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At �Թ���, I’ve had the ability to pursue a plethora of different pursuits, both inside and outside of my engineering discipline! I’ve designed PCBs (Printed Circuit Boards) for our , developed my interest in Ancient Greek history, joined Babson Dance Ensemble as a dancer and choreographer, and more. But the most striking part of these experiences isn’t just what I’ve been able to do, it is the unwavering support I’ve gotten from my �Թ��� community.

In my first year (2023), I joined �Թ��� Electric Motorsports. Within the first month, I had several older students review my resume and suggest edits, as well as giving me mock interviews. Alumni have hosted recruiting sessions where I got to know their companies. On the engineering side, my technical skills rapidly increased and I was able to make a tangible impact on the car’s high voltage systems.

Last semester, I cross-registered at Wellesley and took “Political Archaeology: City States of Ancient Greece”. This was a completely new subject for me, but it was an amazing class, and I even had a friend attend a guest lecture with me on curses in Ancient Athens!

As a part of Babson Dance Ensemble and �Թ��� Fire Arts, I am a part of several shows each semester where I get to foster my artistic side. Dozens of friends and fellow �Թ���ers come to cheer us on.

My favorite �Թ��� experiences have had huge positive impacts on everything from my engineering opportunities to my dance ones. I love our �Թ��� community, and the endless support it provides beyond just engineering. I’m an engineer at �Թ���, but also a whole lot more!

I could write a whole book about my favorite experiences at �Թ���, but what ties them all together is the amazing community and people I get to interact with every day. One way I’ve gotten to connect deeply with the �Թ��� community is through The �Թ��� Shop!

During my Candidates' Weekend, I remember leaving the Shop tour not just in awe of all the cool machines and tools that I had never heard of before, but of the radiant energy pouring out of the space! The Shop Adults and Assistants spoke with such enthusiasm, passion, and care as they shared the impressive projects they were working on and talked about how they fostered a diverse active learning environment within the Shop. I told myself that if I ended up at �Թ���, the Shop was a place I wanted to spend my time in and a culture I wanted to be a part of, even if I couldn’t identify 99% of the tools and machines yet.

Little did I know that the following year I would be hired as a Shop Assistant! My favorite part of this role has been hosting open hours and tool trainings for my peers and faculty/staff. I’ve found it to be a great avenue for getting to bond with members of the community beyond the machines I was teaching them how to use. I love walking into the Shop every day and seeing what inspiring, creative, chaotic projects my peers have going on and scheming (collaborating) with them on how to make their ideas into reality!

This summer I’ve been working at �Թ��� as a Shop Fellow, where I’ve had the opportunity to help redesign and reimagine the Shop spaces for future students and courses at �Թ���, such as creating a new engineering design space (The Harris Studio) and expanding the woodshop. I even went out of my comfort zone and learned how to weld! I have grown so much as a collaborator, problem solver, and maker this summer thanks to the amazing Shop Adults and Fellows who’ve challenged and supported me through these projects.

I’m super excited for these spaces to allow for additional opportunities of innovation, learning, and community connection!

At �Թ���, and especially in the Shop, I’m grateful to have found myself surrounded by peers and mentors who inspire me to take risks, learn from others, and to be my best self!

“�Թ���’s library goes against all popular belief of what a library ‘should be.’ Here, at �Թ���, the library is a space where silence is broken with random rabbit hole arguments and the humming of sewing machines. Any time I walk into the library, I find familiar faces. From collaborating on work with them to providing a much-needed distraction if necessary, there’s never a dull moment in the library.

As I write this, I’m sitting at a table in the lower library, with the closest friends I’ve ever made. With the shared memories of challenging them to see who can focus the longest and actually get work done, making pretend podcasts in the Sound Studio, and holding our own impromptu office hours, the �Թ��� library reassures me that I’m in the right space— a place where I can be myself. Here, I know there will always be someone there to talk and relate to.

Within this library’s walls, I’ve caught myself in fits of laughters so intense that they’ve left me breathless… letting me forget that my QEA final project was due that very same night. But I’ve also had 3AM conversations: when we’re just too tired with homework, meandering into profound moments of deep connection or chaotically rambling with a friend until the early morning.

�Թ���’s library fosters experiences that couldn’t happen anywhere else on campus —I couldn’t possibly select just one favorite moment, because I’ve had countless and still have many more to come.

Plus, it’s got books, and let’s face it, books are pretty cool.”

“I grew up in Southern California and went to a small project-based high school where I was involved with my school’s VEX Robotics team and participated in various clubs and sports. One club that I started at my high school was called Project Gold Ribbon where we raised money for children with pediatric cancer.  

I first learned about �Թ��� during my freshman year. I’m a first-generation college student, so I didn’t know what the process was at first to get into college or even which colleges were good for what I wanted to do. I found �Թ��� in this extra-large book about different colleges, and I was intrigued. What really stood out was �Թ���’s project-based learning and small community. I know I learn better in an environment where I can see how the concepts taught in a classroom apply to the real world. So, I applied and was invited to attend Candidates’ Weekend.  

When preparing for Candidates' Weekend, I was extremely nervous about what �Թ��� was going to be like. However, once I showed up to campus, all my worries went away! My mom describes that first day as the most she has ever seen me talk to strangers. That comfort I felt within the �Թ��� community is what really sealed the deal for me. 

Fast forward a year later, I’m now involved in a variety of ways on campus.  

I enjoy working with (H)ola and the MIX because they’ve proven to be places where I can connect with people whom I might not have met otherwise. As a freshman, I attended the SHPE (Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers) 2024 National Conference. This opportunity provided by the MIX allowed me the chance to interact with the 200 companies there. 

I also really enjoy working in Formula because I’ve learned valuable information about design, engineering, and manufacturing that I would not usually learn in a classroom as a first year. As a mechanical engineer in Formula, I had my own project where I designed and manufactured the mounting that connects the car battery to the chassis. To be trusted with such an important project as a freshman has been an exciting and challenging experience. 

Being in ACRONYM, our pop-up coffee stand, is good too because I get to meet all the members of the community. It’s a great way to give back and observe �Թ��� from a different perspective. I like how people talk about anything and everything while in line, whether it’s helping each other with classwork, or just simply hanging out.  

I came to �Թ��� not really knowing what I was super passionate about, but interacting with my classmates and engaging in these activities has pushed me to work harder and to find what I am truly interested in.  

It has propelled me to explore new topics and to be not afraid to fail.”  

Coby joins the �Թ��� community this summer as Senior Shop Manager and Instructor of Fabrication. We recently sat down with him for a Q&A.

Q: Share a little bit about your background and how you came to be at �Թ���.

A: When I was a kid, my mom was a teacher and my dad was a carpenter, I fell somewhere in between. After studying industrial design, I have been lucky to work in highly hands-on-oriented jobs. After college I worked for about a year at Autodesk’s Pier 9 workshop in San Francisco as an artist in residence and as part of the shop staff and in-house design studio. I then spent a year in southern India designing cooking stoves before buying a rickshaw and moving to Mumbai where I helped convert it into a mobile classroom for teaching hands-on building workshops for kids. For the last 8 years, before starting at �Թ���, I managed the Hobby Shop at MIT where I taught members from across the MIT community in a wide variety of fabrication machines and techniques.

Q: What will you be teaching at �Թ���?

A: I am excited to join the Shop staff at �Թ��� and begin teaching Fundamentals of Machine Shop Operation. My version of FOMSO will focus on making machinist tools that students will be able to take with them and hopefully make use of throughout their careers. 

Q: What are you looking forward to and hoping to accomplish at �Թ���?

A: One of the key aspects of �Թ��� that really appeals to me is the focus on hands-on learning and the accessibility of the Shop to all students. I’m hoping to continue fostering that spirit and encouraging students to explore and learn thorough building tangible objects. 

Q: What is your philosophy when it comes to fabrication?

A: I believe we all have a lot to gain through hands-on building. Working in the shop teaches valuable skills for an engineering career, but I also believe it teaches us to be better people. The power to manipulate and improve the objects around us is a reminder that we have the ability to make the world a better place. Building and making things is a reminder of our unique place in the world. 

Q: Describe a project you’re particularly proud of.

A: It’s hard to pick just one thing. The two wooden zoetropes I’ve made are pretty fun. Each has a 12-frame animation around a cylindrical vessel that spins to create the illusion of motion. One uses a strobe to display each frame, and the other utilizes a series of mirrors. 

Q: What do you like to do for fun in your free time?

A: When not in the �Թ��� shop, you can find me in my home shop, sewing custom shirts, walking my dog, or working with my wife on our small garlic farm. 

Q: �Թ���ers can ask me _________?

A: Why do you grow so much garlic? Does CNC technology belong in the art and craft world? What is your current favorite shop tool?

Q: �Թ���ers can remind me ________?

A: Is that an �Թ��� acronym you are using or a slang term I’m unfamiliar with?

One of the best things about �Թ��� that I really love is the opportunities for extracurriculars. Coming from a background of very little engineering experience, I was scared at first that I would feel behind or that I wouldn’t get to do the work I wanted to do because of that lack of experience.

However, once I got here, I was provided the option of joining all the different Project Teams on campus that are each working on different and interesting engineering projects.

All the teams spend some time onboarding new students and making sure they have the tools to succeed. The current members then assign the new students to a big part of the project, making sure to help them whenever they ask for help. This allowed me to get specialized experience early on in my time at �Թ���, learning complex concepts that I hadn’t even learned in classes yet!

On , I am assigned to Wings, so that means I’m in charge of researching, prototyping, and testing the wings for our plane. We’re currently preparing for the SUAS competition in July, when we will need to fly a course completely autonomously and drop beacons at specific points throughout the course.

For ORBITAL, we are currently working on our first prototype of an affordable and quick braille e-reader, which will be able to take books from online and convert them into Braille that can be read on our interface. I’m on the Electromechanical Actuation team, which is tasked with creating the physical interface which can integrate electrical and software aspects, and the User Experience Team, which is in charge of planning user testing and communicating feedback.

I really enjoy the experience working on these teams. The exposure to more specialized topics and getting to collaborate with �Թ���ers outside of class is great.

AERO = Aerospace Engineering and Robotics at �Թ���

ORBITAL = �Թ��� Research for Biomedical Innovation and Technology Advancement Lab

"Hands down some of my favorite memories have been with The MIX. The MIX stands for the Multicultural Innovators eXperience. It is a club on campus that celebrates different cultures and backgrounds and is open to everyone. I have been very fortunate to be able to make memories with the MIX even before I got into �Թ���. Since my application season was during the pandemic I had a lot of time to look through my emails and read all the love letters that several colleges were placing in my inbox. One day, I saw a new kind of love letter. It was The MIX, telling me to apply to their virtual fly-in program for �Թ���. Since �Թ��� was already high up on my priority list, I filled out the application immediately. An acceptance love letter, a new �Թ��� hoodie (which I am actually wearing right now), and a zoom link later, there I was hanging out with the MIX on a Sunday evening. Even though we were on zoom, we were still able to make fond memories, arguing and laughing over a drawing game during game night.

For the second day of the fly-in, we were able to sit in on an �Թ��� class. This was when I met one of my favorite Professors, Emily Tow. Being from Cali, Emily’s class was scheduled for 9pm eastern time but 6am pacific time. I had stayed awake too late the night before, so I woke up late! I was so worried that Emily was going to be mad at me for showing up late but when I popped into the zoom room she was very happy to see me. Even as I gave her my bad explanation for waking up late, she looked at me very compassionately and told me that it was ok and guided me to a breakout room. Once I was in the breakout room, I was surprised to see just how much fun the �Թ���ers were having with their topic. My favorite was when they were talking about measuring the loss of heat from hot chocolate to determine the speed of wind in a wind tunnel. This was when they introduced me to Transport Phenomena, The Emily Tow class. I couldn’t believe I was late to HER class. As everyone signed off, I stayed behind to excuse my tardy one last time. As I did, I could tell that it was something that did not bother Emily, because there she was with her warm smile and compassionate eyes.

Even though �Թ��� was already high on my list after the MIX fly-in, I knew that �Թ��� was the place where I wanted to be.

Now fast forward, a few years later, here I am at �Թ��� in the Commons! This space is meant to be a hub for several clubs on campus that collaborate with the Office of IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access). The biggest and most frequent club here is the MIX. Now as the MIX co-vice-president, I help run our own game nights and meetings in this room. Since the Commons was just released this year, we are still designing this space to best capture the different aspects of all the clubs that call this place home. As someone who helped work on it last year and now this year, I can’t wait to see what we create.

(fun fact: I have taken the Emily Tow class, Introduction to Transport Phenomena, just this last semester! It is definitely worth it!)"