The Early Years and Program Foundations
The DelranSTEM Ecosystem Alliance was formed as part of the New Jersey STEM Pathways Network. Serving approximately 3,000 students, the vision is to provide all Delran learners equitable access to high-quality STEM learning and work opportunities.
In 2018, construction began on the 3,000 square foot space to create the FabLab, a state-of-the-art innovation learning center equipped with 3D printers, laser cutters, woodworking equipment, and other fabrication tools to teach students important hands-on skills. This learning space was designed to provide project-based, hands-on STEM education.
Jill Radwell, Industrial Arts teacher at Delran Middle School, was part of the planning process as a community member and noted that it took years of planning. Paul Maraldo, who was working at Delran High School at the time in automotive and graphic design, also provided input on the space as a staff member. He noted he had experience with planning a program from his previous experience in another school district.
In 2019, the high school lab opened. In the first year, Delran High School teacher Shaun Deloche reflected on the training staff received, saying it was intensive and from several different professional organizations to help staff learn the equipment and software. Maraldo also discussed the company TIES and how they were instrumental in the planning process.
Interestingly, students who were the first group of STEMbassadors, a volunteer group of high school students, trained alongside the STEM teaching staff so they would be able to assist their peers and the community with the software and equipment.
“That was one of the big things when we first started, was that we wanted the kids to be involved. So we actually had the kids training with us that [first] week,” Deloche commented. “It’s important to have Paul and I down here, but it’s more important to have the kids down here learning how to use the stuff and being able to then invite their friends down, or other classmates, or other teachers and share training them how to do stuff. The goal is to have it grow exponentially so everyone knows how to use the things down here.”
In 2020, the hands-on learning of the lab pivoted as the school entered remote and hybrid learning models. For example, Jill Radwell used free software her middle school students would be able to access on their school-issued Chromebooks from home like TinkerCAD and Google Drawings. She had students create meaningful designs to help their learning at home, such as creating collapsible laptop stands out of slotted cardboard.
In 2021, DMS received the Middle Grades Career Awareness and Exploration Program grant for two years of funding. This grant, initiated by the New Jersey Department of Education, aims to foster innovative career-focused programs for students in grades 5-8.
STEM co-advisor and Science Supervisor Erica DeMichele elaborated “The pathway from middle grades to high school was the goal, in addition to sharing career opportunities with students in the areas of STEM.”
Fabrication Programs and Curriculum at DHS and DMS
At DMS, course offerings include a 6th grade cycle course, a 7th grade cycle course and an 8th grade semester course in Engineering, all taught by Mrs. Jill Radwell. Students create projects using software like TinkerCAD and Google Drawings with STEM machines like 3D printers, but also perform woodworking and low-tech prototyping with cardboard and recycled/repurposed materials. Some examples of projects students create include Rube Goldberg machines (when learning about simple machines), CAM toys, laser engraved ornaments, and 3D printed keychains, to name a few. On the day we visited, she was observed bustling about her lab space with several excited students working on various projects during their free period. A few student participants showed us their puzzles created with wood working, and another demonstrated a slot-wood cell phone stand she was making, shaped like a flower. The DMS program vision is for inclusive education for all through this project-based learning approach, with career pathways partnerships and CTE skill development.The space has evolved from a traditional woodshop into a hybrid learning lab.
“[This project] is kind of like a combination of woodshop and STEM,” Radwell stated when helping a student with her wood puzzle. “It used to just be woodshop, and so projects used to be [furniture] like the benches over there. They’ve evolved to the puzzle or the phone stand.”
The students demonstrated how they cut the various parts for their projects and will be sanding them soon.
“When she’s done sanding this, she will drill holes to connect with dowel rods, [measuring] the correct distance,” Radwell explained.
Another student was showing a design model he created within the TinkerCAD software. Students were visibly excited and confident working with various tools in the lab.
High school teacher Paul Maraldo echoed Radwell’s sentiment about woodshop merging with STEM skills. “I think a lot of the hands-on skills are getting lost, and I think [my] classes help develop that as well as visual and conceptual thinking, like visualizing things three dimensionally.”
Middle school students keep track of their creations and make portfolios, which are also helpful if students want to apply to become a STEMbassador at the high school level.
At DHS, students in grades 9 through 12 are offered a variety of programs. Mr. Shaun Deloche teaches Computer Science, Engineering Design, and Robotics and Mr. Paul Maraldo teaches Do it Yourself/DIY and Production Design.
“I teach DIY, Do It Yourself: Make a Difference, class,” Maraldo explained. “It’s a traditional woodshop home improvement class that’s married with some of the STEM concepts and STEM equipment. It’s a new take on the traditional woodshop/industrial arts class.” He elaborated about projects such as designing a tiny home, and how students also must consider architecture, framing, and the resources that go into a home like HVAC, water, electricity and how to design it to be efficient.
“I also teach and Engineering and Production Design class; Mr. Deloche is actually taking on Engineering this year.” He discussed that the engineering coursework goes into all different types of engineering and that students learn how to use all of the equipment in the fabrication lab. He clarified that Production Design is an advanced engineering class with prototyping and product development. An example Production Design project he provided was designing a prosthetic for an animal and how students would progress through the various equipment as they progress through the stages of design and development.
Deloche spoke with us about the Engineering course. “We’re working on a couple of projects right now where we learn about green structures. Students are going to build the framework and test the structural integrity,” he explained. He walked over to a display of his students’ work, proudly demonstrating the products his students recently created. “We had done this one, a cell phone accessory. A couple of kids made really elaborate stuff. This one clamps onto a table. This student designed each piece individually and he showed me how he made each of the parts and designed it all on his own. He really had a knack for technical skills. Some of these even articulate, like ball and socket joints.”
Deloche models those problem solving skills for his students, too. For example, he recently designed several safety door stoppers for use in the building, such as the school library doors. The stopper he designed for the library is silent, easy to use, and does not fall off the doors the way the store-bought ones did. Students using the library observed him measuring and creating prototypes as he demonstrated a real-life application of the iterative design process.
To create projects like these, high school students use software like Corel Draw and Adobe Illustrator. They learn about vectors, planning on X, Y, and Z axis, and other skills that transfer from digital designs to physical prototypes or products, such as vinyl designs, laser cut or engraving, and 3D printing.
Both teachers also discussed cross-curricular relevance and collaborative projects. Deloche, when he taught Honors Geometry, utilized bridge and rubber band car projects with the CAD software, culminating with students building prototypes. Maraldo discussed a community project with the DHS Ornithology Club in which they created bat boxes and birdhouses. Students performed research about the bats’ needs in order to design the bat boxes.
Maraldo also mentioned several recent Delran alumni who either were hired by various STEM companies immediately after high school or who are pursuing engineering at college. He noted how some students, now in college, will e-mail him to share that their college courses were discussing skills they had learned in lab with Mr. Deloche and him.
“This lab is cutting edge with what they are learning and how they can apply that. We’re giving them a step ahead if that is what they want to do; we’re giving them a really good foundation for that [coursework],” Maraldo concluded.
STEM Community Events and Community Partnerships
All three teachers mentioned how STEM education starts earlier than their programs with lab events such as the Family Nights, summer STEAM Camp, and STEM Fair, planned and hosted by STEM co-leads Erica DeMichele and Mary Jo Hutchinson.
At the annual STEM Fair, the community is invited to participate and learn about how the partnerships are not only within our schools, but the community as a whole. Some partnerships over the years include The Delran Municipal Green Team, Lockheed Martin, and Radwell International, among many others.
Green Teams, led in each school by eight Sustainability Project Managers, perform projects about conservation and going green as part of Sustainable Jersey for Schools. The Delran Green Team and Delran Municipal Green Team earned a Collaboration Award for their work partnership. At the middle school, students have a “Food Waste Warriors” program dedicated to sustainability and creating compost from food waste. Students give back and help support going green in their community in many ways, such as trail clean ups. The community Story Walk also utilizes signage created in the FabLab.
Lockheed Martin also has partnered with DelranSTEM. For example, they assist with providing resources for family night programming and lead several activity stations at the annual STEM Fair. Students also participate in leadership panels with Lockheed as well as took a trip for Women in Engineering Day.
View more about our partners here.
What’s Next for DelranSTEM
Our first Family Night for the 2024-25 school year is on Monday, December 2. To register, or for more information about other upcoming DelranSTEM events, visit our Events page.
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