![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
3D Printing and Design Club members learned about the basics of 3D printing and watched the Creality Ender-3 3D printer construct a sailboat model on Sept. 24.
Vice President Eddie Zhang (11) began the meeting by introducing the club’s mission and the fundamentals of 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing. He discussed the benefits of different 3D printing methods, like fused deposition modeling, stereolithography and selective laser sintering.
President Evan Zhang (11) presented the club’s 3D printer and explained key safety protocols. He highlighted the importance of wearing protective eyewear, leveling the printer with the nozzle to improve build quality and organizing wires to prevent tripping accidents. He also announced that members would have access to the printer during office hours and after school under officer supervision.
“[The printer] is a really neat creative opportunity, a different kind of art that didn’t exist, that other kids a generation ago didn’t have access to,” club adviser and chemistry teacher Casey Brown said. “We’re bringing the skill to people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to it and telling people who otherwise might not know that this emerging technology is getting more readily available and easily approachable.”
Evan explained the steps of preparing the printer for use: first preheating the print bed, the surface on which the machine constructs the model, and then loading the model’s computer-aided design (CAD) file. Members observed as Evan operated the printer to construct a sailboat and asked questions about the 3D printing process.
“The meeting went well — by the end there were several people who seemed interested in the printer and how it worked,” Evan said. “In the future, I hope we can train people to use the slicing software and CAD so they can design and print their own models too.”
The 3D Printing and Design Club aims to introduce 3D modeling and printing to the community and engage members with hands-on events. This school year the club hopes to host more interactive and educational workshops like themed design competitions and design-sharing sessions, where members can come together to present their ideas and designs.
“I’ve been interested in 3D printing for a while, and I thought [joining this club] would be a fun idea,” club member Nicholas Knauer (10) said. “I want to see what other ideas people have, and I’d be interested to see how competitions go.”
