Re:Build Fikst

We are thrilled to welcome Nigel Slater to the team as a Mechanical Engineer! Nigel, a Northeastern University graduate, brings valuable experience from Freight Farms, where he contributed to the development of hydroponic farm containers. His background spans systems engineering, electrical design, crop research, supply chain, and manufacturing, with hands-on expertise designing components using various materials, including sheet metal, plastics, LED lighting, and control cabinets. Outside of engineering, Nigel is passionate about snowboarding, surfing, soccer, hiking (he's close to conquering all New Hampshire’s 4,000-footers), playing guitar, music production, cooking, and the arts. Welcome to the team, Nigel!

We are excited to announce that Julia Chernushevich has joined our Embedded Systems Team! Julia brings 13 years of experience engineering products that better the world - from lowering emissions through novel HVAC technologies or electric cars to identifying and stopping water leaks. She's also taught engineering and AI across a handful of in-person and online institutions, reaching over 100,000 students to this day. Julia grew up in Toronto, Canada, and moved to Arlington, MA, two years ago. She enjoys traveling and being outdoors, doing everything from camping to canoeing and climbing. She also enjoys gardening, building things, and volunteering (with Girl Scouts and Pets & People).

Everyone had fun and laughs at our annual Re:Build Fikst Fall Day! Great food, games, painting, and apple picking. 

It was a fun and "Axe-tion" packed night at Revolution Axe Throwing!

We’re excited to welcome our co-ops, Katherine Growney and Leah Aaronson, to the team! Katherine Growney is a fourth-year student at Northeastern University, where she’s actively involved with the Society of Women Engineers and the Club Fencing Team. She has previous co-op experience at an HVAC consulting company. Outside of her studies and activities, Katherine loves to travel, read, and attend concerts. Leah Aaronson, also a fourth-year student at Northeastern, is engaged with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Society of Women Engineers. Her previous co-op experience was at Desktop Metal, where she gained hands-on knowledge about 3D printing with various materials. Originally from a small town in Southern Oregon, Leah enjoys camping, hiking, swimming, and crocheting. She’s also passionate about coffee, having worked as a barista, and has two cats at home in Oregon and one in Boston.

Setting sail with the best crew ever! Our 3rd Annual Fikst Sailing Night at the MIT Sailing Pavilion was a fantastic success. Boats were filled with smiles and laughter as we enjoyed a perfect evening on the Charles River, with our very own Fiksters taking the helm as captains. Thank you to everyone who made the night so memorable. Here’s to many more nights of sailing and fun together.

We’re excited to welcome Hayley Knight as our new part-time IT technician! Hayley graduated from Salem State University in 2017 with a degree in Computer Science. After college, she gained valuable IT support experience and worked as an automotive technician—a passion that continues as a hobby. She lives in Newbury, MA, with her dog, Frank. In her free time, Hayley enjoys making and fixing things, from cars to costumes. She’s also an avid gamer with a collection of classic Nintendo consoles and loves spending weekends with friends at her parent’s lake house in Maine.

We had a fantastic Yard Games Lunch at Re:Build Fikst! It was a great time with laughter and fun as we enjoyed friendly competition and team bonding.

We welcome Becky Johnston and Sydney Carter as our newest Mechanical Engineers! Becky Johnston graduated from Northeastern University in 2022, where she enjoyed building rockets with the Aerospace Club. She joins us from Hefring Engineering, a startup developing the OceanScout glider-type AUV for oceanographic data collection. At Hefring, Becky was involved in mechanical design improvement, hardware troubleshooting, vehicle controls, and field testing. Outside of work, she loves crocheting, quilting, and gardening. Sydney Carter graduated from MIT with a focus on mechanical engineering. Her impressive experience includes motor design and vehicle engineering at General Motors, working on both electric and ICE vehicles, as well as testing software and electronic systems at BioSensics. Sydney is passionate about Computer Aided Design (CAD) and enjoys exploring various CAD programs. In her free time, she enjoys drawing, sculpture, and pottery, and has recently traveled to Japan and Mexico. We’re excited to see the innovative contributions they’ll bring to Re:Build Fikst. 

Welcome to our co-ops Rayhaan Saaim and Nolan Smithwick! Rayhaan will soon be entering his senior year at Harvard University, where he is studying mechanical engineering. At Harvard, Rayhaan is part of the rocketry club and the EV go-kart team. He has also been a part of the Harvard chapter of Engineers Without Borders USA, and in the summer of 2023 he traveled to Kenya to help conduct borehole drilling and water pump installation in the village of Kibuon. Outside of school, Rayhaan enjoys biking and go-karting and is currently enjoying rebuilding a Subaru EJ255 engine. Nolan is a fourth-year mechanical engineering student at Northeastern University. He had a previous co-op in Los Angeles, working at an aerospace company called Honeybee Robotics. While there, he did design work on a deployable solar project called LAMPS. At Northeastern, he’s been working on a project called COBRA, a snake-like robot built to explore the lunar south pole. Outside of school, he loves reading and baking.  Nolan has recently taken an interest in birding and has spotted over 95 species throughout the last few months. We are happy to have them joining our team!