Noah Miller never thought he’d win the Casting Dreams competition. But after learning how to metalcast, refine, and finish a miniature truck in his high school’s material science class, he was ready to give it a try—and he took home the national prize. 

Miller, 18, from Spring Hill, Kansas, got his first glimpse of metalcasting when his twin brother, Levi, won second place in the inaugural Casting Dreams competition last year. Through resources and materials provided by Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF) High School Outreach program, a METAL partner, Miller gained rare hands-on experience in a field he’d never learned about before. 

But, more than anything, Miller was excited to cast a creation of his own.

“What made it interesting to me was how you can make a mold of something and pour metal and it comes out so detailed, so perfect,” Miller said. “My favorite part was pouring the metal into the mold.”

Miller credits his material science teacher, Matthew Lundy, for igniting his interest in metalcasting.

Firing Up Curiosity in Manufacturing

Lundy’s class introduces students to a variety of manufacturing disciplines—from ceramics and glass, to polymers, plastics and composites, to metal material properties and casting. Using FEF’s Foundry in a Box kits and video tutorials, he walks students through simple sand casts and tin casts before they explore investment casting with FEF Key Professor Russell Rosmait.

With Lundy and Rosmait’s help, students learn how to metalcast small items such as school mascots, sports team logos, rings and even their favorite books. Each student designs their project in CAD, 3D prints the design, encases the object in plaster to create a ceramic mold, and finally has the chance to pour red-hot bronze or brass into the desired shape. 

“There’s not really any limitation,” Lundy said. “If you have the imagination for something that you want to cast and it can be made into three dimensions, you can cast it.”

 For both Lundy and Rosmait, the best part is seeing students’ eyes go wide and light up during the molten pour. Rosmait, a professor emeritus of engineering technology at Pittsburg State University, has partnered with Spring Hill High School for more than eight years to show high school students what’s possible in a metalcasting career—and many students continue on to engineering programs at Pittsburg State and other schools across the country. 

“Part of FEF is making sure students have great hands-on experiences,” Rosmait said. “I know I have a student hooked when I watch them pour the metal and their tongue is hanging out of their mouth. They’re just so excited and can’t wait to break out the mold and see their success.”

What’s most important is that students have the opportunity to try metalcasting, Rosmait added. “It teaches our youth today that you can build things to advance the future,” he said. 

For Miller, entering the Casting Dreams competition was an opportunity he couldn’t resist. 

Forging Ahead of the Competition

After learning the fundamentals of metalcasting, Miller was ready to design and cast his own creation for Casting Dreams. 

In its second year, Casting Dreams is hosted by the Steel Founders’ Society of America for seventh through twelfth grade students who want to test the skills they’ve learned with help from programs like METAL and FEF. In 2024, Casting Dreams had 67 students participate. This year, more than 600 students submitted their own metalcasted projects to be judged by professional metallurgists.  

Miller’s project was inspired by his love of working on cars with his dad. He spent a month perfecting his investment cast Ford truck (complete with hubcaps and bumpers) before submitting it to Casting Dreams. After placing second and third at the local and regional levels, Miller said he was surprised when he won at nationals.  

“The most rewarding thing from participating in Casting Dreams was winning first place,” Miller said. “When I was making my truck, I felt most accomplished when I polished it up and saw how good it looked. It blew me away.”

Michelle Kerns, program director for FEF’s Metalcasting High School Outreach, said reaching students in high school and middle school is the perfect time to engage, inspire, and get them curious about metalcasting careers.

“By the time we reach engineering students in junior or senior year of college, they’ve already decided where they want to go,” Kerns said. “We’re trying to get the best and brightest students into the metalcasting industry. There’s a lot of jobs coming back to the United States and we need talented people in the workforce to fill those jobs and meet the needs of the foundries.”

For now, Miller plans to pursue his passion for science at Kansas State University, putting his Casting Dreams prize money toward tuition. More than the grand prize, Miller’s grateful for the hands-on metalcasting experience and skills he gained, thanks to his teacher and FEF. 

Last year, FEF’s Metalcasting High School Outreach program piloted its two-week basic metalcasting unit in 13 schools. This fall, the program will launch in 50 high schools across the U.S. – teaching students of all ages how to create, imagine, and forge new paths in metalcasting.

For more information on METAL’s K-12 workshops, visit here.