Aviation

SEEK aviation is a great opportunity for students interested in a career in aviation or engineering to gain some real-world flying experiences. In this program, students are exposed to a variety of topics such as engineering, drone, rotorcraft, RC aircraft, flight simulators, and military aviation. Moreover, the program invited guest speakers to lecture on their specialties and provide the students with a deeper insight into aviation.

Some people might be intimidated by the complexity of this subject, but the SEEK program is designed to be enjoyable with a variety of interactive and experience-based learning activities. For example, students got to visit the New England Air Museum, try out different flight simulators, and even co-pilot in a real airplane. Students participating in this program commented that the best part of flying is that you’ll never get bored. The SEEK Aviation director and Kent alumnus, Gar Flickinger, shared his excitement of “aiding in the mentoring process and helping inspire tomorrow’s aviation professionals.” He explained that interested students can even start working on their private pilot license during the school year as an afternoon activity with the help of Performance Flight & Flight Safety International if there is enough demand from students and parents. “Very exciting indeed!” said Flickinger. 

Business

The 2017 SEEK entrepreneurship program invited professors from UPENN to lecture on business practices, informing the students with how to outline business plans and create budget for startups and community projects. The students not only absorbed essential business concepts but also got an opportunity to implement what they’ve learned in a real life business situation: Kent School. The starting question is simple: what do you think we could do to make Kent better? Once students came up with the answers, they were split into groups to create with their own business plan including marketing and budgeting strategies. At the end of this program, students not only mastered abstract business theories and but also understood the delicacy of business and the process of starting up business projects with their own real-world experiences.

Pre-E

The Kent SEEK Pre-Engineering is an exploratory program in which students dabble in hands-on projects covering multiple different disciplines of engineering. Throughout this program, students are given the opportunities to develop an understanding from environmental engineering to computer science. The three engineering sessions in this program included creating prototypes using 3D printers and laser cutters, testing solar energy efficiency with renewable energy, and designing through VEX Robotics. In the prototype-creating session led by Mr. Harris, students designed their own mini fidget-spinners on Autodesk Fusion 360. Once the design was complete, students could either 3D print or laser cut their models. The second session, renewable energy, led by Mrs. Zurolo, focused on using berry juices to create solar cells that could conduct electricity. Students collected and analyzed the data as well as drawing conclusions about the usefulness of solar cells. In the third session, VEX Robotics, students paired up and worked on designing and building a robot which could complete tasks and compete against other groups’ robots. This year, the pre-E program also added a course on communication and presentation skills, which are vital to any profession — the Pre-E program, says Dr. Nadire, “is always changing.”