Supporting citizen science at LA Makerspace

[Ariel Levi Simons]

Hello to those who want to remake education for the makers,

When I got involved in starting LA Makerspace my main motivation was to create a community laboratory and tool shop for teachers, students, and researchers from different institutions to meet, collaborate, and create.

I've been involved in education long enough to notice that most schools don't have the resources to run experiments or develop engineering projects.  I've also been involved in research long enough to know that a lot of scientific work can be made far more accessible to the public, and that there are a number of scientists who want the opportunity to do outreach.  LA Makerspace, I feel, can help bridge this gap between the two worlds.

We can be a place where students can join research teams, where teachers can collaborate on projects beyond their own classrooms, and where scientists and engineers can connect to their community.  Community, more than anything else with a physical place like LA Makerspace, is what we are building.  I want to continue on with the citizen science program, working with students on research work with our partners, building curriculum and projects with teachers, and creating a forum for people to showcase their work.

To that end I'd like to get the word out about memberships for our space, which are available here: http://www.lamakerspace.com/membership .  We're starting our membership drive to help support the space as we currently have about three months of rent left in our cash reserves, and we won't last beyond this summer without class and workshop attendees joining our space.  Additionally, if you're not in the LA area, you can help gift memberships to students from community groups we work with such as Hybrid High and A Place Called Home.

Please let me know if you have any questions or ideas.

Thanks!

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Ariel Levi Simons