Innovative Panthers Club students look at the Roar Bluetooth Wireless Speaker with Tom DeVesto

Tom DeVesto, founder of Como Audio, is generously volunteering his time this year to advise members of the student-named Innovative Panthers Club—a new club for students interested in technology and product development. The club, which holds its meetings in the school’s new Applied Learning Center, has helped demonstrate the value of Cathedral’s approach to STEAM-based learning.

When Tom was considering how to best support Cathedral’s mission, he decided that offering his time and expertise to help students build something to benefit the school was the most valuable donation he could make. “I thought that if we could show [the students] that, through the process, you can turn an idea into money, that’s valuable,” said Tom.  

The Applied Learning Center—complete with a design-based learning makerspace lab, a state-of-the-art Autodesk 3-D printer, an area dedicated to arts and cultural activities, and seven additional collaborative learning spaces—functions as the club’s workspace as students are given the opportunity to experience the benefits of a STEAM-based approach to education and the hands-on learning initiatives that make it possible. “The ALC contributes to a new breadth and depth of this academic and life experience,” said CHS Director of Development Ted Priestly.

IPC member and CHS senior Power King ‘19 highlighted the immense impact of this approach that he has experienced through his participation in the club. “This club helps to get real business-starting experience for the future,” said King. “With elements of business, finance, design, and engineering, it provides a great well-rounded environment for growth and development.”

Tom is currently helping the club members, who all expressed a passion for music at the club’s first meetings, produce wireless speakers while teaching them about product design and marketing. The students named the Cathedral-branded speakers “Roar” and plan to market the final products as a fundraiser for the school. They saw their vision for Roar come to life last week when the functioning speaker prototype arrived. They are now eager to complete the next stages of marketing the product–with Tom’s help, of course.

The Roar is being pre-sold on Kickstarter now only through June 1, 2019 — order yours today!

Innovative Panther Club members include: Skyler DeJesus ‘19, 
Tito Okundaye ‘19
, Tutu Okundaye ‘19, 
Jordan Dickerson ‘19, 
Jayden Miller ‘19
, Julian Uga ’19, 
Jordan Dickerson ‘19, 
Clinton Osula ‘19
, and Caley Moon ‘19.

More about Tom DeVesto: Designer, Innovator, Audio Expert, Manufacturer, and founder of Como Audio

Leading consumer electronics Hall of Fame Legend and Visionary Tom DeVesto stayed true to a single-focused mission over the last 40 years, and that is to bring a new experience to the consumer electronics market – one that enhances and improves upon expectations. Millions of the products created by Tom DeVesto are used around the world today. He returns to the consumer electronics marketplace with a new Boston Massachusetts based company “Como Audio”. Here he will continue his goal of bringing high performance, vision, design and long lasting products to the consumer.