The Citizen Science Lab had a five-year goal to become independent by 2020, but it achieved that goal last year and now needs room to grow.
The nonprofit, housed in the Energy Innovation Center — the former Connelley Vocational High School in the Hill District — will open a second location in the spring in Bethel Park’s Landmark Building, 1699 Washington Road, the former home of Snapology, a STEM-education company.
The Citizen Science Lab was founded in 2015 under the aegis of Urban Innovation 21 and Duquesne University. It has a client list of 25 schools and 30-40 youth-oriented organizations.
It now offers adult classes on weekends in a series called Science & Brews.
“We wanted to build our reputation working with students first before producing adult programming,” said president and CEO Andre Samuel. “Our goal is to become a regional then national model. I can’t think of another one like this [in the country] that runs full time, year-round.”
The lab is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment to support and collaborate with teachers and science students during school, after school, in the summer and for special projects.
Capacity at the lab in the Energy Innovation Center is about 20 students at any one time. The Bethel Park location will nearly triple that capacity.
The lab has partnered with Duquesne University and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History on genetic analyses. It has 60 students building underwater robots. Last summer, its staff trained and mentored a group of Westinghouse High School students for an international competition in genetic engineering. It was held in Boston in October.
Mr. Samuel said most of the kids had no biogenetic education and rode the bus to and from the lab to prepare.
“These teams are usually from rich private schools,” he said, “from China, Peru, France, Saudi Arabia” and cities including Baltimore and Jerusalem. “You don’t see teams of all African-American kids.”
The Homewood students earned a bronze medal in what Mr. Samuel described as “a grueling competition” that required them to defend their results to a panel of international judges.
Another unique opportunity has 10 teenagers from the North Side attending the Lab’s Drone Academy, a remote classroom at Nova Place in Allegheny Center. The students are learning to code for drones, program them, build them and fly them, with aspirations to become drone pilots licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The lab has been supported by foundations including the R.K. Mellon, BNY Mellon, Pittsburgh, Grable and Buhl foundations and by McAuley Ministries and the Heinz Endowments.
First Published: February 4, 2019, 12:30 p.m.
