Collab Lab 74: Visual Communication and STEM

Season 10/Collab Lab 74

How do we develop talent for visual communication to tell effective stories of STEM?

Effective visual storytelling is more than an aesthetic choice; it is a tool for equity that lowers the barrier to entry to explore complex concepts and ideas. How we develop talent in this niche, to ensure that STEM stories are not just heard by the few, but understood by the many? How and where might we engage expertise of design and communication educators and professionals to start building this talent in K-12?

Join us to explore possibilities, identify constraints, and map out some ways to move forward.

As always, you’ll be joined by peers and collaborators from K-12 higher education, industry, and the nonprofit community. If you work with or know of a student who would like to join the discussion, please extend the invitation.

Agenda

5:30 to 6:00 pm Grab something to eat and meet someone new

6:00 to 6:20 pm Welcome and introductions

6:20 to 8:15 pm Let’s explore some possibilities

8:15 to 8:30 pm Wrap up and next steps

Featured Participants

Among others, you’ll have a chance to talk with:

Dr. Aaron Robert Atencio — Research Curator CulturalSciences, Milwaukee Public Museum

Aaron is an anthropologist studying cultural continuity and change through image-making across time. His research moves between contemporary photography and the historical and prehistoric production of images—rock art, icons, and iconoclasm—to examine how belief systems can take visual form.

He is Head of Cultural Sciences at the Milwaukee Public Museum overseeing the Anthropology and History divisions, co-coordinator of the Museum Studies Program, and Research Fellow at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.

Kristin Steinbach Holtz — Experiential Learning Manager, MIAD
Kristin has a background in education as a social studies teacher after graduating with a MA in Social Studies Education from NYU. While teaching, she participated in the “Enduring Themes in American History” (ETAH) program, which was a three-year professional development program for high school history teachers, established around 2003 through a collaboration between Columbia’s Teacher’s College, and the U.S. Department of Education. Involvement with this collaboration was where she gained insights into the potentials of experiential learning. She earned a doctorate in Educational Leadership with a concentration in instructional design from UWM and worked for MPS as a social studies teacher at Bradley Tech High School where her students completed interesting projects with community organizations like Arts@Large and Serve2Unite. She then worked for Employ Milwaukee providing career readiness enrichments for several high schools and acted as a Youth Apprenticeship regional coordinator. She returned to Bradley Tech as the Industry Liaison from 2020-2025. Since July 2025, Kristin has taken on the role of Experiential Learning Manager for Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design.

Jodi Schomaker — Senior Manager of Creative & Design, Discovery World
Jodi has a background in art and design, having graduated from the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design(MIAD). She has been with Discovery World since the fall of 2012. In her current role, she oversees all visual aspects of the organization. Her work includes exhibit wayfinding, materials styling, exhibit interactives, functional UX storyboarding, large-scale installations, promotional materials, educational materials, and graphics for digital media production. Outside of her work at Discovery World, she enjoys traditional painting and crafting. Her artwork is characterized by bright colors, bold patterns, and occasionally, a cat or two.

Paul Mech – Director of Education, Discovery World
Paul has been delivering and developing informal education programming for nearly twenty years as a member of Discovery World’s Education Team, in roles from part-time educator to department leader. He loves to find different ways to look at and approach topics and tries never to offer something in the same way as school. He believes that everyone can be STEM-literate.