Occupation: Student

You stay very busy for someone so young! Let’s start with your education path at Liberty University.
I am a junior at Liberty University. I’m pursuing a major in Biomedical Sciences with a minor in Psychology. I’ve taken major sciences including Genetics, Cell Biology, Organic Chemistry, Anatomy and Microbiology. Liberty University has been a stepping-stone to where I am today.

Aside from those demanding classes, you started an LU chapter of the Foundation for International Medical Relief of Children (FIMRC). How did that come about?
This started during my last summer research internship. At the end of the internship I went to the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md., to present my research. There I had the opportunity to meet other students from around the nation. One of them had been a part of the Harvard FIMRC chapter. After hearing more about FIMRC from her, I realized this was an organization I wanted to be a part of.

Why do you have a passion for international medicine?
Being from Puerto Rico, studying here in the mainland U.S., and interacting with international students have helped me realize that there certainly is a need for improved healthcare in many parts of the world, including the U.S. As an aspiring physician and Christian I want to do my part in providing this care.

You completed not one, but two internships with the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Getting one of those couldn’t have been easy!
Yes, it all started freshmen year during a meeting with a professor from the Eagle Scholars Program at Liberty University. He challenged me to apply to a competitive internship for the summer. I found the NIH’s STEP-UP Program and at first I was actually scared of applying. It was competitive and I felt I wouldn’t get in anyways. It certainly took a lot of time, effort, prayer, and motivation. However, I knew this was something I wanted to do.

And one of those internships put you in the national spotlight. Tell us about your PTSD research.
For both summers I researched at the Ponce Health Sciences University under the topic of Fear Conditioning and Extinction. Basically, the lab uses an animal model to study the fear pathway, mimicking PTSD. For my research, we lowered the expression of a protein previously linked to PTSD called FKBP5 in the ventral hippocampus (involved in memory formation).

Our project showed that these lower levels lead to more fear that was harder to extinguish than the control group. Similar to what is seen in PTSD. Along with all the research done in the lab, this can shed more light on how PTSD works.

Once you leave LU, what’s your plan? Do you have a career goal?
I know I want to go into medicine. I am currently considering pursuing either an M.D. or an M.D./Ph.D. Eventually, my goal is to treat patients, and I like the idea of doing some research as well that could go on to help more people.

Occupation: Bank Teller, Actor

Congratulations on your first place award in the Lynchburg 48 Hour Film Project. Before we learn more about your winning piece, tell us a little about your training.

I’ve never been classically trained as a screenwriter or director. I don’t even know if I format my scripts properly. I went to Liberty University to study advertising and public relations, but I ended up switching my major to theater after my friend Josh DeVries and I were cast in a low budget film called Billy: The Early Years. We spent six weeks out in Nashville filming for the project.

The two of us played brothers opposite of Armie Hammer. It was his first major role at the time, and we got to meet people like Martin Landau and Robby Benson. But while I was out there I wondered if I could do this full time.

After switching majors, I took a “Writing for the Stage” class. I discovered I had a love for writing and had a decent understanding of story structure.

When did you first become interested in acting/filmmaking?
It started young. I’ve always loved film and told my parents I wanted to make movies when I grew up. My mom would always try to limit the amount of TV and movies we watched per day, trying to get the kids to be active and go outside more, but I always found ways around it. I was always an imaginative kid, and I really think that TV and movies helped cultivate that imagination. When I was older, my friends and I dreamed up story ideas that we could put together. Of course, we didn’t have the money for all of the equipment. Now though, you can film a feature-quality movie on your iPhone.

It’s a tough business to break into. What keeps you motivated?
It is a horribly tough business to break into; the market is oversaturated. I’ve had way more rejections than I’ve had jobs. I’m not sitting here lying to myself either; I work at a bank because acting gigs are fewer where I live. What does keep me motivated is my team. I have people that I want to see succeed and who want to see me succeed as well. I always say “when one of us hits, we all hit.” So for now I’m working on generating my own content and to learn by doing. I love to observe people that have been in the industry way longer. You can pick up the things that they’ve learned along the way, and forego the bad habits if you’re lucky.

Now to the winning short film. We don’t want to give it all away, but give us a summary of “Mr. Scratch.”
“Mr. Scratch” is about a man who has had a checkered past. The film follows him as he is confronted by those things in his past that have made him into who he is today. The main character is actually more of an antihero. He does terrible things in the name of good. If you watch the film then I think you can see that and hopefully the layers of questions we wanted to pose to the audience.

This was your fifth time participating in the 48 Hour Film Project. How was “Mr. Scratch” different from your other submissions?
“Mr. Scratch” was different in many ways. Mainly because it was in no way, shape or form a romantic comedy. I like a good romantic comedy; I enjoy writing them because I am a hopeless romantic. There were some jokes flying around between some former competitors and friends about my romantic comedies. So this year I decided that I didn’t want to do one. And I’m glad I didn’t pick that genre.

So now—what’s next for you? What’s your ultimate goal?
In March, we compete at Filmapalooza in Seattle. There has been some discussion of expounding on the idea of “Mr. Scratch” and making it into a feature. I think there is a lot of stuff we can do with it. Other than that, there are a few projects we all (the team) have been working on. Some professional work, some passion projects, even possibly some fan films. The end goal is to make good films. Maybe we can bring some attention to Lynchburg. Maybe we can change how people around here see films.

While retail arteries like Timberlake and Wards roads pump economic lifeblood through the city, the heart of Lynchburg culture beats downtown.

An influx of young professionals—post-college aged (22-29) make up for 10 percent of the city’s population, as reported by The Roanoke Times, while births have outnumbered deaths by over 1,000 since 2010—is adding a fresh spike of vibrancy to the community, which was named one of the 25 best places to retire by Forbes in 2012.

Rather than quell one another, however, the older and younger crowds complement one another, creating a cultural melting pot.

“We are still working on developing our personality,” said Ashley Kershner, executive director of Lynch’s Landing. “And that’s OK. What was once viewed as a boring, conservative town is now a growing, quirky, friendly, lovely place.”

Though half of the current downtown residents are 18-34, older individuals and retirees are moving downtown at an increasing rate.

“Older Americans are more active and healthy than ever,” Kershner said.

Knowing how important downtown is to the cultural identity, and economic livelihood, of the community, Lynchburg is committed to investing in that scene.
“A healthy, successful and thriving downtown is essential to a successful city,” Kershner said.

Over the past 20 years, Lynchburg has invested well over $1 million in infrastructure, including Monument Terrace, Riverfront Park and the lower Bluffwalk.

“These public spaces provide essential gathering places and encourage people to spend time in shared space,” Kershner said.

This revitalization effort has gained traction in the past five years as new lofts and condos have drawn more residents, and, in turn, more businesses, downtown.

With the new Academy Center of Arts on the horizon, Kershner hopes to see more locally-owned businesses continue to occupy vacant spaces, and continue to shape the landscape, and personality, as Lynchburg grows.

“Locally-owned businesses are the heart of downtown and are the creators of our urban identity,” Kershner said.

“If our downtown was filled with (national chains) there would be nothing that made it special. But for those who visit downtown, we develop a true connection with these businesses and the experiences we have at them.

“There is a lot of love in these businesses, a lot of heart. And we feel a part of that.”

Restaurants play a crucial role in a successful downtown culture, attracting visitors, bringing people downtown and giving urbanites options on where to walk to breakfast, lunch and dinner.

As the revitalization boom continues, here is a look at some recent restaurant openings and what their owners hope to add to the growing Hill City culture.

Fifth & Federal Station
Here’s to our roots
An old Esso Station off the roundabout at 801 Fifth Street has been reconstructed and reimagined as a smokehouse and whiskey bar—Fifth & Federal Station.

Josh Read, a part-owner along with Travis Hundt, Ralph Beck, and Erich Lebeau, said that the project, which was set to open in early November, is intended to be a destination spot—one that celebrates the city’s heritage.

“We want to play into that Lynchburg culture, bring back some of that history and help to educate people about how important Lynchburg is to whiskey and to bourbon,” Read said, noting that pre-prohibition Lynchburg (which pre-dates its Tennessee counterpart) had seven distilleries.

The station’s rustic design includes several historic artifacts, including hand-blown glass bottles over a century old and an ABC license from 1875.

“It’s like a museum of sorts,” Read added, noting many antique items are incorporated into the décor, such as a giant airplane propeller turned ceiling fan. The bar, still bearing original blacksmith’s nails, was floated to town in the 1850s on bateaus. Also featured are some classic cars, including a 1975 Chevy Bel Air that was at one time serviced at the station.

The restaurant’s Southern fare, including burgers and barbeque smoked in-house—as well as smoked bacon and cheddar—is artful in its own sense, a balance of the daring sensibilities of the owners and the traditional craft of the acclaimed “Chef Rufus Rucker.”

And the selection of over 100 whiskeys and bourbons is sure to draw connoisseurs both local and beyond.

Fifth & Federal also has plenty of its own parking and a spacious green area for outdoor events.

Bootleggers
Kickin’ it on the Bluffwalk
Facing the Bluffwalk from behind Shay’s Unique Gifts at 13th and Commerce streets is the home of Bootleggers, which was set to kick into gear mid-November. It’s a burgers and beer joint with a robust bourbon selection.

The restaurant marks a partnership between two Lynchburg shakers—Steve Parry, owner of downtown hotspots like Waterstone, Shoemakers and El Jéfe Taqueria Garaje, and Mark Borel, a developer/builder who is a part owner of Neighbor’s Place in Wyndhurst, which, along with Cornerstone, he partnered to develop.

Borel said his business philosophy is collaborative rather than competitive. The idea behind Bootleggers was a restaurant that could complement the offerings already available downtown—giving patrons something different, another destination among several great options.

As a downtown dweller for 20 years, Borel loves seeing the downtown lifestyle getting a boost—and doing his part to encourage that with Bootleggers and a condominium project that sold out 21 units before even breaking ground. (He’s also currently building a new home in the same complex as the restaurant.)
“I am all about people having options,” he said. “With the revitalization there are more and more reasons to go downtown.”

In the future, Borel is hoping to see improvements to mass transit in the downtown area. Though there are spaces, many don’t seem to like looking for them. He thinks that parking lot shuttles could improve that. He is also co-charing a committee looking into making the river visible from the Bluffwalk (without compromising the integrity of its banks).

Emerald Stone Grille/Dublin 3 Coffeehouse
Flavor for downtown life
In November, Keith Sweeney and his wife Adrienne were expected to open the Emerald Stone Grille at 1001 Jefferson Street, as well as Dublin 3 Coffeehouse right next door.

The restaurant is a unique hybrid of modern American, Southern and European cuisine, helmed by a Manhattan French Culinary Institute-trained chef, Mick Markley. Emerald Stone includes a house-crafted fried chicken, with a special flair unlike anything else in town, in addition to steaks, shepherd’s pie (adding some Irish charm) and more.

With outside seating plus room for around 150 in the restaurant, and nearly 50 in the coffee shop, the location has plenty of room, which should draw guests from all over town.

But one of the unique advantages to the location is the nearly 60 lofts above it, with plenty more urban housing options popping up in the area lately.

Sweeney has noticed the boom in downtown living and wanted to elevate that lifestyle by adding some unique flavors to the urbanite’s diverse palates.
“We want to tap into what is going on down there … it is a great place (to live),” Sweeney said.

Dining elevates the social scene, offering gathering places—and there’s no better atmosphere to strengthen personal bonds than around great food (or coffee).

The Water Dog
All play and no work
Early in September, a new pub made a splash on Jefferson Street (1016 to be exact), tapping into the qualities that make Lynchburg unique while also adding something fresh and new to the scene.

“A water dog, a Labrador, when they are out there working, they literally don’t know the difference between work and play,” said owner Dave Henderson.

“We wanted to create an establishment that held that same philosophy.”

The craft beer scene is highly social, he added.

“You show up with a couple of your friends and by the time you leave you’ve made a bunch of new friends.”

A 36-line draught line fuels the taphouse, while a simple, fresh menu lends to the atmosphere.

There are plenty of chef-crafted items that are snackable and sharable, as well as burgers and other handhelds, shrimp tacos, seasonal salads, a kid’s menu and oysters, another unique draw to the spot.

For dessert, warm, house-made chocolate chip cookies are available.

Facing the splash park, The Water Dog seeks to help shape the new Lynchburg culture—vibrant, social and relaxed. The restaurant has a “garage” lounge with a massive projector screen, a ping-pong table, a chalkboard for guests to showcase artistic expression and a patio with couches and TVs.

“Downtown has got so much opportunity,” Henderson said, casting some of his vision for the future. “I’d love for the city to turn (Riverfront Park) from a passive park into an active park. We’d like them to build some sand volleyball courts, so we can really cultivate a fun atmosphere for young professionals to come and play.

“I know it has already been doing that, (but) it feels like downtown Lynchburg is on the cusp of becoming a true destination, one that puts its mark on the map. It really just feels like now is the right time.”

By Drew Menard

While perusing youtube.com looking for interesting videos about Lynchburg Virginia, I came across this one by Tyler Mowery. Apparently he was just practicing shooting and editing in several locations around Lynchburg, VA. Maybe you will see some sights you recognize? I hope you enjoy his video as much as I did!

Tricycle Gardens is a nonprofit organization with a mission to grow healthy food, healthy communities and a healthy local food system. Since breaking ground on our first garden, we have engaged thousands of neighbors and shown that the simple act of growing food is an incredibly powerful way to change the overall health of our community.

This work addresses a myriad of challenging issues, and ultimately our mission is about FOOD:

F- Focus on community needs
O- Outreach and education
O- Opportunities for healthy food access
D- Design of beautiful spaces

Tricycle Gardens has done ground breaking work engaging individuals, community centers, non-profits, businesses and the city government to bring a collective effort to restore our urban ecologies and create beautiful public spaces throughout Richmond, Virginia. From hands-on experiential learning to more formal workshops and gardening programs, we are leading the way for a new understanding of how, by working together, we can create a healthier community for all.

By bringing urban agriculture, food skills education and healthy food access to greater Richmond, Tricycle Gardens will improve the environmental landscape and strengthen the ecosystems of the local neighborhoods. Through partnerships with the community, schools, neighborhood youth and their families we are starting a grassroots movement for food security that will transform the health and well-being of our community for future generations.

Support our work and stay in touch by:

1. Volunteering.
2. Following us on Facebook and Twitter.
3. Buying local when you shop at our weekly farmers’ market every Thursday from 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM at 31st Street Baptist Church.
4. Supporting our mission and donate now.

Lit From Within

Sunlight streams through the upper windows, flooding the central hallway. Appropriately dubbed “Main Street,” this corridor is the primary lifeline of the newly opened Heritage High School (HHS). It’s grand, expansive, and, most importantly, brand new.

“It looks new; it feels new; it smells new, and it sounds new,” Head Principal Tim Beatty said. “Because of the layout of the building and the technology that our students will be exposed to, the new building should be a game changer for our staff and school community.”

So, how much of a “game changer” can one building be, you may ask?

That all depends on how the building came to be and why.

A HISTORY OF LIMITATIONS
“Poor lighting, leaking after rain storms, freezing or suffocating temperatures, narrow hallways, five [congested] floors—” these are “just a few” of the problems that plagued their old building according to Michele Wisskirchen, an alumna and now HHS teacher.

As teachers, “we worry about our students not being safe, not having the access to technology, or not being comfortable as they learn,” Wisskirchen explains. “It’s hard for them to take an SOL test with sweat pouring down their faces.”

“Limited” is how teacher and alumni Alex Drumheller describes education in the old building.

In fact, at Drumheller’s HHS graduation ceremony in 1987 the temperature was higher than 90 degrees when a storm broke and led to rain water pouring through the gymnasium roof.

Ben Copeland summarizes it this way: “This building is new, warm, inviting and bright versus what was old, dark, dingy and leaky.” As the Assistant Superintendent of Operations and Administration for Lynchburg City Schools, Copeland has been leading this project since August 2012.

To arrive at this fresh start, Herculean efforts were required. Input was gathered from “teachers, parents, students, community [members], City Council and the School Board,” Wisskirchen recalls. All of these people were “gathering together, throwing out ideas of what we wanted and needed on endless sticky notes.” Those ideas were distilled to trends then themes and—finally—a design.

Standing in the new building today, Copeland says, “It’s been my major project, and I’m thrilled. I think it could change the student culture.”

Perhaps, even be a game changer.

A CLEAN SLATE
Upon entering “Main Street,” you see soaring, open ceilings, wide walkways, and light, lots of natural light. In fact, “natural” describes the aesthetics all around. Brick, natural wood and burnished concrete floors compose the majority of spaces, creating a warm space more reminiscent of an attractive college campus than a traditional high school. But, after walking a bit, you start to notice the total absence of lockers.

Instead of lining the hallways, lockers are housed in four bays strategically placed around the building. Designed to prevent hallway congestion, they allow students to stop at their lockers without interrupting the flow of foot traffic because they’re anchored at three-way intersections with hallways leading off of them. The bays are also adjacent to staircases and entrances feeding in from the bus drop off zone.

The search for natural light—a priority for everyone—led to this unique building layout according to Copeland. Gone is the double-loaded corridor with classrooms on each side—a design of the past. This building is like “a big academic horseshoe with the main street hallway, an interior courtyard…support spaces in the middles of the hallways, [and] all the classrooms on the outside [where] we’ve got the courtyard in the middle, which allows you to get light to the interior classrooms.”

“Natural light’s proven to help education,” Copeland adds. “It helps learning, so we got as much light into the building as we can.”

When planning began, Copeland says ideas were simply crystallizing; they were asking The Big Questions, starting from the ground up. They needed to know: “What’s it need to look like? Is it going to be a two-story building? What departments need to be next to each other?”

These questions helped to identify “clusters” he says, which became building blocks for the structure and kicked off the process of preliminary design drafts, feedback, revision, more drafts, and so on. Purposeful attention to layout enhances student learning, teacher collaboration and overall efficiency.

Consider the “circulation in the building—the flow,” Copeland says. “You walk down hallways in this building, and every hallway brings you back to somewhere. There’s only one, true dead-end hallway. In the academic wing, if you turn consecutive lefts, you’ll come back to where you started.”

Nothing was done by accident; Copeland was very intentional about gleaning input for each space and function of the school. And it shows.

ENHANCED STUDENT EXPERIENCE
Here’s where things get particularly detailed, and the idea of a “game changer” seems especially apt. Inside each of these bright, window-flanked classrooms, you find an environment primed for learning: visibility is optimized; distraction is minimized. Beatty’s assertion that student engagement will look differently isn’t an exaggeration. Any teacher will tell you that distractions are the enemy of student engagement. A student neglecting to charge their Chromebook (a standard issue item for every HHS student) could lead to the loss of valuable time. However, with the addition of multiple, retractable power cords hanging from the ceilings and the inclusion of numerous wall outlets, Chromebooks can stay continuously powered. And with the implementation of desk clusters and the addition of three TV monitors in every classroom, Copeland says that from “whatever orientation you’re facing” in a classroom—you can see a screen.

Since the old building “wasn’t adequate for modern education [and] didn’t lend itself to education in the last 10 years,” as Copeland says, there had to be what Beatty calls a “mindset shift.”

And part of that mindset shift will be an ongoing challenge for teachers, albeit one they welcome with open arms.

Wisskirchen is in a collaboration room, meaning it has “five different team project-based workstations all linked together via technology, so students can work together in groups,” Copeland says, and then teachers can easily project information onto all of the work station screens at once.

“I have lots of new technology to learn,” Wisskirchen says. “But learning is an opportunity for growth, and new technology will help our students engage in instruction and will help teachers differentiate their instruction for all types of learners.”

Intentional teacher input also influenced particular departments—those “clusters” Copeland mentioned. Drumheller says, “The arrangement of the rooms will. . .provide optimal use of technology and collaboration between students and teacher” because prep rooms are placed between larger classroom labs. . .[and we have] updated lab equipment, [which] will allow us to impact the education of our students in a profound way [because] we have been limited” in the past. He adds, “Being an Environmental Science teacher, it was quite funny not to be able to see outside.” Of course, like many other classrooms, Drumheller’s now faces out to the courtyard from up on the second story.

Lead art teacher Jon Roark is also excited about the windows and a direct doorway to the courtyard from his classroom.

Roark—whose collaborative work with students is visible all throughout the region from projects with the Academy Center of the Arts to published books—finally has facilities that match the talent he cultivates. The art suite is truly top of the line, equipped with 20 MacBooks, a pottery room with wheels and a large kiln, student work centers, ample storage, and, plenty of natural light.

“Now, we have the option to grow the program,” Copeland says.

FOCUS ON COMMUNITY
By Copeland’s estimation, and many others’, this new building will also finally reflect the community aspect and aspirations of the students who attend.

“My favorite memories are the interactions between teachers and students,” Wisskirchen says. “The school embraces the diversity of its students, and I always felt I was a part of something. . .It is a family atmosphere, and students are accepted for who they are.”

Appropriately, certain elements in the design emphasize this concept of community: the spacious courtyard; the cavernous gymnasium with basketball courts Beatty describes as “beautiful”; the keeping of the indoor track, which has long been Heritage’s claim to fame; the two-story media center with views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and ample seating for group or individual study.

Teachers will also benefit from improved opportunities for collaboration inside their five teacher work centers, all of which have conference tables, small kitchenette areas and flexible seating options.

Wisskirchen is looking forward to “seeing [students] congregate in the commons area, and for the community to see an example of what we can accomplish together.”

Now, at the end of this four-year project, Copeland says this is his favorite part, to see it all completed.

“To be given something like this, as much thought and effort went into it—students can now work to their highest level.”

By Jennifer Redmond
Photos by LaSHONDA Delivuk

Occupation: Coordinator for the Office of Exceptional Learners (for Lynchburg City Schools)
Resides: With her husband, Brian and two children, Orion (9) and Trulie Grace (5), in the Rivermont area of Lynchburg.

Tell us a little bit about your current role with Lynchburg City Schools.
I am currently the coordinator for the Office of Exceptional Learners for Lynchburg City Schools (LCS) where I have the privilege of working with students with unique learning needs. I also get to collaborate with school staff and families across the division as we team together to achieve our mission of reaching “every child, by name and by need, to graduation!”

You came to that position from E.C. Glass High School. What did you do there, and why did you choose to pursue a career in special education?
I actually student taught at E.C. Glass in 2004 and spent 10 years teaching there. During my time as a Hilltopper, I worked as a special education teacher in both the Division Wide Autism Program and the Functional Living Program. Working with students with (dis)ABILITIES is my calling. My husband Brian and I both work in special education, and I truly can’t imagine being in any other profession.

Outside of your work, you have another passion related to special education. Tell us about Team Hoyt and how you first learned about the program.
As I mentioned, my husband and I both work in special education and are really passionate about serving that community. We also both love exercising. About five years ago I started running and at our first big race, in Virginia Beach, we saw a man pushing a boy. After the race, he told us about Team Hoyt—an inclusive athletic team. Runners push athletes with disabilities that would not otherwise have the opportunity to participate in road races. Team Hoyt is named for the father/son running team in Boston that founded the organization.

That led to you and your husband participating in a similar effort in Lynchburg. What type of involvement does your United Athletics chapter play in the community, especially during the Virginia 10 Miler?
United Athletics is a very similar group to Team Hoyt that started in Richmond and has a local chapter here in Lynchburg. Our group is fairly small still, but we have athletes and assisted athletes that participate in road races and triathlons throughout the year. The Virginia 10 Miler is one of our favorite races and for the past three years, my husband and I have pushed athletes who are LCS students.

What’s your favorite memory from the Virginia 10 Miler so far?
Oh wow, that is a hard one. The past three years have been full of great memories! Last year we pushed a 5th grade student who started high-fiving people around mile four. By the end of the race, she had over 600 high-fives! Perhaps even greater though, my best memory is seeing the student cross the finish line each year. To see their family members smile and hear everyone in the crowd cheering for them is truly magical!

It can’t be easy to push someone for a full marathon. How do you manage to do it, and what keeps you going?
Physically it is more challenging, but as many marathon runners would agree, running long distance is also a mental challenge. Our athletes give us so much inspiration that they make the run worth running! I honestly would not want to run a race without assisting an athlete. My husband and I always say that we are our athletes’ legs, but they are our hearts!

As you look ahead to your future, what are your goals and aspirations, both in your career and in your passion with inclusive athletics?
A personal goal of mine would be to assist an athlete in an Iron Man. But, my true aspiration in both my career and for inclusive athletics would be to continue to help people with and without disabilities see each other as people first. I am humbled to help students and their families realize that all things are possible!

Any advice for runners?
My husband and I both have really benefited from cross training. We do Crossfit at Crossfit Lynchburg and that has been a huge help in building our endurance and strength. And of course, I would say for any runner who enjoys races, come run with United Athletics Lynchburg and experience the joy of sharing your race with an assisted athlete!

Occupation: Rising Junior at Appomattox High School and this year’s top winner at the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) competition.
Resides: Appomattox, Va.

Tell us about the business you entered into the YEA! competition.
True Dimension Education is the Netflix for high school course selection. Within a school district, we will collect student data and predict which courses a particular student will be successful in. Our software does this by utilizing a machine-learning algorithm similar to what Netflix uses to predict movies.

Were you surprised they granted you the most money, $1,500?
I was definitely surprised! I had no idea that they saw so much value in my company. I’m very grateful for the investor panel and more specifically, Stefanie Prokity, a very established education technology entrepreneur.

Where did you get the idea and inspiration to create True Dimension?
When I began the YEA! Program, I knew I wanted to help K-12 education. Each year, about 1.3 million students drop out of high school in the United States. That’s one student every 20 seconds.

How did you become involved in computer programming/software creation?
I began building websites when I was in seventh grade. My computer marketing teacher introduced me to HTML. Since then,
I have developed about 40 freelance projects for my clients. Software has been a fairly new addition to my interests. I wish I would have started learning about software much earlier!

Did you always have a knack for technology?
Not necessarily technology, but I have always been curious. Curious in how things work, interact and help society.

What’s next for True Dimension?
True Dimension is currently seeking our seed funding round. We have raised around $15,000 from grants and investors. We will need some additional funds to fully build the software. We are also filing for a provisional patent to protect our software. Since the company was founded in November, our team has grown to include five co-founders. The team consists of four high school students and one long-time region 2000 educator, Jason Clark.

As you look ahead to your future, what are your goals and aspirations?
I hope to become a serial entrepreneur and philanthropist. K-12 education is my passion, and I hope to significantly lower the dropout rates within the public school system.

What’s something most people don’t know about you?
I absolutely love Latino pop music. I frequently listen to Don Omar’s Danza Kuduro when working on True Dimension. We are part of a co-working office environment, which I named ‘KuduroX,’ combining my favorite song and favorite start-up accelerator, GoogleX.

What are some of your favorite things to do with your friends and family?
Nick Mendoza, a True Dimension co-founder, and I frequently go into the city and capture some pretty unique shots. Photography is our side business, and we love the unique combination of Lynchburg, which allows both cityscape and nature photography.

Name the top spot you like to visit in the area.
I love downtown Lynchburg. Most of the meetings involving True Dimension’s software development take place in a historic Lynchburg building, currently the home of Sharp Top software.

So it sounds like you would one day like to start up your business in Lynchburg?
Of course! True Dimension plans to move into the city once we deploy the software.

What does the phrase “Lynchburg Living” mean to you?
Lynchburg Living is the spirit of the Lynchburg community. It has been a pleasure to work with the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance and many of the other businesses within the area.

The City’s First Makerspace

There is a feeling in the air at Vector Space, though not definable at first. Stepping into its recently leased home at 402 Fifth Street in downtown Lynchburg, the sensation hovers silent, a background tingle, as one takes in the atmosphere—the smell of sawdust lingering in the air and the hum of old computers given new life complementing the aged, industrial aesthetic: open ceilings crawling with pipes and ductwork, whitewashed brick walls and concrete floors bathed in white fluorescent rays.

Across the approximately 6,000-square-foot workspace, shelves are lined with wood, metal and electronic contraptions in various stages of completion, just beyond workbenches and pegboards carrying an abundance tools. Whiteboards display scribblings over erased scribblings: notes, equations and 3D drawings. A lounge features a collection of old couches and books. In the corner, a homemade, retro-style arcade emulates a nostalgia dressed in frayed denim and highlighter-colored accessories.

While a lethargic spirit might dismiss the whole scene as a grungy junkyard garage, one might just as easily see a limitless playground.

From the back, where metalworking equipment fills the space off a loading zone, complete with a large bay door, Adam Spontarelli, Vector Space co-founder and director of education, emerges, wiping his previously occupied hands before extending one for a warm greeting. His wife, Elise Spontarelli, the space’s executive director and co-founder, soon joins him in sitting amongst desks littered with fat monitors, rectangular PCs, resistors, LEDs and circuit boards.
As the two begin sharing the story of how the nonprofit got started—occasionally finishing one another’s sentences—that lingering feeling surfaces, from time to time, flashing in their eyes.

Vector Space started rather simply—Adam, an engineer, wanted a makerspace in Lynchburg, and, since it didn’t have one, he and his wife decided to create one. The concept of a makerspace—or a hackerspace or hacklab—is relatively new, about a decade old, and is essentially a workspace for the community to come in to collaborate and socialize around common interests like computers, woodworking, art and more.

“(Vector Space) helps to bring together like-minded, hands-on people,” said Board Member Peter Sheldon, Department of Physics chair and Center for Student Research director at Randolph College. “It is a space for the technical and creative to come together and create and share with the community. Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) and outreach is my specialty, and Vector Space really helps to promote both of these really well.”

In its conception, “It was just a place that (Adam) wanted to hang out, and it didn’t exist,” Elise said. “When we started talking about it it, the things that he was not sure about were the things that I have experience with.”

Elise owns her own web design company and works with a number of nonprofits (through her business and as a volunteer).

The idea was further validated as it was brought forth.

“We just started meeting with people in the community to see if this was necessary, if Lynchburg wanted this,” Elise said. “We got a lot of yeses—‘Our people need this.’”

From there they assembled a seven-member board of directors (including the Spontarellis) and began fundraising (Areva has been a major supporter).
The first official test run was a class held in a basement classroom at the Academy Center of the Arts. It involved building a quadcopter drone from scratch.

Among the students was Nathan Marraccini, a rising junior at E.C. Glass High School.

“It has been a wonderful experience where I have gained mass amounts of knowledge,” Marraccini said of his involvement at Vector Space. “Throughout my time here I have learned how to solder, weld, program and much more.”

Most recently, Marraccini was a part of one of two Vector Space teams that took on the annual Global Space Balloon Challenge. Teams from all over the world build their own capsules and send them into space via a weather balloon. Teams then track their capsule and find where it landed.

After launching on May 29, Marraccini’s team, called “No Strings Attached,” retrieved their capsule—an R2-D2 bot with a sign for a potential discoverer reading “NOT AN ALIEN” followed by contact information—from Lexington.

“I was super psyched about this project because my dream is to one day go to space,” he said.

Vector Space occupied the Fifth Street property—a former auto parts manufacturing warehouse—in February and has since commenced establishing itself in the community.

There are two primary functions of the space. The first is membership; like a gym, members can pay a monthly fee for 24/7 access to the space. (Training is required before being allowed to use certain equipment.)

“Initially,” recounts Jordan Goulder, “I wanted to become a member so that I would have a space and equipment to explore my own projects and hobbies.
“I have found that and much more.”

He said the space not only has a plethora of tools and resources for diverse projects, but he has also been able to meet “great people” and collaborate with them on fun projects.

Members are free to come and go as they please, working on their personal projects or, as is oft encouraged, collaborating in groups.
All of the basic supplies and components, such as scrap wood, screws, nails, circuit boards, LEDs, etc., are on-hand. There are currently about 25 members.
The other aspect is classes, which are either skills-based, like computer programming, screen printing or photography, or project-based, like the quadcopter and space balloon.

Anyone with a passion and knowledge can pitch a class. The instructor develops their own budget and curriculum. Half the profit goes to the instructor while the rest is invested back into the space. Classes span from four to eight weeks and typically meet two times per week for two to three hours at a time.

Most classes offer a scholarship slot, just as some generous individuals choose to sponsor a membership, helping everyone, regardless of their resources, to benefit from the space.

Students have been the largest demographic in classes, though most are open to anyone 12 and up, with a hope to see more adults getting involved.
“Everyone knows their kids need to be learning,” Elise said. “(But) it has been hard to get people in the community to understand the value in improving themselves.

“(Adam and I) are both advocates of lifelong learning. We are self-taught in a lot of fields, and it is just something that we believe enriches lives.”
The couple has built a number of items over the years, like toys for their two kids, appliances and even the arcade in the lounge. (The video game doesn’t work currently, they explain, though they are sure that it is an easy fix, something jarred loose when moving in.)

They realize that everyone is not going to build their own computer. But the Spontarellis know that the more people are willing to engage their minds, to learn a new skill or tackle a new project, the more vital they and, in turn, society will be.

“If you are going to make anything new you have to understand how it works,” Adam said. “Maybe it never improves the economy, but I do think that it will bring joy to the person. There is empowerment when you can do something yourself, when you can fix your own car. And in the end there is still tangible value for that person. If you can fix your computer rather than throwing it in the trash can and buying a new one…” “… it saves you money, it saves the environment,” Elise added. Many, when faced with a problem, may just turn around.

A makerspace helps reinforce the mindset that you can be a part of the solution, even if it is just identifying the problem and then working with others to solve it.

“This is a place to come and play,” Elise said. “And to be useful, too. There is a lot of value when you can come in here and create something.”

“It is an outlet for creativity,” Adam added, pointing out the added benefit of community.

People can tinker at home. But, “Learning from each other, pushing each other forward,” he said, “you can get so much more done together than you could alone.”

Vector Space is not an inventors club—it is designed for anyone to come and flex their creativity in a number of areas. A closet space is being converted into a darkroom. There’s a 3D printer as well as a textiles area. Elise has led a screen-printing class (showcased in June during Innovation Week).
“Everyone can be creative and learn something new,” Adam said.

“You don’t have to be artistic, you don’t have to be an engineer,” Elise added.

Adam continued that some may feel intimidated, that they don’t know much—or anything—about electronics, soldering, woodwork, etc., and fear they won’t fit in.

“We make a concerted effort to encourage learning and to emphasize that you are not expected to know everything,” he said. “No one knows everything so you are not going to be ridiculed for not knowing something.”

“If you are interested,” Elise said, intentionally punctuating the thought there, “then this is a place for you.”

Stepping out of Vector Space, back into Lynchburg’s modest cityscape, that aforementioned feeling rushes back in force, like the open Central Virginia air.
It feels like inspiration.

Learn more at Vector-Space.org.