Oklahoma City, OKLA. – Isaiah Ward sits quietly with pencil in hand and feverishly sketches an image. He’s been asked to draw his “dream machine” and what appears on the paper is a robot. Not just any robot but one that would clean his room and do his chores.
Isaiah’s invention might very well become reality with the MyMachine program Rose State College will lead in the metro.
“Rose State is honored to have been chosen to serve as the only MyMachine partner in the nation to ensure creativity is not lost, rather fostered in higher education and beyond,” said Dr. Jeanie Webb, President of Rose State College. “It is an exciting time in the renaissance of Oklahoma City for us to add to the renewal of this community and make creativity a cornerstone of original thinking.”
Rose State College is the first school in North America to offer the MyMachine educational concept. A collaboration that took shape with the help of Creative Oklahoma.
“At Creative Oklahoma our goal is to transform the state through projects that advance creativity and innovation and when we saw the MyMachine program at the 2014 Creativity World Forum in Kortjrik, Belgium, we knew we wanted to bring the concept back to Oklahoma,” said Creative Oklahoma President Susan McCalmont. “Joining the high-tech FabLab at Rose State College with the innovation underway at John Rex School is a perfect fit.”
The entrepreneurial program will bring together elementary school students, college students and technical school students.
The program leads all the players from 6 to 30 years old through a collaborative experience of design, implementation and creation.
In the first phase of the program John Rex Charter Elementary school children will invent their “dream machines” and the only criterion is that it is relevant to that child. Rose State College will then propose solutions to design the machines. Finally, designs and technical drawings will be handed over to the Rose State FabLab where students will create a prototype of the machine.
“Rose State and the MyMachine program are fulfilling this school’s desire to encourage creativity in our kids – the change agents of the future,” said Dr. Joe Pierce, head of school at John Rex Charter Elementary. “This program reinforces the value of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in a fun and thought provoking way.”
The 9-month program launches with John Rex Charter Elementary in the fall of 2015. Students will be able to see a live, working “dream machine” the following spring.
About Rose State College:
Rose State College is a community college offering more than 60 degree and skilled-occupational programs conveniently located seven minutes from downtown Oklahoma City. www.rose.edu
About John Rex Charter Elementary School:
John Rex Charter Elementary School offers a one-of-a-kind, quality education to economically and racially diverse students. The school is strategically placed in downtown Oklahoma City to provide teachers and students easy access to government, legal and cultural opportunities. The campus’ proximity to the Civic Center Music Hall, the Myriad Gardens and City hall give students walking access to multiple learning experiences. www.johnrexschool.org
About Creative Oklahoma, Inc.:
Creative Oklahoma is a statewide non-profit organization advancing Oklahoma’s creative economy through creativity and innovation based initiatives in education, commerce and culture. www.stateofcreativity.com
About MyMachine:
MyMachineGlobal has a vision that one day all children and young people will have the opportunity to participate at school and university in a unique ecology of talent, span over all educational levels, where creativity is the driving force for materializing their own new unexplored ideas. www.MyMachineglobal.org
PHOTO CUTLINE: Left to right, Susan McCalmont, President, Creative Oklahoma, Dr. Jeanie Webb, President, Rose State College, Alyssa Penrod, Isaiah Ward, Rose State Regent Dr. Betty White, Rose State College and Dr. Joe Pierce, Head of School, John Rex Charter Elementary School
PHOTO CREDIT: Kenny Beachler, Rose State College