United Way and the Idaho Out of School Network (ION) have teamed up to bring STEAM to the kids throughout our 7-county service region including Lemhi, Clark, Fremont, Jefferson, Madison, Teton, and Bonneville counties!
The Idaho Out of School Network has been building Think Make Create Labs (TMC labs) by designing trailers to carry all of the supplies it takes to hold more than 50 projects for us to 100 kids each. "TMC is a collaborative partnership of educational programs, agencies and private sponsors working together to deploy a fleet of mobile makerspace learning labs across Idaho. The project was developed in Nebraska and licensed for use in Idaho by the ION and the UI-Extension 4-H Youth Program. In just one year, over 8,000 youth in rural and underserved Idaho communities will use the TMC labs and explore STEM careers."
With our new partnership with the Idaho Out of School network, we are able to bring a brand new TMC Lab trailer to your neighborhood in East Idaho! We are so excited to add to the 8,000 kids who have already accessed the STEAM resources offered through this mobile lab. We intend to be collaborating with schools, family shelters, and our non-profit partners to get this TMC Lab to the kids who wouldn't normally have STEAM opportunities at school or home. We know that this will foster an excitement throughout the community's kids as they embark on their STEAM journeys!
As a TMC Lab host, we will be hosting trainings and be held responsible for keeping all supplies stocked. Trainings will include safety procedures and provide resources and best practices for the teachers to present STEAM lessons and activities to their students. These resources include hundreds of activities that are all STEAM inspired and are paired with Idaho state teaching standards for each activity. You can probably see why we are so excited to be welcoming this trailer into our care!
If you are interested in teaming up with us to bring the trailer to your non-profit organization, please contact Alyssa Sherwood at asherwood@unitedwayif.org to schedule a training and STEAM day!
