MACON, Ga. — Mercer University’s Engineering Honors Program and Tift College of Education will host their latest Go Baby Go build on Saturday, Feb. 21, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., in Penfield Hall on the Macon campus, to modify battery-powered toy cars for children with limited mobility. At this event, the program will present its 200th car to a child.
Go Baby Go is a national, community-based research, design and outreach program that began in 2012 at the University of Delaware, and Mercer began holding events in December of 2016. Integrating assistive technology, families, clinicians and industry partners, the program helps provide children with disabilities opportunities for movement, mobility and socialization.
For the upcoming build, Mercer’s freshman and senior Engineering Honors students will build and modify cars to meet the specific needs of approximately 10 families.
The event is supported by the School of Engineering’s Dr. Philip McCreanor, professor and chair of environmental and civil engineering and director of the Engineering Honors Program, and Michael Marcoux, instructor of industrial engineering; and Tift College of Education’s Dr. Sybil Keesbury Martin, professor of teacher education and director of the Holistic Child Program. Hutchinson Automotive Group became the corporate sponsor of the event in the fall of 2023.
“The Go Baby Go project allows us to truly impact children and families in the community and throughout the entire state of Georgia,” said Dr. Martin. “Students are building relationships with these children and families just for the few hours that they’re on campus. It allows students to put into practice all the things that they’re learning in their classes about children, family and child development.”
“Go Baby Go not only brings the campus together to collaborate on a truly beautiful service project but additionally provides students with hands-on experience and the opportunity to use their skills to make a difference,” said Marcoux. “I am confident that the event changes the lives of the families we work with, but furthermore lays a practical foundation for lifelong service in our field.”
Dr. McCreanor said the events foster connections among the lower- and upperclassmen in the Engineering Honors Program, education students and technical communication students, as well as faculty and staff in the School of Engineering, Department of Technical Communication and School of Education.
“The Go Baby Go build events have become a highlight of the Engineering Honors Program,” he said. “From an academic perspective, these events introduce and reinforce basic electronics concepts through hands-on activities and promote the service-focused nature of not only the School of Engineering but also the larger Mercer University community.”
Mercer student-athletes volunteer at the event to provide support to fellow students and faculty, as well as the children and families receiving services.
