AHS Students Aid Recruitment Efforts

Four Mechanical & Architectural Design students, under the guidance of their teacher, Avon High School Engineering & Technology Teacher Cory Falk and in partnership with Avon Community School Corporation Director of Human Resources Kristin Williams, have made a major contribution to ACSC's teacher recruitment efforts for the upcoming 2026-27 school year and beyond.

What was their unique contribution? They each designed, engineered, and fabricated designs that were 3D printed and which will be displayed in ACSC's booth at numerous recruitment and hiring fairs. These stunning designs, presented in the slideshow below, will be conversation starters for prospective educators as they interact with Avon principals and members of the HR team.

We conducted a brief interview with Kristin Williams and Cory Falk. Their lightly edited responses follow.

Kristin, where'd the idea for this project come from and how did you connect with Cory?

Avon attends multiple recruitment events throughout the year. A neighboring district had a 3D printed logo on their recruitment table and shared with me that their students had completed it. I knew we had an awesome design engineering program and knew our students could create some great projects to highlight all of the things they're learning.

What better way to sell ACSC than by showcasing our talented students. We often reference how much of a community ACSC is—this is just another example. Kristin Williams

Cory, tell us about the class these students are in. How were they selected to participate in this?

The students who participated are in my Mechanical & Architectural Design class. While the design challenge was not directly tied to our standard curriculum, it aligned well with the daily skills we focus on—problem-solving, creativity, and design thinking. Because much of our class centers around designing and modeling, I didn’t see the project as being something additional to ask from them. It was something meaningful and a way that we could continue practicing what we do on a day-to-day basis. Many of the students have a strong artistic side, so when the challenge was introduced, they were genuinely excited about the opportunity to create something that would have a purpose beyond the classroom. I selected my 4th period class specifically because those students had previously completed Intro to Engineering Design. They already had the experience needed in Fusion and 3D modeling, which allowed them to turn their hand-drawn concepts into detailed 3D models ready to be printed.

Cory, can you explain the technology and process students used to create these projects?

Each student had the opportunity to sketch their design by hand and then recreate it in Autodesk Fusion before printing it on our 3D printers. The goal was to create a detailed hand sketch that provided enough information to accurately translate their ideas into a computer model. Once students completed their 3D models, we printed scaled prototypes to ensure the parts fit together properly and functioned as intended. Many of the designs included moving components, so testing these scaled versions was an important part of the process.

Kristin, how'd the students react when they were presented with this challenge?

I went to the class and explained what we were looking for along with a few guidelines. Based on Mr. Falk's suggestion, I left the guidance pretty vague. Smart call. The students were able to come up with things far more inventive than I could have requested! I'll defer to Cory on how they reacted. Thankfully, I just shared with him who we picked. I would've had a hard time doing that in person! All the projects were great.

[My students] take ownership of their work, push themselves creatively, and overall bring a high level of effort to class each day. Cory Falk

Cory, how'd the four students react when they found out we'd be using their projects?

The students were genuinely surprised when all four designs were selected, as we had initially assumed only one would move forward to the final model. Once they learned their concepts had been chosen, each student embraced the challenge and worked to refine their design by incorporating the feedback and suggestions provided during the concept phase. I really appreciated the feedback our judges provided on each student project, along with specific suggestions for the designs that were selected. That feedback required my students to revisit their work and make adjustments. In some cases, they even had to redesign entire components—which is exactly what real-world engineering looks like.

Cory, as an educator, how do you feel about these students and about the projects they created?

It’s always rewarding to see what our students in the Engineering pathway can accomplish when they are tasked with a particular challenge, and it’s not just limited to my Mechanical & Architectural Design class. Our students consistently produce excellent work when they’re asked to apply skills in meaningful ways. While I am particularly proud of what my class was able to produce, I was also not surprised since I know the quality of students that I have. They take ownership of their work, push themselves creatively, and overall bring a high level of effort to class each day. When I recommended to Kristin that we do the project with 4th period, I had full confidence that they would bring the same effort to what was being asked of them. I enjoyed the opportunity to collaborate with HR and to contribute to what they were hoping to accomplish. I’m excited to see the final designs on display!

Kristin, what do you hope will result from having these projects on display at recruitment events?

These projects will be amazing talking points as we recruit teachers to Avon. Highlighting our talented students and the opportunities we are able to offer them showcases what a great place ACSC is to work and teach in. Recruiting excellent educators is a district-wide initiative. This includes HR, administrators, current teachers, and support staff. With this project, even students are now engaged in our recruitment efforts! And what better way to sell ACSC than by showcasing our talented students. We often reference how much of a community ACSC is—this is just another example.

Thank you, Mr. Falk, Mrs. Williams, and students for helping us do one of the most important things we do as a school corporation, recruit and retain excellent educators.