USM prof selected Top in Tech for innovative PPE | News

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Dr. Anna Wan, assistant professor of mathematics and director and founder of the Eagle Maker Hub at the University of Southern Mississippi, has been selected as a Top in Tech leader by the Mississippi Business Journal for her contributions to the field of technology in the state.

This accolade shouldn’t just go to me, but to this team that I belong to here at the USM, Wan said.

The Eagle Maker Hub was established in 2016 as the first public maker space available at a Mississippi university, providing access to tools for digital fabrication, rapid prototyping and coding. It grew out of Wans’ quest to integrate digital fabrication into mathematics teaching and learning and has since branched out into other content areas such as science and engineering.

Dr. Wan has a keen eye for future technologies and implemented them at the University of Southern Mississippi upon arrival, said Dr. Bernd Schroeder, acting director of the School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Eagle Maker Hub was built on a much smaller budget than comparable facilities and its impact has been tremendous. “

When the need was greatest at the start of the pandemic, Dr. Wan’s ingenuity helped create medical equipment from what was available at the time. To name a few items, the highly effective Hub Mask was held in place by cloth straps produced in local embroidery houses. Additionally, a head isolation unit that provides patient airflow that does not mix with rescuers’ air has been crafted from clear gym bags. It makes sense that such collaborations between the university and the community should advance the state of Mississippi in these times and better ones to come. “

Eagle Maker Hub, run by a small group of USM student volunteers, is open to the public. In addition to being a training camp for students and teachers, it is also home to several summer camps, serves as a creator space for creatives who need to use its equipment, and provides community services where there is a gap, such as the sudden demand for personal protective equipment at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Eagle Maker Hub has partnered with local medical organizations to provide face shields, breathing masks, ventilator prototypes and more in 2020.

Dr. Wan is a true leader who fosters innovative thinking among her students and colleagues, said Dr. Sarah Lee, director of the USMs School of Computing Sciences and Computer Engineering. His technical contributions to the state of Mississippi were highlighted during the pandemic with his design and creation of a 3D printed medical mask.

The Top in Tech award honored 22 technology leaders this year. The honorees are individuals and companies who innovate, create jobs, and contribute to the Mississippi economy, from any industry, government, education, healthcare, security, or other industry in which they are technology leaders and innovators.

While the future of the Eagle Maker Hub is limitless, there is no doubt that its rapid and innovative response to the pandemic has better prepared it for future challenges.

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