By Jade Kim, Student Success Specialist

The COVID-19 pandemic has put an immense strain on medical supplies, with many health professionals unable to gain access to essential protective gear. Local makerspaces and those with proper equipment training have proven to be a welcome solution in alleviating some of these shortages, which is exactly what UCI students and faculty have teamed up to do.

Using equipment in the Base 11 Innovation Center at UCI Beall Applied Innovation @ The Cove, UCI medical students created 5,000 much-needed face shields for hospital staff at the UCI Medical Center. “I’ve been working at UCI for eight years now. This is the best thing I’ve ever done and it’s so exciting,” said Jesse Colin Jackson, an associate professor of art and project manager of the UCI Face Shield Project.

Read the full story from the Los Angeles Times here.