CGIF Supports Materials Science Through Donation to High School in Need

The Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation (CGIF) recently made a generous donation to the Donors Choose organization to benefit the science department at Louisville High School in Louisville, Ohio.

Mr. Pete Carpico, a chemistry teacher and Science Club advisor at Louisville High made a project request to Donors Choose, an organization that connects the public with public high schools to make it easy for anyone to help a classroom in need. To ensure integrity, Donors Choose is involved in every step of a project; they vet all requests, purchase each item, and ship materials directly to verified schools.

Mr. Carpico requested funding for an enameling kiln and related materials to combine art and chemistry to enable his students to see the ways that chemistry applies. “Combining raku pottery making and glass projects into chemistry class may seem like a stretch, but materials science provides the needed connection,” explained Mr. Carpico. “I love to challenge my students to see the application of chemistry into everything around them. It is in this way that we will be able to prepare our future scientists to create new medicines, technologies, and products.”

Marcus Fish, development director of the CGIF, explained that the project and its goals were a great match for what the Foundation seeks to accomplish with its outreach programs. “The goal of Mr. Carpico’s project was perfectly aligned with our mission of meeting the education and training needs of students and to further their knowledge of materials science,” explained Fish. “We are very pleased to lend our support to Louisville High School and its students.”

Mr. Carpico reports that through donations for the project, they received a large-chamber enameling kiln with a built-in pyrometer, a supply of lead-free raku glaze, and kiln gloves—everything needed for students to experience an art project that applies chemistry in a fun, yet meaningful and educational way.