NVC Engineering Service Learning Project Helps Reading for Kids

To help students improve their reading skills, Steven Maison of Wanke Elementary’s Learning Tree after-school care program has partnered with Northwest Vista College (NVC) to bring fun to reading.

For a service-learning project, NVC Plus+STEM students designed the “Egg-O-Matic Chicken Coop," a prize dispenser with a farm and chicken coop theme, working under the direction of NVC faculty members Mark Jurena and Thomas Pressly. The Wanke Elementary students can then use the prize dispenser to earn small rewards in the form of prize eggs for their reading (for example, receiving a book after reading a book).

Maison recently visited the NVC Makerspace to receive training on the prize dispenser, speak with NVC students, and take the device back to surprise students at Wanke Elementary, which is part of the Northside Independent School District. The Makerspace is a collaborative space where students explore and design innovative projects, particularly those that bridge STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) with the arts.

The Egg-O-Matic Chicken Coop was born in the summer of 2024. NVC student teams met with Maison and designed several small-scale options. The students used AutoCAD once Maison greenlit a specific design to create a 3D model assembly. They then created a lightweight frame, applying engineering principles of truss design, and added fascia as needed to support the electrical and mechanical systems.

The students then designed the robotic mechanisms used in the dispenser (adapted to dispense plastic prize eggs, using ideas from a small candy dispenser). An Arduino controller, along with high-torque servos, was used. The students initially 3D printed the dispenser part to use rapid prototyping in their development of a final design. Then, they used a CNC mill to cut the final part out of plywood for the combination of heat resistance, strength, and durability with the plywood (over that of the printed plastic).

This past spring semester, students completed and protected the wiring and programmed the controller. Additionally, a speaker was added to play farm-themed music during the power-up and dispensing functions. In the final stages of the project, students completed all final priming, painting, and applied a UV-protectant clear coat, ensuring that the aesthetic matched the farm theme. They also carefully tested the performance and worked to identify faults and errors, and made numerous minor adjustments to ensure the Egg-O-Matic Chicken Coop could withstand the use of elementary schoolchildren.

All of the work was completed in the NVC Makerspace and would not have been possible without the tools, equipment, and assistance and expertise of the Makerspace staff. Items and materials were purchased with the support of the Department of Education Title III NVC Plus+STEM grant. The students and faculty were also supported through the Plus+STEM grant. The faculty, student team, and Maison express their gratitude to the Makerspace staff, Richard Crabb, James Sosso, and Marco Konradi, as well as to the NVC Plus+STEM Team, Prakash Nair, Claudia Chagoya Verdin, Thomas Pressly, Roxanne Penaloza, and Crystal Zapata.

The following NVC students participated in this project:

Summer 2024:
Kevin Frias
Fabian Hernandez

Fall 2024:
Tristan Cortez
Brandon Diaz
Lauren Fowlks
Sophia Granados
Anthony Morales
Abraham Murillo

Spring 2025:
Diego Chavana
Rayna Gomez
Joanna Carla Purugganan
Tomas Rodelo