Columbus Academy has begun construction on the Viking Shipyard (aka The Yard), “an expansive hub for our makerspaces, technology offices and robotics classes/activities in one large fabrication lab,” announced Head of School Melissa Soderberg today.
As described by Director of Technology Brent Halsey ’02: “The Viking Shipyard is an intentionally designed destination – a place set apart from our traditional academic buildings – where students journey to create, engineer and innovate. The name evokes historic shipyards where Vikings forged the vessels that defined their legacy as fearless explorers. It’s a powerful symbol for a place where bold ideas are imagined, engineered and built into reality. The Yard invites every learner to design, prototype and launch their own creations.”
This new facility will be a huge shot in the arm for Brent and his team, who are tasked with increasing STEM and advanced technology opportunities for all Academy students.
“By bringing our Tech & Innovation team together with lower, middle and upper school students,” Brent added, “we can intentionally build a connected progression of hands-on learning – from early curiosity to advanced robotics, engineering and digital creativity – elevating what we do and opening new horizons for innovation at Columbus Academy.”
With the generosity of a few donors who have responded in a timely way to our immediate needs ($1.25 million in commitments to date), students will be making, creating and coding at The Yard by spring break.
Most important is that none of this would have been possible without the incredible generosity of the Judge family, whose transformational gift accelerated this project from a spark of an idea to reality. “Our family is proud to support the Viking Shipyard,” stated Pavan Judge P’33 ’36. “We strongly believe in creating opportunities for students to explore, innovate and grow, and we’re excited to be a part of a project that will inspire future generations.”
Inspired by the school’s forward thinking, the Rosene-Toop family also committed a major gift to the project. “Our family values the vast breadth of learning experiences at Academy,” said Laura Rosene P’29 ’29, “and we are proud to support these expanded opportunities at the intersection of creativity and technology.”
Thanks to generous alumni and school families like these, our school continues to improve and provide more opportunities benefiting all students. We are still raising the funds necessary to fill The Yard with updated technology, instructional equipment and supplies. If this project is of interest to you, please contact our Development Office at developmentoffice@columbusacademy.org.
We can’t wait to see the innovative thinking and projects by students at The Yard this spring!