Collab Lab 76: Recap & Notes

Pete Reynolds Blog, Collab Labs June 8, 2026June 9, 2026design, TRUE Skool, UWM

We wrapped up our 10th season of Collab Labs on May 13th at UWM to cap of their Experiential Learning Showcase.

In a fit of meta, the session:

highlighted the collaborative efforts of TRUE Skool and students within the School of Architecture’s Community Design Solutions (CDS) to explore design concepts for a new campus for TRUE Skool,
our discussion focused on further opportunities to engage K-12 students and community partners throughout the visioning, design and development process of that campus,
was facilitated by UWM students in Ben Trager’s Ed Policy course on Community Partnerships as the final project of their experiential learning with Collab Labs this semester.

CDS & TRUE Skool

CDS’s Director, Krisann Rehbein joined TRUE Skool Co-Executive Director to share the process they developed for a design workshop series for TRUE Skool youth and the outputs of those efforts. Over the course of several weeks, TRUE Skool students explored spatial thinking, user experience and and design approaches to develop visions for how a new facility might better serve students involved in TRUE Skools programming. They shared as well how the ideas students developed over that series now serve as input for the architecture firm HGA as the vision for a new campus is carried forward.

Discussion

With that as context, the Ed Policy students took over to a lead a process that explored opportunities for students at the elementary, middle, or high school level, to engage further around the design and development of a new campus, with an emphasis on reciprocity. In that exercise, they challenged us to view those opportunities through a lens of reciprocity. How might those be structured so that the commitments and benefits participants make and receive as part of a collaborative effort flow in both directions.

Fidel closed out the evening leading a full group discussion on what’s required to engage students in taking on real-world community issues, and what suggests we ought to target in a vision for what school might become.

Thanks

A big thanks to:

Ben Trager and UWM’s Center for Student Experience and Talent for both hosting the session and working with us to engage his Ed Policy students throughout the semester to attend our Collab Labs and run this session.
Krisann & Fidel for working with the team to both set up the discussion and carry it forward.
Ed Policy 609 students Shana Brown, Chamomile Hauser, Pulcherie Grace Kouokam Noumsi, Alexis Martinez , Jaqueline Pinto Md Shahrin, Ethan Parker, Colonia Roberts, Bela Raymundo, and Irving Velazquez for joining us throughout the semester, and facilitating the discussion.
The several TRUE Skool students who joined the discussion and were able to share both the value they get out of being part of the process as well as the challenges they still see as we try and get it right.

← Collab Lab 75 Recap & Notes

Collab Lab 76: Recap & Notes
June 8, 2026

We wrapped up our 10th season of Collab Labs on May 13th at UWM to cap of their Experiential Learning Showcase. In a fit of meta, the session: highlighted the collaborative efforts of TRUE Skool and students within the School of Architecture’s Community Design Solutions (CDS) to explore design concepts for a new campus for TRUE Skool, our discussion focused on further opportunities to engage K-12 students and community partners throughout the visioning, design and development process of that campus, was facilitated by UWM students in Ben Trager’s Ed Policy course on Community Partnerships as the final project of their experiential learning with Collab Labs this semester. CDS & TRUE Skool CDS’s Director, Krisann Rehbein joined TRUE Skool Co-Executive Director to share the process they developed for a design workshop series for TRUE Skool youth and the outputs of those efforts. Over the course of several weeks, TRUE Skool students explored spatial thinking, user experience and and design approaches to develop visions for how a new facility might better serve students involved in TRUE Skools programming. They shared as well how the ideas students developed over that series now serve as input for the architecture firm HGA as the vision for a new campus is carried forward. Discussion With that as context, the Ed Policy students took over to a lead a process that explored opportunities for students at the elementary, middle, or high school level, to engage further around the design and development of a new campus, with an emphasis on reciprocity. In that exercise, they challenged us to view those opportunities through a lens of reciprocity. How might those be structured so that the commitments and benefits participants make and receive as part of a collaborative effort flow in both directions. Fidel closed out the evening leading a full group discussion on what’s required to engage students in taking on real-world community issues, and what suggests we ought to target in a vision for what school might become. Thanks A big thanks to: Ben Trager and UWM’s Center for Student Experience and Talent for both hosting the session and working with us to engage his Ed Policy students throughout the semester to attend our Collab Labs and run this session. Krisann & Fidel for working with the team to both set up the discussion and carry it forward. Ed Policy 609 students Shana Brown, Chamomile Hauser, Pulcherie Grace Kouokam Noumsi, Alexis Martinez , Jaqueline Pinto Md Shahrin, Ethan Parker, Colonia Roberts, Bela Raymundo, and Irving Velazquez for joining us throughout the semester, and facilitating the discussion. The several TRUE Skool students who joined the discussion and were able to share both the value they get out of being part of the process as well as the challenges they still see as we try and get it right.

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Collab Lab 75 Recap & Notes
April 29, 2026

The focus for April’s session was Collaborative Approaches to Healing Math Trauma, and it proved to be a great opportunity to share ideas and approaches with math educators serving students from early elementary through college. Folded into the mix we had folks from several nonprofit organizations looking at how they might leverage the hands on work they do with students as an opportunity to support positive math experiences. We began the session with a chance for participants to try their hands at solving Skyscraper puzzles from the Julia Robinson Math Festivals. Participants worked in groups of 2 or 3 to solve progressively harder challenges and talk through strategies to solve these sudoku like puzzles. This gave us a common starting point to talk through what the experience was like for participants, and how that might differ from the more typical they or their students may be accustomed to. Naturally enough, attendees described some initial tension and performance anxiety, but they felt that fade as they collaborated with tablemates to talk through each puzzle. Qualities of that experience which stood out include The buzz of productive conversation The activity was easy to access Working with one or more partners allowed teams to approach the puzzles from multiple perspectives, with each team member seeing some aspect of the puzzle that others may have missed. Having physical objects to arrange as puzzle solutions encouraged visual problem solving, and sparked ideas and realizations that provided opportunities for participants to share their logic and reasoning. This led us into discussions about this experiences differs from those students might more typically have within a math class. Across our discussion groups, participants noted several key differences: Compliance vs. Problem Solving– math instruction is more often compliance-focused rather than built on genuine problem solving Lack of Agency: Students often lack the agency to build their own thinking skills, and the teacher to “save them” Transactional Nature: For many, a math course is seen merely as a hurdle to graduation or an apprenticeship rather than a tool for life. The Safety of Disengagement: Because of the stress involved, many students find that checking out feels safer than facing negative emotions or the risk of failure Participants also identified several core elements they wish were more prevalent in math instruction. Productive Struggle: There is a strong desire to see students engage in productive struggle within a culture that forgives errors and values figuring out over simply getting the right answer Agency and Reflection: Learning should provide students with the agency to critique and communicate while giving them the space to reflect on their own thinking Tactile and Creative Learning: The use of tactile materials, visual and physical models can serve as a hook to make abstract concepts more accessible Joy and Identity: Math should be an opportunity for students to build a mathematical identity and experience the joy in exploring mathematical ideas, collaboration, and creative application of mathematical concepts. We reference healing math trauma in the title of the Collab Lab. That’s a phrase we’ve been using in our work with math folks over the years. The experience of too many students, caregivers, and educators have had with math education has left them with a certain level of fear when they hear the word math. What brought attendees to our session was a recognition of how common that fear is, how it impacts not only students but educators, so we spent some time to dig into that a bit and understand what they see from their perspectives: Generational and Institutional Trauma: Both teachers and students often carry their own math trauma, which can be exacerbated by frustrated parents at home. In a classic vicious cycle, a educator who fears teaching math leaves a student confused, the confused student asks a parent or caregiver for help, and they feel unable to do so. It allows everyone in that chain to feel a sense of failure– he teacher has failed to teach, the student has failed to learn, and the caregiver has failed to help. The Math Person Myth:A major hurdle is the persistent belief in the myth of math people vs. non-math people, which creates an extra layer of social status in the classroom. Somehow it becomes ok to ignore the notion of a growth mindset when it comes to math. Systemic Barriers: The current system often focuses on grades over life skills, and many students are effectively locked out opportunities by rigid requirements for math, and limited supports or practices that can help a student meet them Abstract Meaninglessness: Because math is often taught as purely abstract, it becomes difficult for students to assign meaning to it, leading to a disconnect between the subject and their real lives. Despite the challenges, facilitators noted several promising frameworks and strategies. Restorative Frameworks: The CIRCL framework (Carnegie Math Pathways) in use at MATC and restorative assessment (filling gaps rather than retaking whole courses) offer a more humane way to handle remediation Art and Interest-Based Learning: Using art, film, fashion, or dance as a medium to teach STEM can draw students in and facilitate deeper thinking about how math is used in the real world Real-World Application: Successful models include exposing the math within construction and other trades, and experiential learning that connects different disciplines Family Engagement: Programs like Parent University and family math nights can help address the home-to-school transfer of math anxiety Pedagogical Shifts: that connect math to the shared experiences of teachers and students both groups to start from a position of knowing before shifting to the abstract. Some closing thoughts This was our 75th Collab Lab, which puts us one away from the close of 10 years of bringing educators and community partners together to explore what’s possible. The large turnout we had for the session is a clear demonstration of the passion in Milwaukee to do something more for our students and to do so together. Since our first session back in 2016 more than 800 teachers, more….

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Collab Lab 74: Recap & Notes
March 19, 2026

Discussion in our March Collab Lab focused on the role visual design and communication can play in STEM. We started the conversation by asking… “What can visual design and communication skills bring to how students engage with STEM?” Across our discussion groups, several themes emerged: Real-World Application: Visual design and communication skills equip students with a new set of tools to explore real-world issues, and at the same time, exploration of real-world issues provide rich opportunities to develop those skills. Cognitive Scaffolding and Conceptual Clarity: As an alternative to rote memorization, engaging in design and modeling can help making complex ideas more accessible and allow students build a deeper understanding of abstract concepts. Lowering Barriers to Engagement: Visual design acts as a familiar and low-stakes”entry point or on-ramp that can spark curiosity and personalize the learning experience for students who might otherwise feel intimidated by the subject. Psychological Safety and Iterative Thinking: The design process fosters a growth mindset by encouraging risk-taking, divergent thinking, and the acceptance of critique, shifting the focus from “finding the one right answer” to process-oriented iteration. Collaborative Problem-Solving and Agency: Effective communication norms and visual tools empower students to share diverse perspectives, identify real-world problems, and move from frustration toward actionable, solution-oriented thinking. The Power of Materiality and Tangibility: The specific choice of materials can serve as a physical catalyst that shifts a student’s brain from passive observation to active, sensory-rich experimentation. Disciplined Observation and Relational Thinking: Visual design trains students to “drill down” on what they are seeing to understand the proximity and relationships between objects, fostering the same observational skills required for scientific inquiry. Emotional Processing and Personal Agency: By providing a path to move from frustration over a issue toward solutions thinking, design gives students a productive way to process the emotional challenges of difficult STEM problems and claim personal ownership over their work. From there we move the discussion to… “Where do we see gaps in developing these skills?” Here too we saw some interesting themes emerge: The Metric Mismatch: There is a fundamental values gap between what we would like to see (creativity, confidence, joy) and what school systems measure/value: standardized test scores, progress towards credit requirements, and stable schedules. The “Basics” vs. “Application” Tug-of-WarWhen visual design/communication in STEM work is an add on at the end of an exploration, rather than a means to explore, the time allocated to this effort becomes secondary to ensuring that students have the basics down. In effect, we ignore the notion that the application of concept is, in itself, an opportunity to understand it more deeply. Structural Scarcity of Time and Space: Schedules in K-12 don’t support the slower nature of design, iteration, and project-based learning. Without the space and time to get messy, experiment, fail and try again, students are forced to work in a system that asks for the right answer now. Cultural and Generational Drag:It’s not just the schools—it’s the surrounding ecosystem. Parent expectations are often rooted in a “how it used to be” mindset, and school leadership may lack the forethought to prioritize interdisciplinary connections over traditional silos. Equity and Resource GapsThere is a glaring gap in access. The difference in funding across private, charter and public schools can mean that for many schools, materials and facilities are often a luxury rather than a standard tool for learning. We ended our discussion with one final question: What concrete opportunities can you see to develop these skills as part of students’ STEM experiences? Here are groups took a couple of different paths. Practices to adopt Break out of the box Find opportunities to make connections real and concrete in learning Experiential learning strategies Walk across the hall to connect with colleagues in different disciplines Recognize that what you spend time on is a priority Work with the rage and frustration within a broken system to bring in some light and joy Some specific opportunities Is there a faculty member in the College of Arts & Architecture at UWM open to having their students work with elementary school math teachers as a service/experiential learning opportunity? MIAD already has a program in place to work with K-12 art teachers. What could it look like if MIAD could include STEM teachers in that? Thanks A big thanks to the MSOE STEM Center for hosting us, and to all of our featured participants: Kristin Steinbach Holtz — Experiential Learning Manager, MIADJodi Schomaker — Senior Manager of Creative & Design, Discovery WorldPaul Mech – Director of Education, Discovery WorldDr. Aaron Robert Atencio — Research Curator Cultural Sciences, Milwaukee Public Museum

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Collab Lab 73 Recap & Notes
February 19, 2026

Last week’s Collab Lab brought together the folks who coordinate and support experiential learning at UWM, Marquette, MSOE, MIAD, and MATC together for a discussion focused on how we might connect experiential learning opportunities in higher-ed to those in K-12 with benefits to all sides. Goals We began the discussion but asking what we hope experiential learning can offer to students as well as educators, in higher-ed, or within K-12. While the group called out a few direct impacts– public service, skill development, exposure to new environments, the opportunity to make connections to material presented in the classroom, it was what might happen that seemed to offer a greater spark. The greatest value in experiential learning may come from the unanticipated impact, a passion is ignited in a student that sends them on an unforeseen journey, they gain insight into and empathy for the lives of others, they feel empowered to set a course for their own lives. More goals came out, even as the discussion moved on, in particular, that experiential learning opportunities could help pave a path of success, a livable wage, and meaningful work. Capabilities Our next point of discussion focused on the capabilities and opportunities that higher-ed and K-12 can bring to support experiential learning. It’s a long list. Context Sense of belonging Uniqueness of experience Opportunity to explore cultural interests Opportunity to co-develop learning experiences with educator, student, mentor, partner Resources/Facilities Network connections mentors community resources business/industry partners Alumni Career information K-12 educators within Museums Offices of community engagement within higher-ed Models of successful programs MKE Roots Labs/equipment not available in K-12 schools Structure/Process Opportunities to connect to community and employment Best practices: Self reflection use of artifacts as evidence of learning intake models to assess knowledge and skills assessment models Dual Enrollment MPS Learning Journeys program Service learning programs/requirements Credential stacking Internships Diversity funds Centers to connect college students with businesses MIAD Innovation Center UWM Center for Student Experience & Talent MSOE Create Institute As participants talked through this point, they also made note of what they would like to see put in place to support experiential learning, including: Having a passionate advocate or champion for a project in the community that can draw the attention and support of those who might create experiential learning opportunities to further the work. Look for ways to get employers involved, build relationships that that can lead to internship and employment opportunities. Look for what is in place already that can be brought to K-12 Take time to find where the gaps are and work to address them Make the work intentional– ask those you are working for what they want and need Create opportunities within these experiences to learn bout careers Build and extend relationships Localization of education/jobs & pathways What gets in the way While the capabilities and possibilities are many, there are always barriers. Discovery The ability to: find the right partners, where collaboration is mutually beneficial and builds value for both sides see the value in partnership with K-12, particularly for industry partners be aware of possibilities Friction Fatigue on teachers, companies, nonprofits to take on new work or engage for the duration Staff turnover Time required for planning vs doing Culture of institutions to deal with disruptive rather than incremental change Training required for partners and mentors Development level of students matched to opportunity for growth social emotional skills soft skills Pressures for academic success Institutional gatekeeping of knowledge and relationships Transportation for students Misalignment of academic calendars Misalignment of K-12 hours with availability of college students Lack of training for community partners to collaborate effectively with students Process and paperwork background checks Focus on test results/scores/metrics Long time horizons and relationships needed to make progress Demographic/generational chasms Roadblocks Priorities of institution or district Schools’ idea of their role and work, and the role of the educator limits ideas and new approaches Structure of school system for faculty to build relationships with the community/time to engage higher-ed, companies, local business. Lack of capacity staff, time, money Lack of courage to try/mind set & culture Lack of systems for K-12/Higher-ed collaboration within smaller firms/organizations Ability to get management buy-in Misalignment of investment in capital rather than talent pipeline Curriculum does not allow space Budget constraints/pressures Inflexible structures Both levels are under attack in terms of money content freedoms how to deal with AI Lack of trust Inadequate infrastructure to support collaboration with minimal friction Institutional rigidity/inability to adapt to change Opportunities Never wanting to end on a note of despair, we wrapped up the discussion by asking each table to pick a single issue and offer a suggestion for how it might be addressed. Bonus points for identifying an action someone could take this week to get things moving. Group 1 Issue: Getting the opportunity just to explore and and experience Change needed: Stepping of of the rigidity to embrace things that are invaluable, but de-valued Goals: Let students just be and explore without concern that there is a specific standard to be met Who needs to be involved: Sandra @ Greenfield has the freedom and transportation to get a group of students off campus; Students have a portfolio project to do as a graduation requirement; Marisa Riepenhoff from the Milwaukee Art Museum can offer a MAM behind the scenes program for Sandra’s students Where to start: An email to set it up! [5 bonus points awarded] Group 2 Issue: Within K-12, a lack of curiosity (play, passion, exploration) that links to career (purpose, exploration, thrivable way, stacked credentials, mentorship) Change needed: Fun & engaging educators, identify opportunities for play within industry, classroom is everywhere, instructor is everyone teachers are evaluated on the hope & joy youth/students experience not just standardized testing. Goals: Get everyone on the same page with a mission purpose, culture to increase hope and joy Who needs to be involved: classroom and community, industry (professionals & mentors); youth decision making & expression; evaluators, practitioners, administrators Where to start: more….

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Collab Lab 71: Recap & Notes
November 25, 2025

Our November Collab Lab explored how TRUE Skool’s work to to envision and develop a new campus for their programs could be leveraged as an opportunity to engage youth throughout the process and help them build the skills, and relationships useful to pursue careers in architecture, construction, real estate and related professions. Some Background The idea for the Collab Lab was the result of several threads coming together. TRUE Skool has been thinking about new space for their programs, that would get them out of lower level space within The Avenue. While TRUE Skool wants to remain downtown, a location broadly seen as accessible to all in an otherwise highly segregated city, it also wants greater visibility for their programming and the work their students do. In 2023, Wisconsin Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects (Wisco NOMA) launched it’s first Project Pipeline Camp — a 3 day design workshop for middle and high school students interested in architecture. The work students did there focused on space planning for TRUE Skool. Wisco NOMA has run Project Pipelines Camps each summer since then, expanding to offer camps in Madison and Milwaukee for each of the last two years, always with the participation of a number of students from TRUE Skool. In parallel, TRUE Skool as continued working with its students to explore what a new campus might look like. This spring, with support from Community Design Solutions (CDS), TRUE Skool students participated in a design challenge to envision what spaces within a new campus might offer. Conversations over the summer with Wisco NOMA and TRUE Skool highlighted how aligned goals could build to a much larger opportunity. Wisco NOMA has wanted to connect students participating in it’s camps to further opportunities during the school year. TRUE Skool wants to see students engaged as active participants in realizing it’s vision of a new campus. Those conversations led to the idea of Future Builders– putting together a network of individuals, organizations, and programs that engage youth in architecture, construction, real estate, and related professions, that could use TRUE Skool’s vision for a new campus as an opportunity for collaboration, that could offer students a connected series of opportunities over an extended period of time. The first effort on this front was the Future Builders Studio, a weekend design camp earlier this month, focused on a new campus for TRUE Skool, in collaboration with Wisco NOMA, leveraging practices and curriculum developed with CDS, and Project Pipeline. It’s a lot of threads coming together, but its simpler to think of it as aligned efforts operating at three different levels: The What: A Future TRUE Skool Campus — TRUE Skool’s new, permanent home The How: TRUE Skool Legacy Project — An overarching, youth-engaged effort to envision, design, and realize TRUE Skool’s future and document its story. The Who: Future Builders Network — Individuals and organizations ready with expertise, programing, or resources to engage young people in real world projects that prepare them for careers in the building professions. Our discussion focused on the how and the who. Discussion We began the discussion with a brainstorming exercise to identify existing programs and resources that touch some aspect of what TRUE Skool might need to take on between conceptual design and opening a new campus. It’s a long list: Understanding the ecosystem BLEST Hub’s Ecosystem Mapping project Exploration of potential operating models Genera8tor Lubar School Bader Institute for Nonprofit Management Existing spaces/organizations that could serve as models/inspiration Coworking spaces Milwaukee Maker Space Reflo Trust for Public Land Discovery World Milwaukee Public Museum First State Black Holocaust Museum Juxtaposition Arts (Minneapolis) Hip Hop Architecture Avis-Elsmere (Detroit) Defining Humanity Data Resources City of Milwaukee Property Data Data You Can Use Architecture & design UWM Community Design Solutions MATC’s Architecture Program MIAD Real estate & local economic development Marquette’s Real Estate Program Downtown Bid ACREs program Northwest Side CDC LISC CARW WCREW NAIOP Mandel Group Construction ACE Mentorship AGC Resources in higher education UWM Center for Student Experience & Talent Experiential Learning Service Learning Marquette Trinity Fellows Youth Engagement City on the Hill Milwaukee Youth Council Journey House Boys & Girls Clubs Mentoring HPGM Mentor Milwaukee Potential Funders Northwestern Mutual Zilber Bader Baird Milwaukee Tool Potawatomi Generac Alliant Energy We Energies Harley Davidson Foundation Key Opportunities From here we moved on to explore the roles partners might play and areas that will be key to advancing the project. As each discussion group shared their thoughts, three things stood out: In order to engage students from conceptual design through construction, TRUE Skool needs a plausible model for how a new campus would be funded. Regardless of the funding model, TRUE Skool would benefit from greater visibility of both its offerings and approach. There are other organizations and facilities within and beyond Milwaukee that could inform the design of spaces within a new campus, potential synergies with other partners who might share space or facilities with True Skool, and/or potential funding models to support development of a new campus. Operating Model While TRUE Skool has a strong vision for what they would like a new campus to offer and represent within the community, pulling together funding to lease, acquire and build out that space will require a plausible operating model for that new space. It is the understanding that the project could come to fruition that allows students to see that they are working on something real. It also provides a greater incentive for those who could support or engage students in aspects of this effort– it allows the work they might do with young people to be cast as supporting something much bigger. Visibility TRUE Skool and its students have been doing some really interesting work in Milwaukee over the past 10 years. Yet even among the people who came for the discussion, many were unfamiliar with everything TRUE Skool has been involved with and how they approach working with young people. TRUE Skool’s desire to get out of the more….

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Collab Lab 70: Recap & Notes
October 18, 2025

Our tenth season of Collab Labs kicked off last week with a session co-hosted with Adriana Vázquez, Director of Education & Public Programs, and Maisie Buntin, Outreach Programs Coordinator for the Milwaukee Public Museum. Every year, the Milwaukee Public Museum hosts its annual BioBlitz, a 24-hour event where scientists survey the biodiversity in a park or natural area. Our session focused on a nagging issue for Adriana and Maisie– BioBlitzes don’t happen during the school year, so the museum misses opportunities to engage school audiences. The Museum is working to adapt this big event into smaller, student-driven “mini-BioBlitzes” to be held at schoolyards, community organizations, and more. The Collab Lab provided an opportunity to explore that idea with educators and potential collaborators. Discussion Our conversation covered how attendees currently engage with students or community on biodiversity or other environmental topics, and what is missing from that engagement, how MPM mini BioBlitzes might play a role in addressing those gaps, and what’s needed to make that work. Over the course of the evening, several broad themes emerged. The need to build hands-on, real-world learning into school culture Getting students excited and connected to the content can be a challenge: Students need to see illustrate real-word relevance to lessons When schools have even just one teacher or admin motivated to provide these hands-on, real-world experiences, students show more interest and excitement Giving students the opportunity to work on something real, present their work and ideas to an authentic audience are key motivators, environmental justice and civic engagement– focus on a local park or site, are useful entry points, particularly for those that aren’t (yet?) “Nature Nerds” How can we do better to “operationalize” this type of learning – turn it from one person’s project into school culture and expectations? Make it easy for teachers to take on the work: cover their time to participate in training provide funding and resources to implement effectively explicitly tie to standards engage community resources to support efforts within K-12 empower older students to support the work of younger peers start with the easiest entry points for teachers and build out from there Scaffolding – build capabilities to participate across grade levels. As examples, for mini-BioBlitz, kindergarteners do a color walk, elementary might look at various stages of categorization (ex. # insects, # plants, # of birds, etc.), up to high school (working with dichotomous keys, doing biodiversity index, etc.) Biodiversity education is largely missing from afterschool/out of school programming. Teens Grow Greens offers a model for how that can be done. Data collection and interpretation is a possible unexplored avenue of BioBlitz engagement Using data from mini-BioBlitzes, at different locations, or from MPM full BioBlitz, Potential alignment with AP exam topics re: data collection and analysis Incorporation of GIS provides could provide additional entry points for exploration Tap expertise who may know of similar projects in other parts of the country Curate and interpret data as an asset within the school Integrating technology into this work Identify apps/tools like iNaturalist that schools might leverage Opportunities for students to create digital tools As focal point for conversations around AI and how teachers are being asked to incorporate teaching about it – this could be an avenue to illustrate appropriate use of AI (ie. for species recognition) Going beyond science Tie in the arts (conveniently, the theme for our March Collab Lab) Representation/social justice/environmental justice, e.g. how is biodiversity/access to biodiverse habitats correlated with socio-economic status? Connect to student identity and background What’s Next We’ll have a chance to explore these topics further in our December and April Collab Labs with The Society for Conservation Biology North America (SCBNA), whose 2026 conference will be in Milwaukee. SCBNA has some upcoming webinars exploring the value of scientific assessments to communities and policy makers. You can find the schedule and registration information here. In November we will take on another project in the works, to explore how TRUE Skool’s planning for a new campus might serve as through line to connect K-12 students to programming, expertise, and experiences over the course of that effort– from planning and design, through site acquisition and construction. Thanks A big thanks to Adriana and Maisie for working with us to pull the session together and facilitate the conversation. Thanks also the MSOE’s STEM Center our host for another season of Collab Labs.Thanks also to Leah Rosenbaum from STEAM Milwaukee who was able to join us for the session. She notes that STEAM Milwaukee has a number of resources in their lending library for teachers who want to dive deeper into environmental explorations. These include sampling nets (not pictured on the website) as well as 8 microscopes and a set of Vernier probes. Leah also mentioned Dear Data, as offering examples of both the simple ways data can be shared (via hand drawn annotated diagrams on postcards) and the range of ways data might be presented to illuminate an area of focus.

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