This past Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2023, Posse 13 scholars came together for a Valentine’s Day celebration in the Makerspace, located in the Burke Library. As part of the Posse campus curriculum, students in their second-year are each required to conduct a leadership-focused workshop for the rest of their Posse, either in groups of two or three. Posse scholars Daniel Rodriguez Vergara ’26 and Gregoire Winston ’26 organized a 3-D printing tutorial with the support of Digital Media Intern Jules Henderson ’26. The event was also made possible thanks to the help of Posse 13’s mentor, Associate Director for Digital Innovation, Learning and Research Nhora Serrano.
Following a brief introduction, Henderson highlighted the many possibilities LITS’s newly-created Makerspace offers for Hamilton as a whole. For instance, students are able to explore the realm of artificial intelligence and virtual reality. Prior to the start of the workshop, Posse 13 scholars and their significant others, invited to share an hour of their day with the Posse 13 community, were given the chance to pick their 3-D print templates and customize them to their liking.
“This was a really interesting experience, it was great to see the 3-D printing technology in action. Knowing that we have access to the Makerspace at Hamilton is great. It was great sharing these moments with the group. As a friend of Posse 13, I felt very welcome and had a fantastic time at today’s 3-D printing workshop,” said Jack Carron ‘26.
Posse 13 scholars then decided on various 3-D print template designs, which included hamsters, pumpkins, a vase for flowers, miniature hearts with wiggly eyes and penguins holding hands. Henderson then demonstrated the slicing software required for 3-D printing and sent the models to print. As one of the primary organizers of the event, Rodriguez Vergara highlighted the importance of collaboration and spending time as a Posse cohort: “This experience gave us an opportunity to come together as a community. That is what Posse is all about.” Prior to the end of the hour-long workshop, Posse 13 was delighted when the Buffers, Hamilton College’s all-male acapella group, sang “I want to make love to you” while in the Makerspace.
Serrano reflected on her time and that of the Posse 13: “Tonight’s 3-D printing workshop offers Miami Posse 13 the opportunity to experience some of the library’s new spaces, especially LITS Makerspace. I’m excited to see my Posse grow and thrive at Hamilton, and I’m thrilled to share the library’s resources with them.”
The Posse Foundation “identifies, recruits, and trains individuals with extraordinary leadership potential,” as stated by the scholarship’s official website. Since its creation, over 12,000 students have been selected for the prestigious higher-education opportunity, totalling upwards of $2 billion worth of awards since its creation in 1989. The Posse scholarship identifies talent from across 20 recruitment centers nationwide, including Atlanta, the San Francisco Bay area, Boston, Chicago, D.C., Miami and New York. Through rounds of Dynamic Assessment Processes (DAP), potential scholars highlight their leadership qualities by working in a team setting, a part of the college admissions process that can often be forgotten by traditional admissions criteria. Founder and President of the Posse Foundation, Deborah Biel, appreciates the manner in which DAPs allows students to personally stand out: “It’s because they were dynamic, they had great communication skills, they took charge, they were gregarious and other students responded to them with some kind of interest and loyalty, no because they answered the question right.”
In 2010, Former President Barrack Obama notably donated a portion of his Nobel Peace Prize grant to the Posse Foundation. Since then, the Posse Scholarship has only grown, fostering a future generation of college trailblazers ready to pursue their dreams and live as successful community leaders.
Next weekend, the current Hamilton Posse community, which includes Posse 11, 12, 13 and 14, will come together with Posse Miami mentors for their annual Posse Plus Retreat (PPR). This weekend-long event is open to students, faculty and administration beyond the confines of Posse. This year’s PPR will be held at Hotel Utica. The comunity-building retreat is intended as a safe space for individuals to discuss important issues affecting society at the national, campus or personal level.