KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A man in Olathe, Kansas, using his 3D printer to produce face masks received a boost from his university.
Grantham University, an online school based in Lenexa, gave five students or graduates a $1,000 grant to help them fund a project to fight COVID-19.
Josh Panico, an electronics engineering student in Olathe, received one of the five grants.
Panico, an Army veteran, plans to use the money to buy a special antimicrobial plastic. He said making masks out of this kind of plastic allows people to wear them more than once.
Panico plans to donate the completed masks to front line healthcare workers.
“It’s just amazing that people are putting themselves out there like that. I’ve done it a long time ago when I was in the Army. I know the feeling,” Panico explained why he wanted to give back.
Dr. Anthony Petroy, the president of Grantham University, said the school put out a call for applications earlier in the spring and received more than 100 ideas.
The school chose to grant the money toward Panico’s project as well as others focusing on helping homeless people, disabled veterans, and feeding the hungry.
“Every day we hear stories about organizations and individuals who are doing amazing things during this pandemic. It’s not that we can change the whole world, but we can contribute to supporting the efforts of those who are impacting the pandemic,” Petroy explained. “Our goal really is to support our graduates and our students, recognizing what they are doing and help support them and give them a boost in morale and confidence.”
Panico said the grant gave him a big boost in confidence. He was shocked he received it and can’t wait to get to work.
