Image by Ed Brennen Civil engineering major Michael Noel, left, supervises as his young cousins, Conrad, center, and Gabriel work on a solar energy project at Falmouth Hall.
Since transferring to UMass Lowell, civil engineering major Michael Noel has found a home base in the Lawrence Lin MakerSpace.
It’s where he studies between classes, meets other students and works on projects with the WindHawks, the university’s Wind Energy Innovation Club. Over the past two years, the open-concept workshop on the first floor of Falmouth Hall is where Noel has found his footing as a student in the Francis College of Engineering.
“From the jump, the people in the MakerSpace have been nothing but helpful to me,” says Noel, who transferred to UML from Wentworth Institute of Technology as a sophomore. “It’s been a great space to really find my niche here.”
It’s also where he brings two of the most important people in his life.
About once a week, Noel drives his cousins, Gabriel, 13, and Conrad, 11, from Nashua, New Hampshire, to campus. Their father died in 2023, and Noel says bringing them to campus has become a way to help them navigate a difficult time — giving them a place to focus, build things and see new possibilities for themselves.
Image by Ed Brennen "The people in the MakerSpace have been nothing but helpful to me," says civil engineering major Michael Noel, center, who brings his cousins Conrad, left, and Gabriel with him to campus about once a week.
"I want to get them out of their apartment and into an environment of learning and productivity, where they can get their minds off of everything,” Noel says. “I want them to see how far education can take you.”
Noel usually brings his cousins to campus over the weekend, when the MakerSpace isn’t as busy. If the space is being used, Noel takes them to a next-door computer lab to work on projects that he dreams up for them. So far, they have built a popsicle stick bridge and cars powered by balloons and mousetraps, conducted an egg-drop parachute experiment and made a 3D-printed prosthetic leg for their cat, Nubby.
Their most recent project is a solar energy system that Noel hopes will eventually help their grandmother reduce her electricity costs. The project aligns with Noel’s long-term career goals.
“I want to work in renewable energy — solar panels, wind turbines, hydro — and design affordable housing that integrates those systems,” he says. “I want to make it so people don’t have to pay for electricity.”
Before then, Noel plans to use his engineering to work for his family’s well-digging company on Martha’s Vineyard, where he is from.
Noel credits Associate Teaching Professor Jesus Reyes Blanco, transfer coordinator for the Francis College of Engineering, with helping him think about how to teach younger learners — especially when they get frustrated.
“When they hit a block, you have to know how to take a step back,” Noel says. “I’ve learned a lot on how to teach. You learn pretty quickly that it’s not for the weak.”
Noel has even written papers for extra credit in classes about the projects he’s done with his cousins.
Image by Ed Brennen "I want them to see how far education can take you," civil engineering major Michael Noel, left, says of bringing his cousins to UMass Lowell with him.
When they’re done working at the MakerSpace, Noel often takes the boys to the Fox Dining Commons, where they get a taste of campus life beyond the lab.
“As a little kid, it’s like heaven. The variety is tremendous,” Noel says.
When Conrad tells his friends back in grade school about his visits to campus, he keeps it simple: “I just tell them I’m going to college.” He’s already thinking about his future and says he wants to be a mechanical engineer — perhaps after attending UMass Lowell.
Gabriel, meanwhile, has taken an interest in computers and talks about designing video games one day.
Family has long influenced Noel’s path. Before transferring to UML, he chose Wentworth in part because it kept him close to Boston Children’s Hospital, where his younger sister, Isabel, receives treatment for cystic fibrosis.
Now, as he balances classes, projects and family responsibilities, Noel says mentoring his young cousins at the MakerSpace is simply part of what matters most.
“It’s just something that has to be done,” he says.