Mendon-Upton Regional School District

Students representing Nipmuc’s Engineering program, Drone Club and IT Innovation Career Pathway attended the event on April 29 in Foxborough, where they joined more than 300 attendees from the defense industry, government and academia for the conference hosted by the National Defense Industrial Association's (NDIA) New England Chapter.

Presenting NASA-Partnered Research & Drone Technology

Engineering students Luke Calabrese and Liam Flanagan presented original research connected to Nipmuc’s High-Altitude Balloon (HAB) and International Space Station (ISS) programs. They created research posters, which were displayed throughout the day for conference attendees.

Members of the Drone Club showcased their competition drone, while students from the IT Innovation Career Pathway attended sessions focused on cybersecurity, defense industry compliance and emerging technology.

During the conference’s NDIA STEM Connections segment, Nipmuc students were recognized on the main stage and presented with a $5,000 award from NDIA New England to support the school’s NASA HAB, ISS and Drone Club programs.

Nipmuc Regional High School is a designated MaxIQ Center of Excellence, a distinction recognizing the school’s partnership with MaxIQ Space in advancing student aerospace research. Through that partnership, Nipmuc students are preparing a student-designed sensor payload that is planned for launch to the International Space Station in December 2026 in collaboration with MaxIQ Space, Princeton University, NASA and its Voyager program.

The payload is designed to measure magnetic field fluctuations, air quality, carbon dioxide levels, volatile organic compounds and gyroscopic data. Students previously conducted a successful HAB mission in 2024 that captured unusual carbon dioxide readings later traced to volcanic eruptions. A follow-up mission planned for 2025 experienced a hardware-related failure, and another HAB launch is planned for August 2026 ahead of the ISS mission.

Meanwhile, Nipmuc’s Drone Club continues to compete in the Aerospace Robotics Competition using a custom-built quadcopter designed, programmed and flown by students. The drone includes a carbon fiber frame, autonomous navigation technology and a custom 3D-printed claw mechanism developed through multiple student-led design iterations.

Exploring Careers in Cybersecurity & National Defense

The event also provided IT Innovation Career Pathway students with a rare opportunity to interact directly with professionals working in cybersecurity and national defense fields.

“Our IT Innovation Career Pathway is designed to bridge the gap between academic theory and industry reality,” said Nipmuc's Career, Community, and Innovations Coordinator Tara Bennett. “By bringing our ICP participants to the NDIA New England Cyber Event, we moved them beyond the role of ‘student’ and into the role of ‘emerging professional.’ Watching our students engage with national defense experts as learners, not just observers, highlights the exact type of immersion this pathway aims to provide. They weren’t just seeing the future of cybersecurity; they were beginning to navigate it.”

Nipmuc teacher and Science Department Chairperson Jim Gorman said the event gave students an opportunity to present their work before an authentic audience outside the classroom.

“Today’s event gave my students an authentic audience and real feedback,” Gorman said. “There’s a confidence that comes from presenting to professionals and seeing that they’re genuinely interested in your work, and that’s something a classroom simply can’t provide. I hope they left knowing they already belong in rooms like that one.”

Nipmuc teacher Ronald Cochran, who is faculty advisory for the Drone Club, said the Drone Club’s work closely aligns with the technical and cybersecurity concepts explored during the conference.

“This event focuses on supporting the cybersecurity industry through funding, overhead support, and fostering interest in students,” said Cochran. “Our drone team is a student organization that works with competencies closely aligned with those represented in this event, and the work we do could not happen without continued student interest and financial support from the school.”

Students also reflected on the experience of interacting with professionals in the field.

“One thing that surprised me was how collaborative the field is — it’s not just individuals working alone, but teams across sectors,” said senior Hannah Cotton. “It also changed how I think about my future — I need to commit to constantly learning, not just mastering one skill.”

Sophomore James Rabidou said the experience gave him valuable insight into possible career paths.

“I found the experience very valuable,” Rabidou said. “I don’t think that’s really the career I want to pursue; however, it was still good to see what kind of work professionals in that field do.”

Praising Students’ Professionalism & Ingenuity

Mendon-Upton Regional School District Superintendent Dr. Maureen Cohen and Nipmuc Regional High School Co-Principals John Clements and Mary Anne Moran congratulated the students and advisors for representing Nipmuc on a national stage.

“Opportunities like this allow our students to apply their learning in authentic, real-world settings while interacting with professionals working at the highest levels of engineering, aerospace and cybersecurity,” said Co-Principal Clements. “We are incredibly proud of the confidence, professionalism and expertise our students demonstrated throughout the event.”

“This experience highlighted the creativity, curiosity and collaboration that our students bring to these programs every day,” said Co-Principal Moran. “Seeing our students present advanced research and technical projects on such a large stage was truly exciting, and we’re grateful to the staff members who helped make these opportunities possible.”

“This experience showcased the extraordinary opportunities our students are accessing through engineering, aerospace research, cybersecurity and innovation-focused learning,” said Superintendent Cohen. “We are incredibly proud of our students and staff for the professionalism, curiosity and expertise they demonstrated throughout this event.”