Check out an interview with one of our Toy Adaptation Program interns in the newest The Lantern article!
https://www.thelantern.com/2018/07/engineering-for-good-toy-adaptation-program/
News
2018 Community Engagement Conference
The 2018 Community Engagement Conference, hosted this past spring semester, provided an excellent opportunity for the Toy Adaptation Program to discuss its goals and contribution to the wellness of the community with faculty, staff, students, and community partners. More details about our participation as can be found here.
TAP Receives Emerging Community Engagement Award
Earlier this month, TAP graciously received the Emerging Community Engagement Award from The Ohio State University Office of Outreach and Engagement. According to the Office, recipients of the award “will have demonstrated outstanding promise in community outreach and engagement with the development of a relatively new initiative that has shown the potential for long-term impact, achievement and scholarship.”
More information can be found about the award criteria here.
AEP Pataskala Professionals Support Toy Adaptation
Tuesday, April 10th, the TAP team traveled to American Electric Power’s site in Pataskala, OH to lead a workshop and collaborate with 44 professionals adapting 16 toys. Partnership between TAP and AEP has been ongoing, and the team anticipates future events with them during the upcoming academic year. TAP is continually grateful for the industry partners who take time out of their schedules to work with us and make our initiative possible.
Final TAP Repair Lab Hosts 35 Participants
During the Autumn 2017 semester, the TAP team began holding bi-weekly repair labs in Smith Laboratory. These repair labs serve as a time for students to receive community service hours and assist the TAP team in repairing adapted toys for families. Seven repair labs were held throughout the 2018 Spring semester, and for the final lab, we had 35 volunteers! On behalf of the TAP team, thank you to all of the students who have donated their time in the evenings to help us repair and adapt. TAP is always appreciative of the volunteers that make this initiative possible.
TAP Facilitates Partnership for Make OHI/O Hardware Challenge
Earlier this month, over 80 organizations-including AEP, Honda, and Batelle- partnered with Hack OHI/O to host the largest hardware competition in Ohio. For 24 hours, students and their advisers work on a project, competing for prizes and the funds to continue the project beyond the competition. This year, May We Help sponsored and connected Make OHI/O with a humanitarian engineering project: an adapted dog treat launcher for a Cincinnati resident and her dogs.
View the Hack OHI/O website and May We Help for more insight into their initiatives and future events. TAP was so grateful to witness the award ceremony and facilitate partnerships involved in the event. Below is a short video clip compiling footage of the judging and presentation phase, along with the winners of “Highest Craftsmanship” and “Most Socially Responsible.”
OSU Facebook Feature of Toys for All Tots Media
The Ohio State University Dept. of Engineering Marketing team compiled a video showcasing media from our Toys for All Tots event at Nationwide Children’s Hospital last month. The video received over one thousand reactions, and can be viewed on their Facebook page at the following link:
University of Rochester Toy Adaptation Development
University of Rochester Engineering Department staff and students are now following suit and sharing in the joy of adaptive toy technology! Hear about their excitement and read their departmental article here!
TAP Event Compilation Featured in ASEE Teacher Newsletter
The American Society for Engineering Education teacher newsletter-released each month- featured a profile of the Toy Adaptation Program in their December 2017 issue. The exposure compiles various media coverage and background information accumulated about TAP.
The article and supplemental videos can be found here!
10TV News Interview with TAP Interns
Undergraduate Interns Matthew Ritzenthaler and Victoria Kinzel were interviewed by 10TV reporter Cierra Johnson, adding to our other recent media coverage! In this segment, Ritzenthaler and Kinzel explain the methodologies at the core of toy adaptation as well as the multifaceted benefits created by TAP’s partnerships for both engineering students attending Ohio State and children who acquire the toys.
10TV’s video and accompanying article can be accessed here.