Showcasing STEM at the Ohio State Fair

A “Stranger Things” pinball machine and R2-D2 may not sound like schoolwork, but during the 2023 Ohio State Fair, colleges across the state showed students just how science, technology, engineering and math play into some of their favorite pastimes. Here is a look at how four colleges from across Ohio created ways to engage with students to get them thinking about pursuing an education in fields that are both rewarding and in demand. 

Pinball Wizards

Pinball machines can be mesmerizing, particularly the newest incarnations that merge intricate designs with synchronized lights, music and other digital touches. They are also a platform for exploring technological principles as well as complex problem solving in an easy-to-understand package. 

“We are using pinball as a motivating and fun example of how you can apply robotics, automation and AI in a real system,” says Zach Fuchs, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Cincinnati, where he teaches a multidisciplinary pinball design and programming course as well as pinball mechatronics. 

After Fuchs acquired his first pinball machine, he started seeing the educational opportunities, so he got a couple more, including an old Indiana Jones-themed game that required major repairs and restoration to get back in working order. 

“I realized that all the electronics inside that machine use the same technology I teach in my mechatronics course,” Fuchs says.

What started as a single lecture grew into curriculum and eventually hands-on labs when Fuchs procured Ohio Department of Education funding to purchase three pinball machines and a cache of parts from Stern Pinball in Chicago. The pinball machines serve as case studies. 

“We open them up and I show [students] how everything works, and they make a simpler version of it in the lab,” Fuchs says. “Also, we are training AI algorithms to track the ball and activate the flippers and play pinball on its own.” 

Fuchs brought his “Stranger Things” pinball machine to the Ohio State Fair, along with a 3D printer to show how his students design and print components to build their own machines.

“It’s tangible,” Fuchs says. “So much of our world is on a screen, so having something physical they can interact with — they feel like they are playing and don’t realize they are learning at the same time.” 

Droid Discovery 

Coding can seem a bit dry. A computer screen jammed with strings of words and symbols — what does it all mean? But when you connect coding to robotics and demonstrate how such programming can move Star Wars’ beloved droid R2-D2, the reaction is different. That’s the connection Joshua Montgomery introduces, and it all started with his two-year project to build a life-size R2-D2. 

“Being a coding professor, I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be neat to come up with a little robot that looks like R2-D2 so I could teach electronics and coding?’ ”

In 2021, Montgomery rolled out a half-scale version of R2-D2’s dome that is customized as a teaching platform, which he showcased at the Ohio State Fair in 2023. 

“The mini dome inspires kids to get excited about robotics and coding,” says Montgomery, a professor of computer science at Southern State Community College in Hillsboro and a senior lecturer at The Ohio State University. Montgomery is also curriculum coordinator for the Ohio Code Scholar project, which has tripled the size of its program to 300 middle and high school students who are now doing a Robot Wars program. COSI has picked up the dome project and is bringing it to a Columbus-area STEM school.

“The domes have taken on a life of their own,” he says, adding that he delivered a TEDxDayton talk about how they changed how he teaches. “When you take a student’s idea and craft curriculum to teach the skills and tasks they must learn to complete it, you watch them light up. They realize, ‘I can do this.’ You watch students make that leap and once they make a small step, they take the next steps.”

Career Pathways 

North Central State College in Mansfield highlighted engineering at the Ohio State Fair by connecting it to aerospace. Using paper planes and rockets made from different stock, fair attendees could test designs to see which worked the best. 

“It was a fun opportunity to apply the lessons we teach students in the classroom every day of always refining to improve the outcome,” says Kelly Gray, Vice President of Academic Services at North Central State College. 

The demonstration also aligns with the college’s two-year engineering program that feeds into a new Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology pathway at the school.

Another of the school’s Ohio State Fair demonstrations showcased the field of respiratory care. Pinwheels spun as students blew air through different sized straws to illustrate normal breathing compared to restricted lung capacity. The college also brought a mannequin used during instruction and allowed students to apply a bag mask to inflate the chest and listen for breathing sounds.

Because the state will grant a limited respiratory-therapy license to those who have completed their first year of education, students can work in the field prior to completing the entire program. They can gain experience while earning money. 

In fall 2023, North Central State College also introduced a Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, which is a way for nurses to set the stage to join management and move their careers forward. 

“STEM and medical careers are significant for students — we talk ‘STEM and M’ a lot,” Gray says. “Our exhibit at the fair really engaged kids.” 

Road Ready 

Rhodes State College’s Rhodes in Motion mobile lab racked up around 6,000 miles in 2023 as the converted recreational vehicle toured the state stocked with drones, robots that work through obstacle courses and tools that teach students how to build a circuit and manipulate virtual reality. 

“By getting them involved and rapidly letting them experience success and failure, they realize they can learn from mistakes,” says Ann Best, Assistant Dean of Health Sciences and Public Service at Rhodes State College in Lima. 

The agriculture drones were a hit. So was the chemistry station that produced different reactions such as bubbles or goo. Controllable robots on the bus tie in to the college’s robotics program. 

“There was a lot of wondering, explaining and it was intergenerational with the parents having the same reactions,” says David Haus, Dean of  Technology and Liberal Arts Studies at Rhodes State College. 

Rhodes in Motion’s appearance at the Ohio State Fair helped show how much fun these in-demand fields can be. In addition to a new artificial-intelligence major, the college is preparing for the jobs of the future by rolling out a new semiconductor program designed in collaboration with Intel and other Ohio schools. Graduates of the one-year certificate degree are prepared for a fast-growing industry in the state, Haus says.

“Seventy percent of new hires Intel makes will have this certificate,” he says. “And it’s also there to prepare students to work for any of its suppliers.”

This story ran in the Winter-Spring 2024 issue of College 101.