Benedictine College is off to the racetrack this year with the new Formula of the Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) Motorsports club on campus.
FSAE is an organization designed for students to create race cars and compete against other colleges and universities. Big engineering schools like Kansas State, KU, and University of Michigan maintain their own Formula clubs.
The club is unique because there are different sub-teams. Junior Nick Ackerman, who is majoring in Mechanical Engineering, is the leader of the chassis team. The chassis team is in the process of developing the concept and finding the parts for the car. Ackerman defined the chassis as “a network of metal pipes that are welded together to form the skeleton of the car.” Ackerman also highlighted more of the “sub-teams” within the club such as the electrical team, the drive-train team, with the hopeful arrival of the aerodynamic team next year.
The main priority for the club is to have a fully finalized and welded chassis by the end of the semester. Long-term, the club wants to have a fully operational racecar by March. Beyond that, FSAE Motorsports is setting its eyes towards its first racing competition in Michigan in May of 2026.
FSAE Motorsports is a club that is built on teamwork, not just between the engineers, but even across multiple disciplines including finance, marketing, and business. The engineers primarily devote their time to the conception and design of the car as well as taking charge of paperwork. Finance students, business students, and marketing students take charge of the fundraising process along with the engineers.
The club hopes to raise between $40,000-$50,000 for the entire production throughout the year. Benedictine FSAE continues to search for professional sponsors to support the club and promote other businesses in the process. One of Benedictine FSAE’s sponsors is Big Mike’s Autobody Collision, a local Atchison workshop that will help serve to build the car. Individual members are also beginning to send out fundraising emails as well as GoFundMe links to garner more support and donations.
What is most unique about Benedictine’s FSAE chapter is that they are perhaps the first team to incorporate proper business techniques alongside the engineers. The Benedictine chapter consists of a finance team, advancement team, legal team, and marketing team that supports the team while keeping track of professional sponsors and donors as well as maintaining various sources of income.
Benedictine FSAE President Matthew Cleary spoke highly of his dedicated team members, highlighting the fact that the integrated combination of unique disciplines between business and engineering “will put them ahead” of bigger FSAE chapters in terms of scheduling and technique. According to Cleary, this rare and entrepreneurial move could even put our team of Ravens on the national news! Yet in spite of all the growth and success, the team maintains a Christ-centered focus on excellence and virtue, cultivating Catholic leadership in engineering and business while becoming the saints they are meant to be.
If people want to help support and follow Benedictine FSAE, you can find them on Instagram (@benedictine_fsaeracing) and LinkedIn (Formula SAE Benedictine College). Full speed ahead, Ravens!
Imagining your name on a Formula-1 racecar? Become a Sponsor of BC Motorsports!
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