HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-10-16 CorrespondenceMakerspace Proposal
An Iowa City makerspace would be a technical membership based work space with open access
for the entire community.
A makerspace in Iowa City could act as a community work space serving a number of interests.
Among the opportunities for community members would be training for city, local business
employees and union members; instructional possibilities for local educational institutions;
project space for hobbyists, and youth and adult clubs. Entrepreneurs and startups could also
benefit from such a a facility. Space and equipment could he shared by all parties with trained
staff available for instruction and oversight of safety issues for all users.
Such facilities generate collaboration, creativity, higher order thinking and problem solving
skills. Makerspaces give users hands on opportunities and practical technical skills.
Public support for the real estate piece of the makerspace is probably crucial to the success and
sustainability of a makerspace project. If a community is willing to make the commitment to
house and equip a makerspace the rewards to the community could be enormous.
Although a makerspace would generate an income stream through membership fees, training
fees, studio and storage rentals, material fees, donations, and possible crowd sourcing to cover
some operational costs, the facility itself would require some public support.
Perhaps the best example is the makerspace in Chandler, Arizona, which is a collaboration
between Techshop, Arizona State University and the city of Chandler, Arizona.
Other intersecting makerspace projects include:
—The Techshop—Lowes's model in Round Rock, Texas.
—The Artisan's Asylum in Somerville, Massachusetts.
—The Next Fab Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
—The Columbus Idea Foundry in Columbus, Ohio.
—The developing Cedar Valley makerspace in Waterloo, Iowa
--Techshop makerspaces in San Fransiseo, San Jose and Redwood City, California, as
well as in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania and Saint Louis, Missouri.
—Steamroom and Merge in Iowa City.
If the right collaboration among interested partners and stakeholders could occur, an amazing
facility could become a reality, "a cathedral of creativity." (The Maker Movement Manifesto by
Mark Hatch)
C7z ISF
Makerspaces: the Benefits I ctricsitycammau
curioshcommons
Of Libraries and Learning
Makerspaces: the Benefits
The benefits of educational makerspaces are many and varied. While they do
not come without their challenges, makerspaces can have a significant impact
on student learning and development. In fact, makerspaces were recently
identified as one of six important developments in educational technology for
K-12 education by the New Media Consortium (NMC), Horizon Report for
20- 15 (hlt://cdn n_mc,mbm 12015- me -ho 'zon-report- l2-EN,pdf),
which states, "Makerspaces are increasingly being looked to as a method for
engaging learners in creative, higher -order problem -solving through hands-
on design, construction, and iteration" (p. 38). According to the NMC
(h#p&yaDx nmc.orel)(2015), makerspaces have theSotential to effectively
address the necessary skillsets for students in the 21 Century (p. 38). What
follows is an explanation of some of the potential benefits that can be gained
through maker learning and well established makerspaces.
Making and Tinkering are Powerful and
Empowering Ways to Learn
"Ultimately, the interdisciplinary and empowering natures of these
makerspaces can help prepare youth for a future we can't yet imagine"
(Davee, Regalia & Chang, 2015, p.10),
Makerspaces within schools and school libraries provide powerful contexts
and opportunities for students to learn and develop new skills. As the
makerspace movement "draws upon the innately human desire to make
things using our hands and our brains", school makerspaces can provide this
necessary outlet for students, fueling engagement, creativity and curiosity at
the same time (Fleming, 2015, p.2). For example, a research study conducted
by Small (2014) found that "students who participated in activities involving
innovation were inquisitive, imaginative and motivated. They wanted to solve
real problems that could help people" (as cited in Moorefield -Lang, 2015, p.
108).
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Mdwspaces: Are Benefits i ctriositywmmorts
Makerspace learning can also empower students, helping them to shift from
being passive consumers of information and products to active creators and
innovators. As Martinez and Stager (2013) assert, "Making lets you take
control of your life, be more active, and be responsible for your own learning"
(p. 29). Furthermore, it is the process of making that emerges as a powerful
experience for students, not necessarily the completion of a final product. As
Burke (2014) explains, "What is made may not matter at all; it can still
influence the thought process, vision, and ability to connect of a learning
maker. These abilities can enhance a persons thinking and work in many
different fields" (p.13). As Laura Fleming (2015), one of the first school
librarians to pioneer a makerspace within her high school library, attests,
makerspaces cultivate a multitude of advantages for students:
Maker education fosters curiosity, tinkering, and iterative learning, which
in turn leads to better thinking through better questioning. I believe firmly
that this learning environment fosters enthusiasm for learning, student
confidence, and natural collaboration. Ultimately the outcome of maker
education and educational makerspaces leads to determination,
independent and creative problem solving, and an authentic preparation
for real world by simulating real-world challenges (p. 48).
Makerspaces are Learner -Centered
Opportunities
"When we allow children to experiment, take risks, and play with their own
ideas, we give them permission to trust themselves. They begin to see
themselves as learners who have good ideas and can transform their own
ideas into reality" (Martinez & Stager, 2013, p. 36).
As Martinez and Stager (2013) argue, "Making is a stance that puts the learner
at the center of the educational process and creates opportunities that
students may never have encountered themselves" (p. 30). In a maker
classroom or library, the teacher acts as a mentor and at times as a learner
himself, as students are enabled to bring their own skills and ideas to the
forefront. According to Kurti, Kurti and Fleming (2014), makerspaces
encourage independent exploration and "owning the learning experience
opens unexplored horizons to students because independent thinkers have
the uncanny ability to strike out into uncharted territory" (p. 20). Makerspaces
provide flexible learning arrangements that promote both autonomy and
collaboration, enabling students to test out their own ideas and innovations.
Makerspaces Offer Authentic Learning
Experiences Connected to the Real
World
4121=17
Makerspaces: the Benefits I arics%wnmans
"Schools are turning to makerspaces to facilitate activities that inspire
confidence in young learners, and help them acquire entrepreneurial skills
that are immediately applicable in the real world" (NMC Horizon Report:
EN.pdfl. p. 39).
Authentic, real-world experiences engage children, enabling them to see
beyond their own context to understand the applications of what they are
learning and doing. Maker learning is designed to provide such authentic
experiences. As Martinez and Stager (2014) report, "Makers are constructing
knowledge as they build physical artifacts that have real-world value"
enabling kids to "solve real problems with their own inventions". Fleming
(2015) also addresses the networked, outside -of -the -four -walls nature of
makerspace learning, arguing that makerspaces "offer far wider spheres of
communication and enables a critical mass of learning to be achieved globally
rather than necessarily locally" (p.10). Finally, Burke (2014) describes an
example of a high school chemistry class maker activity, where students were
studying ions and designing 3-D models of molecules. Burke (2014) reports
that the maker activity portion of the learning "makes it more interesting and
gives them [the students) a chance to learn new software, which they will
have to do later in life. It has real-world connection for students beyond what
they are learning in chemistry" (p. 27).
Makerspaces Help to Prepare Students
for the Future
"The turn of the 21st century has signaled a shift in the types of skillsets
that have real, applicable value in a rapidly advancing world. In this
landscape, creativity, design, and engineering are making their way to the
forefront of educational considerations, as tools such as robotics, 3D
printers, and web -based 3D modeling applications become accessible to
more people. Makerspaces are increasingly being looked to as a method for
engaging learners in creative, higher -order problem -solving through hands-
on design, construction, and iteration" (NMC Horizon Report: 2015 K-12
Edition (haul/cdn.nmc.org/media/2015-nmc-horizon-report-kl2-EN.pdf). p.
38).
By providing opportunities in entrepreneurialism, exposing students to new
skills and technologies and opening doors to new career paths, makerspaces
can help to prepare students for the future and ignite a passion for lifelong
learning. Martinez and Stager (2013) argue that making exposes young
learners to engineering skills which provides a helpful context for some of the
more abstract concepts in math or science. Furthermore, "for older students,
making combines disciplines in ways that enhance the learning process for
diverse student populations and opens doors to unforeseen career paths"
(Martinez & Stager, 2013, p. 3). Fleming (2015) further expounds on the
valuable characteristics encouraged by maker learning, such as the
development of a growth mindset and a toleration for risk and failure,
arguing that "failure is a necessary step on the road to success and
innovation" (p. 9). Finally, as Kalil (2010) reports, "The maker mindset
empowers people not just to seek out jobs in STEM or creative fields, but to
V21=17
Makerspaces: the Benefits I criositycornmons
make their own jobs and industries, depending on their interests and the
emerging needs they see in a rapidly changing society" (as cited in Pepplar &
Bender, 2013, p. 23).
Makerspaces Address Differentiation and
Multiple Intelligences
Makerspaces, like the new school library learning commons model, are
flexible, adaptable learning environments that can address differentiation and
multiple intelligences, modifying the educational experience for those who
learn differently. According to Martinez and Stager (2013), "hands-on
learning through the sort of rich projects advocated by makers offers flexible
opportunities for students to learn in their personal style or styles" (p. 22). As
Fleming (2015) asserts, makerspaces are "uniquely adaptable, learning
environments that our students need, want, and will flourish in' (p. 46).
Makerspaces, by their nature, reflect community interests and needs and
adapt as those interests and needs evolve over time.
Makerspaces Engage Community and
Invite Cross -generational Learning
"Community is the defining element of the maker movement on both a local
and international scale", and as communities, makerspaces exemplify the
following qualities: co -working, collaboration, teaching, learning and an open
sharing of ideas (Burke, 2014, p.12). Makerspaces invite local "experts" to
share their skills and passions with students so that they in turn can share
with others, thus bringing the community into the classroom. Furthermore,
there is often a role -reversal involved in makerspace communities. For
example, Burke (2014) reports on a makerspace in an academic setting where
"Students, staff, and professors have regularly come to participate in
workshops. The experience is really creating a community of peers in that
faculty and staff members are often learning from students" (p. 91).
Makerspaces also invite cross -generational learning and lifelong learning
(Fleming 2015). As Peppler and Bender (2013) report, cross -generational can
range from "parents with expertise in fixing or modifying cars, to
grandparents who sew or crochet, to aunts and uncles who carve at home in a
woodshop. Makerspaces are a place for individuals with a range of expertise
to share their passions" (p. 27). Much like libraries, makerspaces are designed
as an entire community invitation, offering "something for everyone".
Makerspaces are Inter -disciplinary
Reflections of Real Life
4212017
Makers: the Benefits! criasitimnmans
Similar to school libraries, makerspaces promote inter -disciplinary learning
and knowledge, effectively dissolving the artificial barriers that schools create
for subject areas. Martinez and Stager (2013) argue against these subject
distinctions, stating, "the real world doesn't work that way! Architects are
artists. Craftsmen deal in aesthetics, tradition and mathematical precision.
Video game designers rely on computer science. Engineering and industrial
design are inseparable. The finest scientists are often accomplished
musicians' (p. 2). Makerspaces can create a more realistic environment that
reflects how professionals approach their work. Peppler and Bender (2013)
also discuss how makerspace "cross -disciplinary and interest-centeredness
contrasts with traditional school participation in which disciplines are isolated
from each other and problems or projects are imposed upon learners" (p. 27).
Makerspaces promote an innovative blend of disciplines that can ignite
problem solving and spark new invention.
Makerspaces Can Function as Catalysts
for Change
"Makerspace education also has the potential to empower young people to
become agents of change in their communities" (NMC Horizon Report:
EN.pdf ). p. 38).
Finally, as Peppler and Bender (2013) assert, "it's clear that the maker
movement is an innovative way to reimagine education" (p. 26). Fleming
(2015) also supports the view that makerspaces can support the redesign of
school learning opportunities, stating:
I firmly believe that makerspaces are more than capable of driving real
and sustained systemic change from within the system—That, in my
opinion, has things exactly the right way around: real change has to come
from within the system, from a growing recognition of a need for change
in the schools and classrooms themselves (p. 55).
Works Cited
Burke, J. J. (2014). Makerspaces: a practical guide for librarians (Vol. 8). Lanham,
MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Davee, S., Regalia, L., & Chang, S. (2015, May). Makerspaces highlights of select
literature. Retrieved from httmhmakered.or¢/wnr
[�_ m.-Nim_FMM • - �RlL�ilE�'3itir'f
Johnson, L., Adams Becker, S., Estrada, V., and Freeman, A. (2015). NMC
Horizon Report: 2015 K-12 Edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media
Consortium. Retrieved from biW://cdn.nmc.orghn i /2015- m -ho 'zon-
421@017
Makerspacm; the Benefits I mimitycornmas
Kurti, R. S., Kurti, D., & Fleming, L. (2014). Practical implementation of an
educational makerspace: part 3 of making an educational makerspace. Teacher
Librarian, 42(2), 20-24. Retrieved
from hitp•//www teacberlibr ri n com/2014/12/17/educational-makuWace /
atttos://href 1_i/?hU:/`/`www teache6k ' n o /2014/1 /17/ duationa -
makerspams-2/1
Martinez, S. L., & Stager, G. (2013). Invent to learn: Making, tinkering, and
engineering in the classroom. Torrance, CA: Constructing modem knowledge
press
Martinez, S. & Stager, G. (2014, July 21). The maker movement: A learning
revolution. [Web log post]. Retrieved from
https://www.iste.orgLq2glorelarticledetafl?articleid=106
(hips://www.iste.org/gxplomiar_tidede ail?artideid=1061
Moorefield -Lang, H. M. (2015). Change in the making: Makerspaces and the
ever changing landscape of libraries. Techtrends, 59(3),107-
112.doi:10.1007/s11528-015-0860-z
Peppler, K., & Bender, S.. (2013). Maker movement spreads innovation one
project at a time. The Phi Delta Kappan, 95(3), 22-27. Retrieved from
hiip://www,jstor.org/ctable/ 3611809 Uft,//3mww,jstor.org/5table/236118091
Small, Ruth V. (2014). The Motivational and Information Needs of Young
Innovators: Stimulating Student Creativity and Inventive Thinking. School
Library Research, 17, School Library Research, 2014, Vol.17. Retrieved from
htto•//www ala org/aasl/sites/ala org a /fil /cont nt/a 1pub an 'ours is/clr/vn117/ST R M tivation 1Need V1742�ff
(tto•//www ala org&asl/sites/ala org aasl/files/mntentba&lpubsmoio um 1 / lr/vol17/ Motivation 1 eed V17 pdf)
MR-MVIL;r' .L� y. •' • •ta• •
4121/2017 Hi*Tech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Startups Make It Big: All Tech considered: NPR
ow
416 w3 ublic Radio
all tech considered
INNOVATION
High -Tech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Startups
Make It Big
Listen - 4:20 Queue Download
Transcript
April 30, 2014 - 5:07 PM ET
Heard on All Things Considered
JON KALISH
Andy Leer of maker space chain TechShop calibrates a 3-D printer at a GE -sponsored pop-up workshop in Washington,
D.C. Maker spaces, which offer access to industrial -grade tools, are attracting support from governments and big
companies like Ford and Lowe's.
Gary Camemn/Reufers&andov
40/2D17
HigtrTech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Startlrps Make It Big: All Tech Considered: NPR
Around the country, there are lots of tinkerers working on what they hope will be the
next brilliant idea — but who don't have the tools in their garage to build it.
In dozens of cities, those innovators can set up shop in a "maker space" — community
workshops where members have access to sophisticated tools and expertise.
A Growth Spurt Maker spaces have become hotbeds of technological
For Maker Spaces innovation and entrepreneurship. Now,
governments, universities and big corporations are
Since moving into its new home
taking notice —and beginning to invest in them.
this month, the for-profit
Columbus Idea Foundry in
Tom Panzarella, the CEO of a startup working out
Columbus, Ohio, is now
considered to be the largest of maker space NextFab Studio, says the space
maker space in the world. It
helps his Philadelphia business "appear like a very
received a $350,000 grant from
large company."
the nonprofit ArtPlace America to
aid its "creative place -making"
'you're not these two guys in a garage building a
mission.
robot, right. You have your 21,000 -square -foot
Members of Artisan's Asylum, a
production space; the boardroom here is really nice
40,000 -square -foot hacker space
in Somerville, Mass., have raised
if we need to have meetings," he says. "We look a lot
$4 million on IGckstarter for a
more established than we really are."
variety of small businesses.
Executive Director Molly
NextFab's 350 members pay for access to a million
Rubenstein says $3.5 million in
dollars' worth of tools, including high-end machines
venture capital investments have
also gone to startups at Artisan's
like laser cutters and 3-D printers that they could
Asylum, where many Gasses are
never afford on their own.
sold out and a waiting list exists
for studio space.
Members also benefit from the synergy found here,
The TechShop in Detroit, opened
where accomplished people work in close
in partnership with automaker
proximity. PanzarelWs company, Love Park
Ford, is credited with helping
Robotics, produces software used to drive electric
increase the number of
wheelchairs. He's used 3-1) printers here to make
inventions by Ford employees,
according to Bill Coughlin, CEO
parts. And when Panzarella wanted to attach video
of Ford Global Technologies.
cameras to a wheelchair, he hired a mechanical
TechShop recently announced it
engineer four doors away.
was opening a maker space in
4012017 High -Tech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Starkips Make it Big: Al Tech Considered: NPR
partnership with BMW in Munich.
"So, we effectively contract out to him some of our
TechShop facilities were opened
mechanical work, and it's like we have a mechanical
in Pittsburgh and Arlington, Va.,
after thousands of memberships
engineer on staff," Panzarella says.
were purchased for veterans by
the Department of Veterans
Affairs Center for Innovation and
the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency.
All of this is lowering the cost of entry for entrepreneurs. Mark Hatch, CEO of a chain
of maker spaces called TechShop, says the old model meant that an entrepreneur had
to spend $ioo,000 or more to produce a prototype for a new product. Now it's a
fraction of that.
"When you move the cost of entrepreneurship from $1oo,000 to $2,00044,000, you
completely change the operating terrain for entrepreneurs and inventors," Hatch says.
4/2112017 High -Tech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Starhjps Make It Big: All Tech Considered: NPR
A member works in the electronics lab at NextFab Studios in Philadelphia. Members pay for access to computers and high-
end machines like laser cutters and 3-13 printers.
Jon Kaish
And these maker spaces are getting results. The company that makes Square, the
device that enables smartphones to take credit card payments, created its prototype at
TechShop.
"We have now a range of high-quality new product ideas that have not only launched,
but are in fact on track to change the world in some fairly significant ways," Hatch
says.
Or at least change a bit of the world. Among TechShop's alumni are a startup that
manufactures data centers' cooling systems and one that makes high-tech blankets for
babies in incubators.
4/21/2017 High -Tech Maker Spaces: Helping Little Startups Make It Big: All Tech Considered : NPR
There are big players teaming up with TechShop, too, like Ford and Lowe's. The
federal government has purchased thousands of TechShop memberships for veterans.
State and local governments in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Massachusetts are funding
maker spaces. And in Burlington, Vt., a new maker space called Generator has opened
in a rent-free space provided by the city.
"I don't think this is some harebrained idea that we're experimenting with," says
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger. "I think we can point to significant successes in
other communities."
� ALL TECH CONSIDERED
What's The Big Idea? Pentagon Agency Backs Student Tinkerers To Find Out
Weinberger says the new maker space fits the city's economic development strategy.
Three local colleges, including the University of Vermont, are supporting the approach
as a way for Vermont to stay competitive.
AROUND THE NATION
With Growth Of 'Hacker Scouting,' More Kids Learn To Tinker
David Finney, president of Champlain College, says, "We think manufacturing will
return to the United States in force. And so we feel compelled to set this space up and
begin to train the next generation on it."
TECHNOLOGY
Libraries Make Room For High-Tech'Hackerspaces'
If everything works out, Finney says he expects that Vermont's newest maker space
will generate hundreds of jobs in the next five to io years.
Jon Kalish is a Manhattan -based radio reporter and podcast producer. For links to
radio docs, podcasts & DIYstories, visit his website.
4121/2017
Made in Baltimore: Makerspaces as a Hub for Workforce Training
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The notion of training people for specific jobs is a relatively recent
phenomenon, growing out of an economy that has become increasingly
specialized over the last century. America started out as an agrarian nation with
a largely extractive economy: we grew stuff, chopped stuff down, dug stuff up,
and shipped it to richer countries. To support all of this raw labor, there were
some skilled trades - coopers, carpenters, smiths, surveyors, boat builders -
that trained their workers on an apprenticeship system. The Industrial
Revolution pulled workers from farms into factories, and new mechanized
4/212017 Made in Baltimore: Makerspaces as a Hib for Workforce Training
production methods stripped much of the art from making goods. Workers
didn't necessarily need the extensive training of formal apprenticeship, and
mostly learned on the factory floor.
The U.S. didn't give much thought to
vocational education until 1917, with
the passage of the Smith -Hughes Acf.
which set up America's first dedicated
trade schools. This coincided with the
two largest wartime mobilizations in
history, which set up conscripts with
basic mechanical training and
acclimated them to working in a
disciplined system. After the Second
World War, this latent potential
exploded: the rest of the world's
economies were devastated, and
America had natural resources, a
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trained workforce, and a nascent consumer economy hungry for new goods.
Domestic production took off, providing solid middle-class jobs to a generation
of workers, who then had money to buy what they were making.
4/21/2017
Made in Baltimore: Makerspaces as a H W for Workforce Tra ring
Surface Project installing our stair treads, made by apprentice craftspeople. Photo by Will Holman
But American manuf_ac_turing employment peaked in 1977. and has been
declining ever since, down to just 9% of America's workforce today. In
manufacturing's mid-century heyday, all you needed to get a factory job was a
pulse and a social security number. but those days have largely passed. The
-------------------- --------------------
business of making things is increasingly complex. There is a thick stew of
factors at work: offshoring of low -skill work, increasing automation; increasing
college enrollment; and the skyrocketing number of contingent workers (part-
time, contract, or temporary employees). Some estimate that a whopping 4_
of Americans will be freelancers by 2020.
In response to these market forces, there has been a shift from traditional job -
training (vocational training in high schools and community colleges) towards
sector -based training (partnering with employers in industry clusters) over the
last twenty years. This approach attempts to take advantage of regional
economic strengths, building training programs for jobless adults that target
4/21IM17
Made in Ba ilmore: Makerspaces w a Hubfar Workfare Training
specific industries like construction, textiles, or advanced manufacturing. Often,
these are paired with intensive wrap-around services that help trainees with
housing, childcare, transportation, and life skills.
Accent wall in lobby made with reclaimed floorboards from DETAILS.
While sector -based partnerships have been very successful (including in
M nd), they are based on the notion of placing graduating trainees in full-
time, permanent jobs. Increasingly — arguably, since 1977 — those jobs don't
exist anymore. More and more work, including skilled trade work, is contingent:
non -unionized, decentralized, and contractual. Further, manufacturing
employment has just started growing again in America ticking up a few
percentage points since 2010. But this growth is not in what we think of as
traditional manufacturing — it is in hyper -skilled, just -in -time, specialized
industries that require quick turnarounds and specialized processes.
Makerspaces have a unique role to play in this new environment. As Open
Works has thought about ways to engage with workforce development, we have
talked to a lot of employers in the Baltimore region. Baltimore has a growing
4/21/2017 Made in Baltimore: Makerspaces as a Hub for Workforce Training
base of advanced manufacturers, including Danko Arlington. Marine Applied
Physics Corporation. Potomac Photonics. and Blueprint Homes. Alongside
those larger companies is a growing base of smaller, craft -based maker
businesses that need skilled woodworkers, sewers, and metal artisans. Many
have expressed a need for non-traditional lateral thinkers, people with both hard
technical skills and the ability to creatively problem -solve with minimal
supervision. These industries are also changing so fast that we also can't
predict where they will be in a few years, underscoring the need for flexible skill
sets. For example, in 2010, the domestic drone industry was virtually non-
existent; by 2020 it is expected to be an almost S6 billion industry sector.
r a , 7 ,u
Welding trainees from the Jane Adams Resource Corwration inspect the welds on our staircase.
Open Works is taking a four -pronged approach to bridging the skills gap
between dynamic new industries and those looking for jobs:
1. Our longest -term plan is to grow a pipeline of skilled makers that starts very
young, with elementary school-age children engaging with our youth
programming. Hopefully, that sparks an interest that allows them to stay with
4/2112017 Made in Bdtimore: Makerspaces as a Hubfor Workforce Training
our after school programs through high school, then into college or skilled
trades.
2. We are in conversation with a half-dozen local job -training programs to see
where Open Works' unique facilities can add value to their existing or
anticipated curriculums. With our classrooms and computer lab, we can teach
coding, graphic design, CAD software, web design, and database management.
In our workshops, we can get students and trainees in front of the latest 3D
printers, laser cutters, and CNC routers, as well as traditional fabrication
equipment like woodworking and welding. We hope to be able to announce a
partnership at our opening this fall.
3. In Baltimore, there are several innovative job -training programs that function
more like businesses — social enterprises with a revenue stream that helps fund
the training and pay the workers. One such program, Surface Project, makes
table and countertops out of wood reclaimed from vacant row homes by
another similar program, DETAILs Deconstruction. We've tried to allocate as '
much of our construction spending to these programs as we could to help
support their work. In the future, there is room for a similar social enterprise
model in Open Works, utilizing our machinery to make products or do contract
work.
4. Over time, as we react to the growing need for skilled contract workers, we'd
like to grow an in-house program that cross -trains people on a broad array of
tools and creative problem -solving techniques. A few months back, we were
fortunate to host Bernie Lynch, of Made Right Here, a Department of Labor -
certified apprenticeship program in Pittsburgh. MRH connects all of the dots:
training people on 50 different hard skills at a TechShop; pairing that with 50
soft skills to help folks adapt to different workplaces; and connecting trainees
with flexible jobs at startups coming out of Carnegie Mellon. Qualified
graduates join an online hub where employers can browse for the skills they
need.
C2112017
Made in Baltimore: Makerspaces as a Hub for Workforce Training
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Screengrab of Made Right Here website.
Ultimately, Open Works is making a commitment to job training because we
need to be a platform for economic empowerment for everyone — not just the
college graduates with the next great startup idea. Baltimore has a higher
unemployment rate than the rest of the state, and a mostly service -based
economy that makes it hard to climb into the middle class. Open Works can be
a place where all paths cross — employers, trainees, and education — to create a
more equitable economy for everyone.
In our next installment, we'll discuss our other adult education programs that
focus on more general maker skills and projects.
Construction Update
Since the last post, we have:
1. Begun installing all of the cabinets and the reception desk.
2. Finished lighting upstairs.
3. Sealed the concrete floors.
4. Finished supergraphic on the north side of the building.
4121/2017 Mem Balfimorw. Makerspaces as a Hub ibr Workforce Training
4/21/2017
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