Students will have access to a number of MakerBot 3D printers and consumables.
Desktop 3D printing leader, MakerBot has opened a new MakerBot Innovation Center at St. John’s University in Queens, New York.
The Center is the first to be situated within a higher education institution in New York City and the second in the state overall after The State University of New York at New Paltz. The university joins a number of institutions across the globe that have partnered with the Brooklyn-based company to provide students with real-world design and make experience through wider access to 3D printing.
Co-located at St. John’s University Technology Commons alongside the University’s new e-sports environment and virtual reality pods, students and staff will have access to over 20 MakerBot 3D printers and consumables to give them the tools needed to propel their future career paths.
“3D printing in academia has become increasingly widespread as more schools look to combine new technologies into their curriculum to better prepare their students for the workforce,” said Nadav Goshen, CEO of MakerBot. “St. John’s University is at the forefront of creativity. Its adoption of 3D printing with a MakerBot Innovation Center provides students a competitive edge that will enable them to excel in their careers.”
St. John’s University offers a number of courses that integrate 3D printing into their curricula, including Art & Design, Marketing, Foreign Language, Education, and Physiology. Additionally, the University is in the process of creating classes on additive manufacturing and additive design approach, as well as an art elective in 3D printing and modelling.
Visit the TCT AM & 3D Printing Education Guide
Commenting on how 3D printing enhances creative design potential for students, Ross Barbera, Associate Professor, Art and Design, St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at St. John’s University, said: “Modelling in TinkerCad and Fusion 360, then printing at the Innovation Center with MakerBot printers, provides students with powerful tools enabling them to exercise their creative imaginations to the fullest. With these new technological tools, students are now exploring design possibilities not possible with traditional materials and methods, are limited only to the extent that they can imagine.”
Dr. Sandra Schamroth Abrams, Associate Professor in the School of Education, added: “3D printing can complement and enhance process-learning that includes iterative and flexible practices. St. John’s students who visit the Technology Commons engage in individual and collaborative explorations and discover expansive possibilities of creative challenge.”
