Dylan Jones: Looking Toward The Future

By Frank Kourt

Like most people his age, 16-year-old Dylan Jones is looking to the future and, from the looks of things so far, it’s a bright one.

Dylan, the son of Steven and Lisa Jones, of Berea, has already achieved something most people his age never do by taking third place in the Manufacturing Prototype Competitive event at the 2009 National Technology Student Association Conference in Denver.

Dylan was among the 4,000 students who attended the competition, some from as far away as Germany and China. He used computer technology to design a picture frame he built out of a piece of mahogany he found in his parents’ barn.

In addition to creating the prototype, which demonstrated a relevant application to consumers, he also submitted a description of how his product could be manufactured in a state-of-the-art American industrial facility.

Dylan demonstrated a good use of recycled material as well as a mastery of technology.

He attended the conference in June, qualifying for it as the result of taking third place in the state competition by designing a fan, using animation to make it move. That competition was conducted this past April in Louisville.

His trip to Denver, where he came away with a trophy, was the first national competition he has attended.

Not surprisingly, Dylan is looking forward to a career as a mechanical engineer. A junior at Madison Southern High School in Berea, he is considering furthering his education at either Western Kentucky University, where his brother, Cory, is already a student, majoring in civil engineering, or at the University of Kentucky.

Dylan said he has always been good at building things, and for as long as he can remember, he’s wanted to pursue a career doing just that. His talents have proven handy at home, where he built a nightstand for himself with recycled wood from the family’s barn. He also helped his dad build an addition to the family home.

He said he started out with an interest in architecture, but embraced the engineering field after taking computer-assisted design (CAD) courses at school.

He is pursuing his high school diploma in pre-engineering, known as Project Lead The Way, and is serving his second year as president of the school’s Technology Student Association (TSA) chapter.

“He’s a great young man,” said Dylan’s engineering-technology teacher and local TSA advisor, Kendall Gadd. “He’s got a lot of potential.”

Gadd, along with Dylan’s mother and father, accompanied him to the national competition in Denver.

Dylan’s mother is a math teacher at Madison Southern, and her son is a student in her class. Dylan’s dad, who has a degree in industrial arts from Berea College, is an operator at the local water treatment plant.

Dylan belies the stereotypical image of an engineering major. He enjoys a wide range of outdoor activities, including sailing, water skiing, hiking, camping, snow skiing and scuba diving, when not engaged in engineering projects.

Although he was born and raised in the temperate climate of Kentucky, Dylan has plans to move to the mountain west when he strikes out on his own.

“I like the cold weather,” he said. He said this was the first time he’s ever been to Denver, and he finds the Mile-High City very much agrees with him. “It’s snowing there already,” he said, somewhat wistfully.

Wherever his education and eventual career takes him, Dylan Jones’ talent in the field of engineering, along with his love for nature and the outdoors, indicate he’s going a long, happy and successful way!