Nick is the PS-12 Director of Maker Spaces at Hawken School, an independent college preparatory school in Northeast Ohio. His role expands beyond the classroom as he supports many of the hands-on innovative spaces at Hawken including the Upper School Fab Lab, Media Production Studio, and Woodshop, and the Lower School Innovation Lab and Computational Thinking and Design Zone. In addition to supporting project-based curriculum for teachers and students projects, Nick teaches design fundamental and prototyping classes at Upper School. Throughout his sixteen years in education, Nick has served in many roles that have allowed him to create unique learning experiences for both students and teachers. He began his career as a visual arts teacher for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District in Cleveland, Ohio where he engaged with teachers across grade levels and disciplines to enhance and extend learning outcomes in math, science, English, and the arts. He served as the Assistant Head of School at MC2 STEM High School, where he created inter-disciplinary, STEM focused curriculum delivered through a Project Based approach. Nick has supported teaching teams across the world, presented best-practices internationally for STEM, Fab Labs, and Makerspace Education, and provided countless hours of professional development as a lead STEM practitioner and Fab Lab Education Guru. He holds a master’s degree in Educational Administration, and a bachelor’s degree in Art Education. 

Kara Gehring, M.Ed., has spent the last decade developing inquiry-driven, culturally-aware pedagogy for young students. Specializing in hands-on science and cross-content integration in curriculum, Kara is a creative thinker and go-to colleague for big ideas that push progressive education further, all while keeping a powerful and deep student learning experience at the center.

As the Director of the Innovation Lab at Hawken School in Cleveland, Ohio, Kara welcomes all members of our Preschool through the eighth-grade community to our Makerspace, collaborates with over 100 faculty members, and designs curriculum to meet the needs of over 600 students each school year. Kara integrates equipment and tools into student visions in a seamless way, facilitating a safe and vibrant, active learning environment. Kara’s vision for Mobile Maker Cart stations enabled quick access to materials and fabrication opportunities across our entire campus at any moment. Kara is a Lead Instructor of the Fab Play Maker Educator’s Institute, an administrator leading the Special Area team at Hawken, and a specialist in integrating appropriate educational technologies into everyday classroom experiences. 

Outside of education, Kara’s creative passions, eye for design, and instant connection with people led her to found Kara Gehring Photography, where she specializes in portraiture in outdoor settings.