Mobile Fab Lab to Reach Students in Rural Locations

October 28, 2015 – Coal Center, PA – Chevron andIntermediate Unit 1 (IU1) in coordination with The Fab Foundation announced today the launch of a fabrication lab (Fab Lab) that will serve Fayette, Greene, and Washington counties in southwestern Pennsylvania. The IU1 Community Fab Lab will offer a permanent Fab Lab in Coal Center, as well as a mobile Fab Lab, which will give rural community school districts access to mobile technology and equipment that can be set up at their schools.

This digital fabrication workshop is made possible by a portion of Chevron’s $10 million commitment to the Fab Foundation, announced in 2014 at the White House Maker Faire, to build Fab Labs in areas where it operates in the U.S.

The IU1 Community Fab Lab will feature state-of-the-art design and fabrication equipment, such as laser cutters, 3D printers, vinyl cutters and milling machines, which will give students and the broader community unprecedented access to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) resources and help build the skills and experience needed to succeed in STEM fields. The Fab Lab will promote innovation and design in the community and will build the local workforce capacity.
In addition to the permanent Fab Lab in Coal Center, a mobile Fab Lab will also be available to serve communities in the areas of Fayette, Greene, and Washington counties. This will provide high-tech equipment and teacher resources that are not often available in rural parts of these counties. The IU1 mobile Fab Lab will help bring these tools out into the community so students can build the skills needed for jobs in STEM and technical fields.

Ensuring our students have the STEM skills necessary […]