Kogan Plaza came alive with innovation on October 3, 2024, as students from across GW gathered for George Hacks’ annual Kogan Makerspace. By fostering student innovation and design thinking, this event is designed to ignite creativity and problem-solving, empowering future leaders to develop impactful solutions that address real-world challenges.
As a student organization, George Hacks’ mission is to catalyze innovation for social impact within the GW community and Washington, D.C. metro area. Their primary events include the Kogan Makerspace and the Medical Solutions Hackathon, held during the spring semester. Together, these efforts aim to inspire GW students across disciplines to “design for good,” with Kogan Makerspace playing a key role in advancing this goal by offering a platform for all students to engage in interactive engineering activities.
At this year’s event, George Hacks showcased a variety of hands-on activities, including 3D printing, 3D pens, circuit board building, and competitions such as aluminum boat building and Lego challenges. The event also highlighted the work of fellow GW Engineering student organizations, with the GW Rocket Team, GW Baja Team, Women in Computer Science, the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE), and GW revTech presenting their latest projects. For instance, AIAA engaged attendees with its immersive flight simulator, while INCOSE demonstrated its Line Robot.
To further enrich the experience and display “engineering and…” in action, George Hacks collaborated with various university-wide groups to emphasize interdisciplinary innovation and showcase on-campus opportunities and resources. Examples of these partners included the GW Innovation Center, which highlighted its maker space resources, and the Society of Physics Students, which captivated the audience through demonstrations of a trebuchet, energy sticks, and a muon detector.
The George Hacks team summarized the key benefits they hope attendees gained from participating in the event, stating, “We hope this event empowered students and staff from all disciplines to innovate for good. Through the activities students engaged in, they learned more about different disciplines, from science and engineering to sustainability and business, and how they are all interconnected. Furthermore, we hope community members become more involved with the partnering organizations and departments.”
George Hacks’ commitment to social impact and community involvement demonstrates GW Engineering’s belief that when students come together, they can transform their collective ideas into meaningful societal contributions. To get involved with George Hacks, please visit their Instagram page and sign up for their newsletter. It’s not too early to pre-register for the George Hacks Medical Solutions Hackathon; fill out the interest form today!