Fusion Program brings metals and metalworking experiences to children, youth and families at MuseumLab®

Bill Schlageter, Director of Marketing,
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Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh has partnered with Arconic Foundation for five years to create hands-on learning opportunities in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) tied to both the arts and making.

Arconic Foundation has committed a $1 million grant that will impact 8,000 local students from across the region over the course of five years. The funding will provide free field trips, summer camps and scholarships, workshops and the establishment of a new metalworking shop inside the new museum for youth ages 10 and older at Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh’s MuseumLab.

One highlight of the program is a free field trip for every fifth-grade class in Pittsburgh Public Schools to MuseumLab over the next five years to provide creative learning opportunities in metalworking. This includes activities such as casting metals, enamel work, riveting, electroforming, welding and jewelry making.

The Museum believes introduction to such high-tech making techniques can help youth develop essential life skills such as problem solving and critical thinking, which are not easily taught or evaluated in formal classrooms and learning settings. Children need these experiences to enhance their development now and ensure their success in the future.

“We want to thank Arconic Foundation for their support of Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and MuseumLab’s development of enriching STEM programming,” said Jane Werner, Executive Director of Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. “This partnership is bringing together making and science to help children develop important learning and life skills.”

0a811d80 E642 06e4 C2a2 7f1057c841d4Experiences in the Fusion Program will foster innovation, self-direction and flexibility in youth to help equip them as the workforce of the future. Specifically, the program grant facilitates:

  • Installing a metalworking shop in MuseumLab’s Make Lab to facilitate training and programs.
  • Training Museum staff in best practices for facilitating metal and STEM-themed workshops for youth
  • Providing a free field trip to MuseumLab with a metalworking and STEM focus for all Pittsburgh Public Schools’ fifth grade classes.
  • Creating two week-long intensive Summer Camp, beginning in Summer 2021. Scholarships are available to students in areas where Arconic operates.
  • Offering new Metal Art workshops for all MuseumLab visitors from 2020 – 2025, in areas such as casting metal, enamel work, riveting, electroforming, welding and jewelry making. The subject matter and skill level will grow and deep each year.

The Museum shares Arconic Foundation’s commitment to providing cutting-edge, hands-on educational opportunities for the children of Pittsburgh.

“Our partnership with the Children’s Museum will make learning through metalworking available to countless students in the greater Pittsburgh region,” said Diana Toman, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of Arconic and President of Arconic Foundation. “The activities and experiences within the metalworking shop at Make Lab are truly unique and will offer students the opportunity to explore their imagination and visualize, design, and make projects with new and different materials.”

MuseumLab is a new building on the Children’s Museum campus where middle-school youth can explore a variety of technical and creative fields alongside experts in those fields. It’s a space where students can find their voice and agency through creating and experimenting. 

For a video highlighting the benefits of the program, click here.

Anyone interested in scheduling a future field trip for students should contact reservations@pittsburghkids.org.

MuseumLab is a new museum located adjacent to the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, offering growing youth cutting-edge experiences in art, tech and making. With three exhibit spaces, program and rental space, a host of commissioned artwork and unique camps, workshops and afterschool activities, and multiple partners, MuseumLab sits at the crossroads of interactive museum, learning lab and one of the coolest designed spaces in Pittsburgh.

 

About Arconic Foundation 

Arconic Foundation partners with nonprofit and community organizations to strengthen its communities by enhancing education through skill-building learning experiences, promoting environmental sustainability, and advancing social equity. Arconic Foundation is independently endowed with assets of approximately $180 million and invests in the communities of Arconic Corporation. For more information, visit www.arconic.com/foundation.  

Author:

Bill Schlageter, Director of Marketing

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