Art Education Technology Outstanding Teacher of the Year. He also received the Outstanding Secondary Art Educator of the Year by the Pennsylvania Art Education Association in 2016. He is an Ambassador for MakeyMakey, Chibitronics, Morphi, and is a fellow at Ultimaker 3D Printer's Pioneer Education program. He is an art teacher with the Philadelphia School District, as well as teaching in the University of the Arts’ Professional Institute for Educators. He also teaches a course called “3D Printing for Biofabrication” at GenSpaceNYC .You can view what he’s working on at home or in the Baldi Makerspace on his personal website. You can also follow him on Instagram, as well as the Baldi Makerspace.
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