Gen Yamaguchi / Special to The Star Camarillo 05/11/07: CSU Channel Islands senior, Kosta Grammatis, center, and his faculty advisor and chemistry professor, Phil Hampton, prepare for tomorrow's balloon launch in front of Aliso Hall on Friday morning.

When Kosta Grammatis designed a balloon that could test for chemicals in the air, he really wasn't aiming for the statewide research award he eventually received.

What Grammatis wanted was a project that incorporated the disciplines he enjoys most science, art and English.

"I'm a dabbler. I love everything. I've got to try everything," said Grammatis, 21, a senior at CSU Channel Islands in Camarillo.

"More than research, more than science, this is about pursuing my dream of education."

Grammatis' balloon grabbed first-place honors in the Engineering and Computer Science category of the annual CSU Student Research Competition held last week in Dominguez Hills.

The balloon, which he plans to launch today in Newbury Park, represents a movement in college reform that promotes interdisciplinary, project-oriented learning. The idea is that students learn best when they see the connections among disciplines and work on projects that tie those disciplines together.

That interdisciplinary approach is one of the key philosophies at CSU Channel Islands, said Greg Sawyer, vice president for student affairs, who has had Grammatis in three of his classes.

"Kosta is doing something so far out of the box, it takes a creative faculty to accommodate that kind of young person," Sawyer said.

Grammatis, who is from Simi Valley, started working on his balloon at the end of his sophomore year. He had been reading about aerial photography and originally thought about producing a book along the lines of "365 Days at Channel Islands."

But he also was interested in science, so when a professor suggested he try taking air samples, he went home that summer and started working on his design.

Over the next two years, he received $14,000 in grants from the university to work on his project. He got an internship in a machine shop, where he could build his design. And he had the help of several professors in the chemistry, art and English departments.

One was Phil Hampton, chairman of the chemistry department. Hampton described Grammatis as one of those kids who simply could not thrive in a traditional, formal classroom setting.

"He's not a cookie-cutter student who goes through a set of courses and learns (the material)," Hampton said. "It's a rare student who has that interest level."

Hampton said he also benefited from working with Grammatis, who regularly asked challenging questions in class, often based on something he'd read that was not on the syllabus.

"It's going to be a big loss for me when Kosta graduates," Hampton said. "He's the kind of kid who helps you think differently about your discipline and the education process."