To say that Trent Stiegelmeyer enjoys playing games and watching videos on his customized computer is an understatement. “I watched a lot of YouTube videos and I really wanted to build a gaming computer for schoolwork, entertainment, and gaming,” said the Cuyahoga Heights High School ninth grader. “I have been wanting to build a computer for about three years now.”
That desire drove Stiegelmeyer to stay after school one afternoon to attend the Technology Mentorship Program. The group meets every Tuesday after school from 2:45-4 p.m. in the Informational Technology Assistance Center (ITAC) located above the high school library. It is open to middle and high school students interested in computer technology, photography, video production, server management, and operating drones.
“It’s completely run by the students,” said Matt Hartman, Information Technology Support Specialist, who helps run the activity. “They drive the subject material and topics for discussion.” This open forum led Stiegelmeyer to share his dream to build his own computer and before he knew it Hartman and IT Director Dave Wallis were guiding him in his endeavor. “They taught me a lot that I never knew about or heard of,” said Stiegelmeyer. “They helped me throughout the whole thing.”
Under Hartman and Wallis’s mentorship, Stiegelmeyer did all the planning and built his computer from scratch using individual parts, including the case, fans, motherboard, display monitor, and Central Processing Unit (CPU). They helped him choose the parts and decide where to purchase them. Stiegelmeyer’s parents purchased some of the parts as gifts to their son.
Stiegelmeyer took an active role in the construction, seating each piece into place and screwing it down. Eleventh-grade students Samuel Borsuk and Bryce Navarra, who are both enrolled in computer programs at the Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, also assisted Stiegelmeyer “And, they taught me some things about gaming apps, such as ‘Army Crate’,” said Stiegelmeyer.
The entire assembly took about an hour, said Hartman, and Stiegelmeyer could not be more pleased with the outcome. “It was a very stressful process because you had to be very careful with every part but Mr. Hartman and Mr. Wallis really helped me,” said Stiegelmeyer. “Mr. Hartman explained every part I had. I made some mistakes building it, but they both showed me some things and were teaching me throughout. It was scary towards the end to even see if the computer would work but the unit turned on, on the first try.”
Stiegelmeyer is now using his computer to do schoolwork, play games with his friends, and satisfy his natural curiosity about computers. “I learned that you have to be very patient and focus on what you're doing,” said Stiegelmeyer, about his successful venture. He said he is considering the possibility of building gaming computers for others.
In addition to sharing technology information, the Mentorship Program also provides interested students the opportunity to videotape and edit videos and live stream events taking place in the school district. For example, last year, Stiegelmeyer videotaped the high school’s performance of the musical Aladdin, and live-streamed the Class of 2021’s Commencement. He has also learned how to fly the school district’s drone.
“We just provide the knowledge and things for them to poke and probe at,” said Hartman, who is ready to help students experience technology first-hand. “If they come with a lot of questions, we have a lot to teach them. Otherwise, we share with them some cool technology and we discuss it.” Either way, the students come away with a greater handle on using technology in today’s world.