CHOCOWINITY — Beaufort County Police Activities League’s afterschool STEM program is back for another round.

For the next several weeks, 18 fifth- through eighth-graders will meet twice a week at Chocowinity Middle School to work with 3-D design, modeling and engineering. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and math.

The students start with creating vehicle models on the computer, and then will use a 3-D printer to create a shell of their designs. Students can then test the prototypes with a wind tunnel machine to test its aerodynamics, according to Al Powell, president of BCPAL.

To make the STEM program a reality, BCPAL partnered with East Carolina University’s AmeriCorps, STEM East and Beaufort County Community College, Powell said. It is funded through Beaufort County United Way and the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund.

Matthew Lincoln, BCCC’s lead mechanical engineering instructor, is offering his guidance, as well, along with four college students.

Lincoln said he hopes the participants will become interested in STEM careers, and he said he thinks they are already starting to see how lessons in math class translate to the real world.

Computers were provided by BCPAL, and the design program was free to download, he said.

William Brice Dixon, who is volunteering with the program, studies mechanical engineering technology at BCCC. He said he has never participated in a program like this, but he thought it would be a good opportunity.

Dixon said his role as a volunteer is to show the students some of the computer program functions and guide them when they have questions.

“Getting to see them do something that I find so cool,” Dixon said of why he enjoys volunteering.

On Thursday, eighth-grader T’Niq Tucker showed how he was creating a 3-D model of a house on the computer program.

Tucker said he already had an interest in STEM careers, and decided to participate in the program after learning his friend would be there, too. He said he is using the program as a way to learn more about STEM.

“It’s exciting,” he said.

That’s the attitude that makes it all worthwhile for the volunteers.

When asked what he hopes the students will gain, Dixon said simply, “Hopefully that they’ll find something to do when they grow up.”