Zometool Workshop & Geometry Barn Raising — Fall 2011
Wondering what exactly is happening in the curious photo to the left? It all began with St. Bonaventure's first Zometool Workshop, organized by Dr. Chris Hill, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, and Evelyn Sabina, Curator of Education at The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.
The purpose of the two-hour workshop, held November 9, 2011, was to allow high school students to explore geometry using a construction kit called Zometool. The workshop culminated with a "geometric barn-raising": students and teachers worked together to build a very large structure called a mega-icosahedron.
Sabina recruited mathematics teachers Todd Christopher of Allegany-Limestone High School and Kris Ring of Olean High to invite talented math students from their schools. The student participants were Colleen Bailey, Brandon Kohn, Chris Spears and Pete Marciano II from Allegany-Limestone and Andy Lu, Matt Witte, Becca Lasky and Nicole Sova from Olean High. The students were joined by Allegany-Limestone teachers Linda Dodd-Nagel and Tammy Hollowell and Bonaventure MSED student Jackie Donovan, in addition to Todd Christopher and Kris Ring.
Sabina also provided the perfect venue: a large student-oriented space on the third floor of The Quick Center called The Loft. Read further for the story of the workshop (and of the photo).