Hello, I’m Cynthia, a 10th grade student at WHSAD. I am currently in my second year in the ACE mentorship program. Thanks to this program I was able to learn and experience new experiences, from rendering software to improving and developing skills I currently have. Mr. Codio introduced me when he came into my 9th grade architecture class and started explaining ACE as a program with great benefits, a program that isn’t limited to people who want to pursue architecture or design. He explained how ACE is made up of many teams, which focus on sharing knowledge and experiences of their careers that don’t necessarily involve architecture or design. Personally, I picked team 6 because it was the team that WHSAD is working hand in hand with and it focuses on architecture.
In my first year, our project was to build a library. To do so we would meet up once a week to be taught what is needed to build our library. Each week the lessons were different and were held by professionals in their fields. The lessons varied from acoustics to structural, mechanical engineering and plumbing (MEP), architecture, design, and more. To give a brief insight into our lessons what we would do is enter a Zoom meeting, mentors would introduce themselves, and introduce the topic like MEP. For that lesson I remember they compared the human body to a building, explaining how the nervous system is similar to the electrical system and the digestive system to plumbing. With each lesson, our mentors would encourage us to think about how we would use what we learn in our project such as how many diffusers a room should have. Thus, working on this project made me realize that if I were to pursue architecture, I would need great teamwork skills. It gave me a realization that architects have to work hand in hand with engineers and people from acoustics to get the project moving smoothly without any problems while also having all the requirements of the client.
Additionally, last year was my first experience with the software, SketchUp. I couldn’t do much because of the pandemic since ACE was online, and it was hard to get the hang of the software. Not to mention that teaching a new software to about 20 kids is a hard job to do and because of this we weren’t able to use the software much. Instead, we did rough sketches leaving the final massing diagram to our mentors. That year I wasn’t able to present in person because of Covid regulations, but this year I presented in front of a new group of people to inform them about ACE and the projects. It was a new experience which I’m grateful for. Two other students and I who were there last year and are continuing this year began preparing for our presentation earlier this year. When the day came, we were visibly nervous because we were inexperienced and not to mention the room was full of 80~90 professionals, most being architects. However, we went on stage and presented confidently with little to no mistakes.
This year I was able to attend ACE in person, and although I was nervous, I felt very comfortable once I met everyone. It might be because I was able to meet the mentors and some students from last year that I instantly felt comfortable. This year our project is to build a rec center. We learned the same lessons from last year to help us refresh our memory. I was also able to rely more on the mentors for this project, such as tips on presentations or even explaining the lesson one more time. One major difference from last year is that we are using Formit instead of SketchUp. Since most of us didn’t know about Formit that was an added lesson. Thanks to these early lessons I had a better understanding than most students in my architecture class at school. Attending ACE has helped me in school with not only software skills and presentation skills but also communication.
Furthermore, thanks to the fact that ACE is in person this year, I have been experiencing last year’s lessons differently, such as the lesson about acoustics. For this lesson, we were given the basic information from last year and then did experiments to have a better understanding. We were broken up into groups of three and taken to rooms throughout Gensler’s office to test out the acoustic material and then compare the difference of absorption that a meeting room had to a private study room. In this experiment we used balloons and a sound level meter and took turns in popping the balloons and were even told a fun story by the acoustic mentors. When they were in college and their professor taught them acoustics, he would pull out a balloon from his pocket and start explaining. This would be a thing that would occur regularly so much so that they refer to it as clown school. We were then told that if we were to ever go into acoustics we would always have balloons on hand.
Apart from the lessons, we also went on trips. Recently we went to Gensler’s newly built office on 66 Hudson Blvd. The purpose of this trip was to get to know the behind the scenes activity that happened to create the building. In doing so we were able to see what we were taught in our lessons, such as structural elements, materials for acoustics, and MEP. Some levels of the building weren’t finished yet, so we toured floor to floor going back and forth between the finished floors and floors that had exposed pipes, wires, and missing walls. This year I was truly able to experience the ACE program to the fullest. I’m planning to attend ACE for my remaining 2 years of high school, not just because of the scholarship for attending four years but because over time ACE has felt more like a family where they guide you towards success.
If you’re thinking of joining the ACE program, I recommend you join Team 6. They have kind mentors willing to help and guide you every step of the way even if it’s not related to the program. In Team 6 the mentor in charge of the group is Ms. Rachel, who has worked in ACE for 3 years. In her own words “Team 6 is great because we have coverage from all the ACE disciplines at top firms. Gensler covers architecture, JB&B covers mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering, Cerami covers acoustical engineering, GMS covers structural engineering, and Turner covers construction management. We have a large number of mentors with different skill levels and roles. The different firms allow for a variety of networking and career opportunities. It also allows students the opportunity to have exposure to different skills, software, office environments, and sites”.