Lampin Corp. funds six education grants in 2018

Lampin Corp., a 100 percent employee-owned machine shop in Uxbridge, Mass., has provided funding for six education grants this year. The grants, totaling $10,135, will be awarded to students and schools in the Blackstone Valley school district to support programs in engineering, science, and robotics.

"We're very passionate about helping the next generation learn the scientific and technical skills they will need to succeed in a 21st-century world," said Robin LeClaire, president of Lampin. "Manufacturing is an advanced industry. It's vital that we continue to collaborate with local educational institutions to garner more student interest in pursuing STEM [science, technology, engineering, and math] field careers by providing them with the opportunity to learn advanced engineering skills."

The grants include several robotics courses, such as the "Ozobots on the Loose,” a $1,000 grant awarded to the Frederick W. Hartnett Middle School. Students will learn various levels of coding by working in collaborative teams to help programmable robots (Ozobots) achieve missions that increase in difficulty. A $2,000 grant will allow Northbridge High School to experience a mock mission to Mars at the McAuliffe Center.

Lampin provided funding for the grants as part of an initiative by the Blackstone Valley Education Foundation (BVEF) to "leverage community support that enhances efforts to connect current learning with future career paths for students". BVEF provides resources and development tools to schools and teachers that enable them to give students access to innovative educational opportunities focused on 21st-century skills.