High School Engineering Program
This program prepares high school students for careers in engineering such as coding and robotics. Students leave high school as proficient programmers and makers with a broad portfolio and a firm rooting in computer science. They will be well-rounded engineers, designers, collaborators and problem solvers. Though we focus on programming, their experience will include electronics, robotics, industrial design, and fabrication.
Often good first steps are starting an FRC (First Robotics Competition) Team and putting in a makerspace. We can support your school through this and more prior to launching a full engineering program, which can take 5 years to roll out.
Student Testimonials
“The Engineering Program is a good opportunity for students to become exposed to challenges that lie in Engineering and Computer Programming fields. The program as a whole is quite challenging, (especially the programming aspect), but I can manage. I think this exposes us to aspects of engineering and coding that colleges recognize, and helps us discover whether or not we want to go into this field.”
Mason, Engineering Program Student
“The engineering program is a very rewarding program that involves a lot of creative thinking and complex thought. The projects can be long and difficult at some points, but the end result of seeing what you have created is so rewarding for all your effort. The program has taught me many things and will continue to teach me many other things about engineering.”
Tyler, Engineering Program Student
“The engineering program has provided me with many amazing experiences. I was able to learn how to function a robot car using Arduino. Learning how to solder was a difficult task, but being able to do it with consistency motivated me to try other tasks that seemed difficult at first glance. The chance to use Autodesk Fusion360 was nice because I was able to learn the different tools used to create 3-D models.”
Anson, Engineering Program Student
Course Progression
Freshmen
– iPhone App Dev with Swift
– Industrial Design with CAD
Sophomore
– Full Stack Web Dev with JS
– Robotics with Arduino
Junior
– AP Comp Sci with Java – Game Dev with UnitySenior
– Adv Comp Sci with AI – Internship or CapstoneCourse Descriptions
iPhone App Development with Swift
In this class students learn the fundamentals of programming, while making apps for iPhones and iPads, using Apple’s new Swift programming language. Initially students start in a more simple environment (Processing / p5) to get the basics, move onto Swift challenges, and then start making apps.
Industrial Design with CAD
In this class students use CAD software to create 2D and 3D designs and fabricate them using 3D Printers and other makerspace equipment. If your school is not equipped with a Makerspace it can work with only 3D Printers (~$700/each). Students start with simple directed exercises and work toward open ended creative projects.
Full Stack Web Development with JavaScript
This class takes students’ professional programming skills to the next level, as they become full stack web developers. They will tackle the client-server relationship, which in this case is how browsers and apps interact with web servers. They will leave able to create simple websites, blogs, and even understand the structure of complex web apps like Facebook or Airbnb.
Robotics with Arduino
In this course students will integrate their programming and fabrication skills from the freshmen year, and build Arduino robots! Robotics requires integrating mechanical, electrical, and software engineering, making this one of our most complete engineering courses in the program.
Game Development with Unity
Games provide a unique opportunity for young programmers, since games are both fun and engaging, and they are made up of incredibly complex digital assets and programming logic. This class takes students on a journey that challenges them to draw on all they know about technology, and craft one of their favorite things: a game. Students will start with simple 2D game development, and move up to the professional and wildly popular Unity Game Engine.
AP Computer Science A with Java
This class is a combination of an AP Computer Science course, and an Android app development course. Both use the same language, Java and while the students will already know most of the concepts from other languages, we will dive deeper into computer science topics like algorithms and optimization.
Internship or Capstone Project
After their Junior year is the first major opportunity for an internship. We will work with students to help them find, apply for, and succeed in a technology internship. If they are not able to commit to an internship, or to secure one, then we will work with them on projects. These internships may or may not include pay.
Advanced CS
Computer programming is somewhat distinct from computer science, which is the theory underlying programming convention. While most of our classes teach students to be professional developers, rather than theorists, this class is devoted to the theory. It is similar to first-year college computer science courses, except that those courses assume many of the students won’t even know how to program yet.
