Making Space to Create

This week, Yessenia Gomez, STEAM Coordinator at Rosa Parks Elementary School, talks about the new makerspace — a collaboration with the McCarthy Center’s Engage San Francisco and Good Tidings Foundation.

My name is Yessenia Gomez, I am the STEAM Coordinator at Rosa Parks Elementary. This past August our school’s makerspace was renovated by a collaboration between Good Tidings Foundation and USF’s McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good. The renovation included new paint, flooring and furniture! Before the renovation our makerspace was a great space where students came to “make”, create and build new things. We had basic necessities but after the renovation, the makerspace has become one of the best rooms in the school!

All students want to come in and create! The new paint, flooring and furniture has helped set the tone and ambiance that inspires creativity! The new furniture has made the room less cluttered, more organized and easier access to materials for students.  Every week the students come in to create different projects, and they are so excited to use the new chairs and alternate seating.

The renovation has also impacted the opinions of prospective parents and students. Students feel that the makerspace is a space where they can escape reality and focus on the task at hand. Other students feel that the makerspace is a calm place where they can build and create.

Students from Kindergarten to 5th grade, come to the makerspace once a week to build and create. About 230 students use the makerspace every week! Weeks after the renovation, this space is still an exciting space to enter and stay in.

Check out more photos from the launch of the Makerspace on Flickr!