Alexander Hoppe, a Lower Sixth Form at The Leys School, Cambridge, has been awarded a prestigious Arkwright Scholarship.
The award, now in its 30th year, recognises young talents and supports their career ambitions in the fields of engineering, computing or technical design.
He will receive £600 for materials and projects and be assigned a mentor who is a professional engineer. The Leys will receive £400 for equipment, materials or teacher training to enhance the delivery of STEM subjects.
Applicants had to create a write-up of projects they have completed over the years. One of Alexander’s projects was the development of a small piece of equipment for controlling theatre stage lighting. As the first pupil for several years to be given a Leys Technical Drama scholarship, he found this combined his interest in theatre and electronics.
“I noticed that a piece of equipment that costs £1,300 could be replaced by one that would cost £60. I’ve always been interested in electronics and computers so two years ago I began designing the hardware for a ‘translator’ which can be placed anywhere in the theatre, which then connects via Wi-Fi to your phone or console and wirelessly translates the commands to control which theatre lights come on and at what level of intensity, etcetera.”
To help him achieve this, Alexander enterprisingly emailed a Chinese electronics company: “The company was beginning to take applicants for their student sponsorship program, and I decided to apply. They accepted me and provided the circuit boards for the project.”
His device, the Wi-Fi ArtNet DMX Node, is now on Tindie, a community marketplace for hardware creators and enthusiasts. Alexander is hoping to use it for the lighting of the Cambridge Theatre Company’s production of Our House: The Madness Musical. He is the assistant lighting designer for the show, which will be staged in Great Hall over the October half-term. He plans to study mechanical or electronical engineering at university.
Alistair Coakes, Head of Design and Technology at The Leys, said: “The whole department here would like to congratulate Alexander for this excellent achievement in becoming the latest Leys School pupil to be awarded an Arkwright Engineering Scholarship. This award reflects Alexander’s passionate work around electronic and systems engineering, and we have no doubt that this scholarship is a marker of his progress and potential in the field of Engineering.”