The UCR Library’s 3D printer was featured with demonstrations for over 140 honors students during “Geek Week” in early January. This event launched a new collaborative program between the Library and University Honors (UH) to foster curiosity and exploration, build a sustainable peer resource program, and increase student collaboration with interdisciplinary projects.

The UH Peer Researcher Fellowship and Innovation Program has two components. The fellowship program pairs students with a librarian mentor to learn advance research skills and experience co-teaching library workshops. We hope to build a strong learning community of peer instructors to share skills, experiences, and knowledge through this experiential learning opportunity.

17 fellows from a variety of disciplines and stages of academic career were selected for the pilot program. UH students Raymond Tran and Mary Michaels serve as program advisers, assisting the librarian team to develop future programming and curriculum. The pilot program will be assessed through student, staff, and faculty feedback.

Engaging students through innovative and entrepreneurial forums or project laboratories is another program focus. Guest speakers from a range of professional backgrounds will host discussions on crowdfunding, multimedia production, and small business development. Project laboratories will provide space, tools, and hands-on instruction for experimenting and “making” with open-source electronic platforms such as Raspberry Pi and MakeyMakey.

Through this enriched programming we hope to inspire UH students, and to spark early exploration and design of their capstone projects.