By Tim Carrigan
IMLS Senior Program Officer
Today kicks off the second National Week of Making, a time when community-based organizations, including libraries and museums, will host events and celebrations to highlight the inventors, hackers, designers, engineers, artists and DIYers that make up this ever-growing community.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is proud of the innovation demonstrated by museums and libraries participating in the maker movement. We believe that museums and libraries are ideal places for people of all ages to engage in “hands on, minds on” self-directed learning activities, developing 21st century skills and dispositions that will allow them to more fully participate in the workforce and civic life.
One of the way’s IMLS is commemorating the National Week of Making is through a series of guest blog posts written by our grantees which explore the making and learning activities taking place in their organizations and communities. Over the coming days, these posts will bring to life exciting examples of how museums and libraries are leveraging maker based activities for their patrons and visitors and fostering skills such as creativity, critical thinking, and entrepreneurship in a variety of institutional settings, including public libraries, academic libraries, science centers, historic sites, and children’s museums.
IMLS is delighted to cohost the second annual Capitol Hill Maker Faire in collaboration with the Congressional Maker Caucus on next Tuesday, June 21. This event includes a series of panel presentations during the day focused on different aspects and trends within the maker movement, and is capped by a mini-maker faire with nearly forty exhibitors in the Rayburn Cafeteria from 5:00-8:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public, so if you’re in DC, we invite you to join us for the festivities.
(Pictured: From the 2015 Capitol Hill Maker Faire, the nonprofit Enabling the Future displayed a variety of 3D-printed prosthetic hands, as well as artwork, and drones. The colorful and easy to assemble prosthetics can provide an affordable alternative to expensive traditional prosthetics.)
(Pictured: From the 2015 Capitol Hill Maker Faire, The We the Builder table featured these large, colorful sculptures while a 3D printer worked on a piece of another sculpture. The 3D sculptures are made by taking a digital sculpture and cutting it into hundreds of pieces on the computer, and crowdsourcing the printing.)
We’re also thrilled to share that the White House has recognized Felton Thomas, Director of the Cleveland Public Library as a Champion of Change for the maker movement. Under his leadership, CPL established their TechCentral makerspace to provide open access for patrons to laser engraving, 3d printing, audio, video, photo production tools and more. CPL has further expanded this work to now include MakerLab programs at 27 CPL branches featuring high and low-tech versions of photography, 3D printing, font creation, computer programming, art and design, laser engraving and cutting, and more. Congratulations to Felton and his team at CPL!
If you’re interested in learning more about IMLS support for the maker movement in museums and libraries, please check out our website. Additionally, If your organization is considering establishing a makerspace or enhancing your maker-based programming, you may be interested in our partnership with the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, which has resulted in a framework and related resources to guide and grow the capacity of museum and library professionals as they create the conditions for learning to unfold within and through making experiences.
Lastly, if your museum or library is hosting any maker based activities during the National Week of Making, we’d encourage you to post photos to social media and tag them with the #capmakerfaire and #nationofmakers.
All of us at IMLS wish you a very happy National Week of Making!
Tim Carrigan can be reached at tcarrigan@imls.gov.