First layer, then the rest of the stack.
The First Layer Project gives overlooked teenagers a 3D printer, an open curriculum, and a path from a first print to real engineering. The machine is earned through milestones, not handed out with no strings.
Founded by Thomas Smith in Kentucky. The project goals and the open class are on GitHub.
The problem
Many smart, motivated kids are not treated as gifted. Schools overlook them. Families and communities often expect them to take the same work their parents do — farming, factory jobs, and other local trades that are honorable but not the only future. Homeschoolers are especially likely to be steered that way.
These teens are not short on intelligence. They are short a first, physical way into STEM.
The solution
3D printing is tangible. A kid can see it, hold it, fail, and try again. The path is short and real: toy, then tool, then a fitted part, then a mechanism, then electrical work, robotics, or aerospace.
The project awards a printer, filament, and curriculum to selected teens or groups, ages 13–18, in homeschools, church-led youth groups, rural and agricultural communities, and other socioeconomically underserved settings. Miss a milestone without cause and support pauses, or the kit moves to the next waitlisted group.
Milestone ladder
| When | Gate | Pass looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Week 2 | First print | Unbox, set up, print a calibration part |
| Month 1 | First original part | Design or remix one useful object, plus a short write-up |
| Month 3 | Skill project | A multi-part assembly, or a part that has to fit something else |
| Month 6 | Pathway project | Work toward electronics, robotics, aerospace, or a real tool at home, farm, or shop |
| Ongoing | Check-ins | Photos, print files, what failed, what changed |
Open curriculum
The class is open source and meant to stay alive. Educators and students can improve it as it is used. The goal is a class other people can start without building the whole thing from zero.
GitHub profile · Teacher section · Student section · Project goals
This year
- Raise funds to operate as a nonprofit project
- Complete and publish the open curriculum
- Lock hardware sponsorships and partnerships
- Place the first kid or group with a printer, filament, curriculum, and a milestone plan
Already in hand: partnerships with eSUN, PETGUSA, LFNull Tech, and Phaetus, plus the draft curriculum on GitHub. Prusa is the exclusive printer partner, and the program machine is the CORE One.
Support
Donations can be made through X Money to @comingconflict. Those gifts are not tax-deductible.
If X Money is not an option, you can give through Buy Me a Coffee. That is also not tax-deductible.
Tax-deductible donation options are expected by early November 2026. Until that is live, do not treat a gift as deductible.