DAHLGREN, Va. –
Virginia Commonwealth University’s (VCU) da Vinci Center students visited NSWCDD Oct. 22 to tour the Innovation Laboratory (iLab) and participate in STEM demonstrations. Dahlgren’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Math coordinator, Tiffany Owens, led the students during a walkthrough of the facility and the soon-to-open Maker Space. The Maker Space will be a place where the workforce can conduct independent research, test new ideas and develop innovative prototypes. “We’re just giving the students an idea of the type of work Dahlgren does,” Owens said.
The VCU da Vinci Center for Innovation “aims to create T-shaped individuals who are anchored in a discipline and the capacity and openness to span across disciplines,” according to their website. Their mission is a unique collegiate model that advances innovation and entrepreneurship through cross-disciplinary collaboration. “I really wanted to understand the process of the iLab and how it applies to the Dahlgren workforce,” said Joe Joyner, one of the VCU students in attendance.