Randal Dickinson has been the Digital Fabrication Specialist at the Fay Jones School since February 2017. Prior to joining the school, he was a career and technical education instructor at Fayetteville High School from 2011 to 2017. Dickinson also taught in Korea. He received a Bachelor of Arts in art (graphic design) and a Master of Education in career and technology education, both from the U of A.
What brought you to the University of Arkansas?
A better opportunity to do what I love. I was teaching at Fayetteville High School. I enjoyed learning and creating, but my duties as a teacher in a public school had me going in another direction. I wasn’t able to do what I liked.
I’m a designer and woodworker. I enjoy having access to design equipment, fabrication equipment, woodworking equipment, CNC and 3D printers. When I started here, a lot of that equipment was new to me. We had some of it at Fayetteville High School, but I was busy doing other things and couldn’t establish my expertise on the equipment. The equipment was just sitting there a lot of the time, and I didn’t have time to use it. Now I’m able to focus my energy on learning to master techniques in fabrication design.
What has kept you here for seven years?
Support.
I felt like I was alone when I was teaching at Fayetteville High School. I was basically the entire pre-engineering department, and I was the robotics coach. I didn’t feel supported. Here, I have a team. I have resources and the ability to get new resources. Dean MacKeith’s focus on modeling and fabrication goes a long way toward that.
I also enjoy the variety of work. Every semester, we do the same thing differently. It’s never the same. There are always special projects that come down the pike that are interesting. There are always challenges that a building full of design students brings. I don’t get bored. I always need to use my critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
How did you get into this field?
My dad is an engineer, and my mom is a teacher. Education has always been in my blood. I also grew up being creative, problem-solving and doing construction projects.
In the early 2000s, I managed and designed for different businesses, like a T-shirt shop and a sign shop. Then, I got into education. I taught overseas in Korea for two years. When I came back, I got my master’s in Career and Technology Education, which gave me my teaching certificate. While I was at Fayetteville High School, I saw a posting for this job. I thought I’d be able to focus more on the design and fabrication aspects, so here I am.
What does your day as a digital fabrication specialist look like?
I get in and check my email. I look at the schedule to see what’s happening. I have to assess, “Is it just people using the lasers, or do I have to consult with people that want something 3D printed or CNC milled? Then I have to plan out the materials used in the projects; I assess what we have and what’s needed. We also have to allocate human resources. I also have to be prepared for walk-ins of any sort. We tell students we schedule consultations to meet with people on specific matters, but we’re also there for walk-ins. It could be any of our resources, our machines or software that they need input on. It could also be at any point of the design. I have to have a bag of tricks ready to help out. I have to be able to critically assess what they want to do and come up with a solution. Sometimes I do research on my own if it’s an out-of-the-ordinary problem, and I come up with a game plan to get the best solution to whatever riddle they’re bringing in.
What is something about your job that people might not realize?
I don’t think people realize the challenge of keeping up with technology. As I learn and master skills, they’re already becoming obsolete. I have to keep my finger on the pulse of the direction that the technology is moving. There are always new tools that people are using for fabrication and design.
What is the most difficult part of your job?
When students have a vision that can’t be achieved. Telling a design student or a designer that they need to change their design — it’s tough. I try not to do it. But we are bound by the laws of physics and material properties. Some things work at full scale, but if we have to scale it down, there are issues. It’s tough to tell someone that we can’t do something exactly the way they want it. Then it’s a challenge to find an acceptable alternative method that will still get their point across. It’s almost like ripping off bandages. You just tell them, “Alright we can’t do that. Let’s think of what we can do.”
What is an accomplishment you are proud of?
I’m hesitant to say, but we have a 100 percent safety record in the labs. There is a level of pride each time we get through a semester without injury or a major mishap that prevents students from turning in work. It’s more exciting when it’s the culmination of a special project outside of the everyday running of the labs, doing larger-scale fabrication projects and then getting to see them on display. That’s really gratifying.
What is something that you wish others knew about you?
I slept-walked out of a two-story window when I was 6 years old. We were moving, so the curtains were down. There was a streetlight outside my window; I just went out. I went and saw the footprints the next day.
I love to travel, see the world and enjoy the outdoors. I would like to see all seven continents at one point. I have been to four.
What would I want people to know about me? I guess that I am a work in progress.
How has your diversity of teaching experience influenced your work now?
It’s helped me take a teaching approach to almost everything. I learned teaching skills on the front lines. I went to Korea without having teaching experience and taught for two years. When I came back, I went into formal teaching education. So, I switched from impromptu, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants teaching to academic, written and outlined lesson plans. From either side of that spectrum, I use those skills in everyday life. I look at the information I have, figure out what I need to learn and then apply it. I don’t expect to get it right the first time, but teaching can be applied to everyday life. I do it without thinking about it.