• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Features
  • Campus News
  • CSUDH.edu
  • Contact
  • People
    • Staff Spotlight
    • Faculty Highlights
    • Alumni
  • Magazine
  • For Journalists
    • CSUDH In The News
    • Press Releases
    • Facts and Figures
    • Find Media Experts
    • Gallery
    • News Reporting on Campus

CSUDH News

The primary source of news and information about California State University, Dominguez Hills, its students, faculty, and staff.

Toyota and California State University, Dominguez Hills bring STEM Learning to Schools in the Los Angeles Region

October 2, 2017

“Thanks to Toyota and the Keck Foundation, we are now much more equipped to take engineering and mathematical concepts that are theoretical and physically put them in the hands of students to bring STEM to life,” said California State University Dominguez Hills President Willie J. Hagan, ahead of the debut of Four new mobile fabrication laboratories (fab labs) at the Carson campus on September 27. Toyota and the W.M. Keck Foundation partnered to create the fab labs, to help students enhance skills in science, technology, engineering and math. The labs, said program creators, will become part of a global network of about 900 labs that share common equipment and software.

“The fab labs are a significant tool in helping further STEM teaching and learning, which is critical to the future of California’s youth, and local and national industries seeking a larger pool of talented STEM graduates,” said Mike Goss, general manager, Toyota Social Innovation, who will speak on behalf of Toyota during the dedication. “Investing today in hands-on, creative, and exciting experiences for young people will pay dividends for local industries and America’s workforce now and in the future.”

The fab lab program began at MIT in Massachusetts via a grant from the National Science Foundation in 2001. The idea was to explore how the content of information relates to its physical representation and how an under-served community can be powered by technology at the grassroots level, according to the Grassroots Invention Group and the Center for Bits and Atoms at the Media who collaborated on the project.

The fab lab concept also grew out of a popular class at MIT (MAS.863) named “How To Make (Almost) Anything”. The class is still offered in the fall semesters.

Meanwhile, here in the Southland, Hagan said, many of the schools the “fab labs will visit do not have the space or resources to develop high technology-driven programs that teach digital fabrication, or the computational literacy skills that prepare youth for college or the global workplace.”

The Condition of STEM 2015 – California, ACT report found that of graduating seniors who took the ACT exam, 75 percent demonstrated college readiness in English, 57 percent in reading, 62 percent in mathematics, and 52 percent in science. In the case of science readiness, only 26 percent of African American and 30 percent of Hispanic graduating students attain ACT college readiness benchmarks, compared to 71 percent of white students and 68 percent among Asian students.

CSUDH’s mobile fab lab project addresses several issues at the heart of the STEM crisis: the need for qualified science and math teachers; a need to inspire K-12 students through engaging STEM experiences; and the need for more women and minorities graduating with STEM degrees and pursuing careers in related field, according to its creators.

The fab lab dedication will also feature science, technology, engineering and mathematics-related activities for students from local schools, and an award ceremony for the winners of a STEM competition, as well as remarks by Toyota and local education leaders.

In addition to the fab labs, the Toyota USA Foundation has donated $4 million to support the design, construction, and equipment for CSUDH’s Toyota Center for Innovation in STEM Education (Toyota Center), which will be housed in the university’s new 87,000+ square foot science and innovation building.

Source: LA Sentinel

Filed Under: CSUDH In The News Tagged With: Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Faculty, Science, Students, Teacher Education

Primary Sidebar

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
2nd in Economic Mobility

Press Releases

Soccer player kicking the ball in a stadium full of people

CSUDH Theatre Presents “The Wolves”

November 9, 2023

Image of a dancer and a compass.

CSUDH Presents “Compass: The Past Forges the Future” Dance Concert

October 31, 2023

Text: The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Diety by Kristoffer Diaz. Directed by Stefani Baez. University Theatre, Oct. 11, 12, 13, and 14 at 7 p.m. CSUDH.edu/theatre/ttickets

CSUDH Presents “The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity”

October 4, 2023

See all Press Releases ›

CSUDH in the News

Carson City Hall

Daily Breeze: Carson and CSUDH Begin New Paid Mentorship Program

November 22, 2023

President Parham and Karen Bass onstage

Daily Breeze: Karen Bass Talks Leadership, Civic Engagement at Her Alma Mater, CSU Dominguez Hills

November 16, 2023

Students using computer inside a prison facility

L.A. Times: Earning a Master’s Degree in Prison Now Possible in ‘Groundbreaking’ California Program

November 3, 2023

See more In the News ›

Faculty Highlights

Headshot of Laura Talamante

Faculty Highlights: November 2023

Minhye Son

Faculty Highlights: October 2023

Headshot of Carolyn Caffrey.

Faculty Highlights: September 2023

Staff Spotlight

Raven Emmert

Staff Spotlight: Raven Emmert

Elizabeth Hernandez

Staff Spotlight: Elizabeth Hernandez

Cesar Mejia Gomez

Staff Spotlight: Cesar Mejia Gomez

Footer

California State University, Dominguez Hills Logo

Related Sites

  • csudh.edu
  • magazine.csudh.edu
  • gotoros.com

EMAIL NEWSLETTER

Get CSUDH News directly in your inbox

Copyright © 2023 · California State University, Dominguez Hills