Wait… OCSA Has An Engineering Class?

Naomi Herthel

There’s no question that OCSA’s academic and arts education programs are remarkable, as they offer students unique opportunities to learn from professionals and refine their skills each day. Nonetheless, OCSA’s administrators are constantly on a mission to satisfy the curiosities of every student by frequently updating their course roster. Starting this year, students in 10th-12th grade are eligible to take Engineering, a class perfect for those who are just as passionate about STEM as they are their art form. Due to the newness of the class, much of the student body has yet to find out the class exists. One student, Tori Garcia (CMD ‘25), “had no idea until recently,” but thinks it’d be “a great way for students to branch out and learn something new.” 

This course is taught by Daniel Huynh, a second-year OCSA teacher who also currently teaches Physics and AP Physics 2. While Huynh does have a Physics credential, his actual degree is in Engineering. Moreover, he has taught this course previously at other schools. According to Huynh, the class teaches the basic principles of engineering: “mechanisms, energy transfers, (and) how to build circuits.” Upon completing the course, the final project will be a “free-build, where [students] work in teams to code, build, and design a robot from scratch.” Huynh does occasionally reference Physics topics, but he does not require that students enter the class with any specific prior knowledge; he encourages “any and all students” to take the class. 

One current Engineering student, Allen Ortiz (IM ‘25), explains that the class is “designed to be a very relaxed, calm and open environment where, instead of having tests, it’s more about the hands-on approach of actually working with tools and mechanisms, and putting things together.” Additionally, although many of Ortiz’s classmates have “little-to-no experience” with engineering, they can still “do anything as long as [they] have someone to direct [them].” Not surprisingly, Ortiz has found that P&D students really do excel in the class as they have lots of prior building experience. Yet many other key engineering skills– such as problem-solving, thinking creatively and collaborating– are second nature to nearly every kind of artist. It sounds like the class’s only true prerequisite is the desire to go outside one’s intellectual comfort zone.

OCSA students are fortunate to attend a school where varied passions and desires are embraced by faculty, just as they are by the students. So for the growing population of STEM-lovers out there, this one’s for you.