Rockport resident Elias Brainard, 12, looks at a 3D printer during West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy Saturday. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

PARKERSBURG — Area teens had the opportunity to learn about 3D printing Saturday.

Teens, ages 12-17, attended West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy this past Thursday through Saturday at the school’s Workforce Development Building.

The academy included an introduction to 3D printing, learning about the components of a 3D printer, building their own 3D printer and 3D printing troubleshooting, according to a press release from WVUP. The cost of the academy was $150 per child.

As part of the academy teens received a 3D printer, a one-month membership to the Teen Makers Club, a spool of filament and a West Virginia at Parkersburg swag bag, the release said.

The 3D printers students that students receive during the academy are usually donated, according to academy instructor Kurt Knopp.

Parkersburg resident Julia Crone, 17, left, listens as instructor Kurt Knopp shares information about 3D printers Saturday during West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

3D printing has been around for a while but over the past several years the cost of 3D printing equipment has dropped so that the normal consumer or student can get a decent 3D printer for $200 and the filament used to print things for about $15, Knopp said.

“The technology enables people of all ages to be able to use their creativity and (their) skills sets to make things that otherwise might not exist,” he said.

West Virginia University at Parkersburg encourages people that learn 3D printing technologies to see if there is any way to apply it to entrepreneurship, he said, so they can “make something and sell it or come up with the next great product, that’s one thing we really think that everybody could take part in and it could be something that they use to make money.”

The academy is one of the ways the school offers opportunities for people to learn about 3D printing before they invest in the equipment, he said, and a lot of children would like to have a 3D printer.

The academy is a like a “Christmas gift” for the teens who participate, because they hold it at Christmas time and they get sent home with a 3D printer, Knopp said, and the cost of the class is usually less than the cost of a 3D printer.

Belpre resident Ka’Niyah Ford, 17, uses a tool to program a 3D printer during West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy Saturday. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

3D printing is really a way to use science and tech to be creative, Knopp said, and while the teens did not print their own designs during the academy but they learned about 3D design using online software and will be able to create and print their own objects at home, Knopp said.

One teen that attended the academy was Belpre resident Ka’Niyah Ford, 17.

She came to the class to learn about how to use a 3D printer, she said.

Her favorite part of the academy was “seeing how (the 3D printer) makes stuff’, she said.

Rockport resident Elias Brainard, 12, also attended the academy.

Belpre resident Ka’Niyah Ford, 17, uses a tool to program a 3D printer during West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy Saturday. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

He loved all the things he learned at the academy, he said.

“Everybody here is friendly,” he said. “It’s fun. I just love it all.”

Parkersburg resident Julia Crone, 17, has attended the academy before and was there again on Saturday.

“I just really like the 3D design aspect of it and to be able to make things,” she said about why she has attended twice.

She like the people at the academy, too, according to Crone.

Rockport resident Elias Brainard, 12, left, pulls out 3D printing supplies as instructor Kurt Knopp, right, speaks, during West Virginia University at Parkersburg’s Teen 3D Printing Academy Saturday. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

“I like the community of it too,” she said. “It’s really nice to be around some young people that are creative and like to make things.”

Michelle Dillon can be reached at mdillon@newsandsentinel.com