CCIC Alumni Drive Innovation at Colorado School of Mines Formula SAE Program

Cherry Creek Innovation Campus (CCIC) students had the unique opportunity to see where their pathways can lead when members of the Colorado School of Mines Formula SAE Team visited campus this fall. The team, which designs, builds, and races small, Formula-style race cars, showcased their student-built vehicle and shared insights about engineering, collaboration, and leadership with more than 200 CCIC students over the course of 2 days.

The visit was especially meaningful because seven CCIC alumni are now part of the Mines Formula team, including William Schimberg (Grandview ‘23) and Fox Cribbs (Eaglecrest ‘25). Both credit their time at CCIC for preparing them to succeed in the rigorous world of collegiate engineering.

From Classroom to Competition

Each year, Mines Formula students design and manufacture a new race car from the ground up to compete in the Formula SAE Michigan Competition, where they race against more than 109 university teams from across the country. The team operates much like a business, with about 80 students divided into 13 subsystems responsible for everything from aerodynamics and suspension to software and powertrain engineering.

Now serving as the Powertrain Lead, Schimberg oversees everything from the engine to the wheels, managing a team of 25 engineering students. His leadership role includes teaching teammates the theory behind engines, guiding them through part design, and ensuring every component works in harmony to deliver optimal power.

“CCIC prepared me for the real world and college by giving us hands-on experience and expertise that you don’t normally get in high school,” said Schimberg. “Because of that, I was more prepared going into college and able to do some really incredible work here at Formula SAE.”

Schimberg’s journey to Mines began at a SkillsUSA competition he attended with CCIC, where he first met members of the Mines Formula team.

“I wasn’t dead set on college when I was leaving CCIC,” he said. “But seeing the Mines Formula team at SkillsUSA convinced me to go to Mines and join their team. Now, I want to help students who are still figuring out their paths see that engineering might be for them, and that they can do cool projects like this.”

Turning Passion into Purpose

For Fox Cribbs, a 2025 Eaglecrest graduate, the Advanced Manufacturing Pathway at CCIC confirmed his calling in engineering and deepened his passion for problem-solving.

“Before I came to CCIC, I knew I wanted to do engineering, but CCIC really helped me verify that and brought passion to the craft,” Cribbs explained.

At Mines, Cribbs now serves on the suspension team, which is responsible for how the car’s tires maintain grip and balance through turns. The team redesigns and builds a new car every year, calculating physics and forces, designing parts in CAD, running performance analyses, and manufacturing components from aluminum before assembling and racing the finished car in Michigan each spring.

A Model for Career-Connected Learning

CCIC’s focus on hands-on, career-connected education continues to open doors for students to explore, experiment, and excel in real-world environments. Events like the Mines Formula visit give current students the chance to learn directly from alumni who are already leading in their fields and see how classroom learning translates to career success.

“Seeing our alumni come back and mentor our students is exactly what CCIC is all about,” said CCIC Principal, Steve Day. “They’re living proof that when students are given the opportunity to apply their learning in meaningful ways, they can go on to do incredible things.”

The Formula SAE team’s visit showcased not only the power of engineering but also the lasting impact of CCIC’s pathways, where curiosity turns into confidence and hands-on learning leads to lifelong success.