Mayor Cicilline Joined by Senator Reed, Congressman Kennedy to Unveil After School Initiative for High School Youth
Initiative designed to complement highly successful middle school programs through PASA

 

 

On Monday, April 6, Mayor David Cicilline, Senator Jack Reed, and Congressman Patrick Kennedy joined members of the Providence After School Alliance and high school students at the Met School to present a plan for a new high school after school initiative called The Providence Hub. 

“Since PASA has been so successful with our middle school population, I knew it was time to build upon that success by developing a model for high-school students,” said the Mayor, who prioritized the first phase of this high school initiative as one of his Operation Opportunity goals. “Providence Hub is one of the most important and exciting initiatives in the history of education in Providence.  It will usher our city and our young people into the 21st century and allow us to realize our deeply held belief that youth development is community development.”

"This initiative is about the community coming together to impact change for youth," added PASA Director Hillary Salmons, "It's about supporting quality and innovation in programming for our high school youth, while promoting healthy development. And its about building connections for our AfterZone graduates, who now have high expectations around expanded learning experiences, expectations that need to be met."

In 2007, the Mayor invited planning proposals to design an after school program for the high school system in Providence, as an extension and complement to the already successful middle school system facilitated by the Providence After School Alliance (PASA) and its city and community partners.  The planning team selected, The Urban Social Empowerment (USE) Collective, was comprised of youth-adult pairs from ten nonprofit organizations. The design plan for a citywide expanded learning system was submitted in November 2008. The Mayor and PASA have accepted this final vision and plan as the blueprint for development and implementation of this high school initiative.

To learn more about The Providence Hub, visit http://mypasa.org/about-pasa/news/1-latest-news/108-pvdhubdesign.

 

[return to top]

 

---

 

 Mayor Cicilline Celebrates Reading Week at Two Providence Elementary Schools

 

 

Mayor David N. Cicilline celebrated Reading Week with students from Robert F. Kennedy Elementary School and Carnevale Elementary School on April 7th and 9th.

On Tuesday, the Mayor read Honest Abe’s Words: The Life of Abraham Lincoln, by Doreen Rappaport, to a class of 5th graders at Kennedy Elementary School, 195 Nelson Street.  The biography focuses on Lincoln’s feelings about slavery, education and other important issues.

This afternoon, Mayor Cicilline will read Hooray for Reading Day, by Margery Cuyler, to a class of first graders at Carnevale Elementary School, 50 Springfield Street.  The book focuses on a student’s struggle to find the courage to read a book out loud to her fellow students.

Reading Week is a national celebration that promotes an appreciation of literature for both children and adults across America.

 

[return to top] 

  

---

 

Cosmic Collisions, Spectacular New Planetarium Show, Premieres April Vacation at the Cormack Planetarium

Featuring Data and Simulations by NASA, Astrophysicists and Scientists From Around the World

 

 

 

 

The Museum of Natural History and Planetarium in Roger Williams Park announces the premiere of a spectacular new planetarium show, Cosmic Collisions. Featuring stunning images from space and breathtaking visualizations, this dazzling new planetarium show reveals the explosive encounters that shaped our solar system, changed the course of life on Earth and continue to transform our galaxy and universe. Experience a thrilling trip through space and time-well beyond the calm face of the night sky- to witness the shattering impacts that drive the evolution of the universe.

 

An engrossing, immersive planetarium experience created by the American Museum of Natural History in New York with the cooperation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and scientists from the United States and abroad, Cosmic Collisions launches visitors on a journey to explore the hypersonic impacts that drive the continuing evolution of the universe. It presents a view of the cosmos that is radically different from our everyday experience watching the peaceful night sky, exploring the full range of space collisions, past, present, and future.

 

"The Museum of Natural History is excited to premiere Cosmic Collisions," says Renée Gamba, the Museum's Director. "Cosmic Collisions provides an eye opening look at the explosive impacts that shape our universe. Visitors will be awestruck by this multi-media journey through space and time."

 

The show focuses on the full range of collisions, from catastrophic planetary impacts to the continual explosions that occur in the center of the sun.

 

"Unique observations from space provide a revolutionary view of a dynamic cosmos," says Richard Fisher, director of NASA's Heliophysics Division. "From sun to Earth and moon and to the stars and galaxies beyond, the accurate visualizations in Cosmic Collisions show these spectacles unfold in a concrete way that viewers have never before experienced."

 

Cosmic Collisions will be presented daily during April School Vacation, Monday, April 13, through Sunday, April 19, 2009, at 1:00pm and 2:00pm. Planetarium admission (includes Museum admission) is $3 $2 children 4-7. No one under the age of 4 is permitted in the planetarium. Visit www.providenceri.com/museum or call 401-785-9457 x221 for details.

The program was developed by the American Museum of Natural History in New York, in collaboration with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science; GOTO Inc. in Tokyo; and the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum in China. Additional support was provided by the Heliophysics Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate and CIT.

 

More April School Vacation Fun: Monday, April 13, to Sunday, April 19, 2009

· Galaxies and the Distant Universe Family Fun Activities: Get excited about astronomy and space science during the International Year of Astronomy celebration. Learn about the expansion of the Universe, where we are in it, and what else is out there. Free with museum admission.

· Spring Celebrations: Discover what's blooming in the park with the Museum's spring displays. The Museum is celebrating the spring season through lobby exhibits, crafts and spring activities! Free with museum admission.

· School Vacation Space Camps! Pre-registration required!

Cosmic Cadets (ages 5-6) Tues., April 14, 2009 (Snow date: Wed., Apr. 15, 2009), 9:30am-2:30pm, $30.00 per child, $20.00 museum members.

MNH Space Camp (ages 7-9) Thurs., April 16, 2009 (Snow date: Fri., Apr. 17, 2009), 9:30am-4:00pm, $40.00 per child, $30.00 for museum members.

 

Museum admission is $2 $1 children 2-7. Planetarium admission (includes Museum admission) is $3 $2 children 4-7. No one under the age of 4 is permitted in the planetarium. The Museum of Natural History is open daily 10:00am - 5:00pm, year round. Planetarium shows are offered at 2:00pm on Saturdays, Sundays, and daily during April school vacation. The Museum of Natural History and Planetarium are wheelchair accessible. More information is available on the Museum's website, http://providenceri.com/museum.

 

 

[return to top]

---

Feature: My City
A Fabulous Laboratory of New Ideas Manufactured at AS220

 

 

 Fab Labs, short for fabrication laboratories, was started at the Media Lab of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology years ago.  According to Wikipedia, the concept grew out of a course named “How To Make (Almost) Anything,” using tools controlled by computers to create “technology-enabled” products.  Last year, the program made its way to Providence and found a home at AS220, where Shawn Wallace – a former engineering student and longtime AS220 staffer – has been helping to build the new Fab Lab from the ground up. 

 

A perfect fit in the Creative Capital, the AS220 Fab Lab was one of last week’s recipients of a Knowledge Economy grant awarded jointly by the city and the chamber of commerce.  The funds will be used to acquire more equipment needed to get the lab running adequately and so that creative minds can continue to design, create, and assemble their own original ideas right here in Providence. 

 

City News paid a visit to the Fab Lab’s current space at Empire Street, where Wallace gave us an inside look at a fabulous new program. 

 

What is the idea behind a Fab Lab and how did it make its way to AS220?

The Fab Lab came out of the Media Lab at MIT.  They have a Center for Bits and Atoms.  What that means is modeling things on the computer and then bringing them into the world.  The big picture goal of the Center for Bits and Atoms is to make the equivalent of the replicator on Star Trek, or otherwise a machine that you can give a command to and it pretty much does whatever you want to fabricate.  They’re doing high-end research there, using tools on the molecular level. 

 

A few years ago, they got a National Science Foundation grant that has an educational component.  So what they decided to do with it is set up community workshops using some of these tools.  Instead of the $100,000 piece of equipment they have in their lab, they purchased $10,000 pieces of desktop equipment to assemble all of these tools together that can be used to make a lot of things, using the same techniques and modeling them on the computer.  So that’s kind of what a Fab Lab is.  There are about 30 labs across the world. 

 

When John Maeda came to RISD from MIT, that’s when their attention came to Providence.  People at MIT were looking at new places to set up Fab Labs.  AS220 was sort of a natural starting point because we have a monthly event called the Geek Dinners.  Through that and some of the people involved in that – Brian Jepson and Jack Templin – we connected with others to jumpstart the Fab Lab at AS220. 

 

We believe that this is something that is highly sustainable, to add on to some of the other sustainable things that we do.  We have to raise about $50,000 worth of equipment to start.  We’re also doing some fundraising now.   We’ve raised about $26,000 at a previous event so we’re halfway set up.  And now also with the recent $20,000 Knowledge Economy grant from the Chamber of Commerce and the City that will really help us get the rest of the tools in.

 

Why is a Fab Lab relevant in today’s world?

If you look at the big picture, what this is sort of modeling is something that is post-industrial revolution, post mass-market.  The beauty of the internet is not that it opened up new mass markets, but it’s that it opened up millions of niche markets, tiny and unique ones.  The really interesting thing about the Fab Lab is that it looks at a different way to make objects.  So instead of making one unique object that can get transformed and mass-marketed by an industrial corporation, shipped on containerships, and then distributed at the big box store down on Bald Hill Road – instead of that method of consuming – this process has people making unique things and sharing their designs with each other over the internet.  You can pull from this pool of innovation, modify your design itself, and then print it out locally.  So instead of your product becoming mass-marketed, it’s a unique piece on its own.  I really think that’s where our economy is moving towards and it’s how the creative economy sort of exists. 

 

As a community and arts organization, how do you see the Fab Lab playing a role in building a creative or knowledge economy in Providence?

We’re providing infrastructure for artists and designers.  There’s been a lot of interest in the Fab Lab. The laser cutter class is pretty much sold out.  A lot of people who are interested come to us from various backgrounds.  For example, the engineers and some of the designers, who want to be involved and have had ideas and money even to market their designs, have had trouble finding resources locally.  Even we have had trouble finding someone to do our circuit boards.  There used to be several people in the state who used to do it but now there’s only a handful, and they don’t really want to deal with organizations of our scale.  So what we’re providing is that alternative infrastructure.  We’re just one small part of that.  And AS220 is very accessible and open to all kinds of people.

 

What are some of the key programs and activities that the Fab Lab has done to date?

Before the Fab Lab, AS220 Labs already existed but our focus is more on electronics and software.  We’ve done some after school workshops.  Starting in August, we had an Artist-In-Residence named Mitch Altman, who invented TV-B-Gone, which is a one-button universal remote control used for turning off TVs in public places.  He goes around different organizations and runs workshops like how to use a soldering iron.  So he ran that while he was here in August.  We had a soldering station set up in the lab.

 

We also have one-off workshops called Make and Break Wednesdays.  Just now we’re starting a more intensive workshop program.  Tonight we’re starting our first laser-cutting workshop, which is more like an orientation.  And then people can come back and access the equipment after that.  It’s open to the public and accessible to people of all ages.  There’s a fee for the laser-cutting workshop, however, Make and Breaks are free if you just want to hang out and learn something.  If you actually want to use the kit, there’s a materials cost under $20. 

 

Sometimes, we’ll do workshops outside of the lab like one that we did at the Cranston Public Library, who got a grant and they asked us to conduct the workshop.  In May we’re starting more-or-less a curriculum for people to learn this micro-controller called Arduino and that will be a full-on class.  We’re also talking to the people at the MIT Media Lab.  They’re launching something in the fall called the Fab Lab Academy.  That will be more of a correspondense school and we may be one of the 10 sites that will participate. 

 

You went from being the managing director of AS220 to now running the Fab Lab, what’s been the most rewarding part for you so far about this program?

You know, everyone at AS220 gets paid the same wage.  The trade-off of that is you get a lot of autonomy and creativity.  Years ago I went to school for engineering.  Around my junior year, everyone seemed to just go searching for jobs in the defense industry.  At that time, there really wasn’t a lot of jobs elsewhere.  That’s sort of when I moved away from engineering and started working at AS220.  So getting involved in the Fab Lab has been fun and has allowed me to get back into some of the engineering side of things.  It’s also been great working with my cohort, Brandon Edens, and five other volunteer lab monitors.  Overall, it’s just fun creating something that no one’s seen before. 

 

What’s in store for the future of the Fab Lab?

I think the future would be great if people are actually using these tools! But in terms of our future plans, we’re here in a pretty small space on Empire Street.  So we have working drawings right now of the first and second floor space of the Mercantile Building, which will be under construction very soon.  We’ve got a lot of short-term things to do and moving into the Mercantile is about a 2-year plan. 

 

I don’t think it’s going to get huge, but I see us a being part of the global network of hacker spaces and people doing interesting things.  So we’d like to in the future be more integrated into the Fab Lab network.

For more, go to: http://www.as220.org/labs/fab-lab/

[return to top]