2016-2017
f ox c hapel a rea s chool d istrict s tate of the s chools
Full-STEAM Ahead as
Technology Advances in District
F
•High school senior William “Tim” Marsh
was one of fi ve national winners in the
spring 2017 Create Real Impact teen safe
driving campaign and won the grand prize
in the art category.
•Senior Jared Cohen won fi rst place in the
national 2017 Founding Freedoms Essay
Contest and senior Allison Gould was
named a second-place winner in the contest.
•High school senior Suvir Mirchandani
and freshman Claire Fenton earned Gold
Medals on the 2017 National Latin Exam.
•High school senior Dominic Gaggini
won a Gold Award on the 2017 National
German Exam.
•Middle school eighth grader Vivian Shao
was selected as a 2017 Carson Scholar.
Additionally, high school ninth grader
Gwendolyn Davison was selected to renew
her Carson Scholar status.
•High school orchestra director Mairi
Cooper received the Power of Excellence
Award from the Carson Scholars Fund.
•High school senior JP Ramassini was
named a fi nalist in the national Stossel in
the Classroom 2016-2017 essay contest.
•Seniors Mihir Garimella, Darwin Leuba,
and Suvir Mirchandani were named
semifi nalists in the 2017 United States
Presidential Scholars Program.
12 Fox Chapel Area
ox Chapel Area School District has become known as a leader for its commitment to
STEAM education and the infusion of maker education and deeper learning concepts as
an everyday part of the curriculum for all students. During the past school year, opportunities
were boundless for students to experience computer science, robotics, and digital fabrication
projects designed to spark technological interest in even the youngest students.
Mobile Fab Lab Debuted
High school students have access to their own Fab Lab where they conceptualize and create
using digital fabrication equipment as a part of the technology education curriculum and as
a teaching tool. Th is past year, there were even greater opportunities for younger students to
also take advantage of the latest addition to the Fox Chapel Area School District – the mobile
Fab Lab – thanks to a grant from Th e Grable Foundation. Created in a “tiny house,” the
mobile Fab Lab was put together and equipped by high school students under the direction
of technology education teacher and Fab Lab manager Justin Papariello. Th e mobile Fab Lab
includes everything found in a stationary Fab Lab including 3D printers, CNC machines,
laser engravers, vinyl cutters, computers, and other technological equipment effi ciently packed
into the tiny space. Mr. Papariello and a group of high school students take the mobile Fab
Lab on the road and literally roll into a parking lot and set up a classroom with tables, tents,
and laptops. Th e Fab Lab allows for not only Fox Chapel Area students to use these powerful
technological tools, but other students in the region as well. Th e mobile Fab Lab fi rst debuted
at Remake Learning Days in May 2017, as part of the events which showcased the Pittsburgh
region as a recognized national leader in innovative teaching and learning.
Led by Megan Cicconi, the district’s director of instructional and innovative leadership, a
team of elementary school teachers developed a curriculum for the mobile Fab Lab. Th e
curriculum will be shared with educators wherever the mobile lab visits.