The schooling experience I have received the last few years has been nothing short of extraordinary.

I’m a student at Rockingham Early College High School (RECHS) located on campus at Rockingham Community College. Attending an early college already gave me an advantage from the start by being able to take college courses. But the difference at RECHS goes deeper than that.

RECHS has smaller classes, which makes it easier to get one-on-one time with teachers and frees up more time to go deeper into the material. Teachers there want to spend more time with students to ensure the material gains traction. In addition, RECHS teachers take an approach to get us to make our own conclusions and challenge the information in a way that is unparalleled in many other schools.

Because of all this, I have been able to work closely with outstanding teachers, such as Rob Seltzer and Kimberley Thompson-Hairston, who have pushed me to use the information I learned and make my own ideas rather than just memorize facts. As a result, I now use my STEM education everyday in my job: building 3-D printers.

Last December, I started working for Fusion3, where we design and build 3-D printers primarily for the education and business markets. Our 3-D printer, the F306, is built and tested to quality levels that exceed other 3-D printers that cost many times more. Everyday I get to be engaged in many challenging tasks from building a printer’s frame to using Pi to finely calibrate the motion of each machine.

Without the push I got from a fantastic school experience I may have never gotten to be involved in such a breathtaking job. The best part is that I am only getting started and the same teachers and the same school experience will continue to push me into new endeavors.

Chandler Mayo is a 5th year senior at Rockingham Early College High School.