The STEAMery

05/28/2026

Join us for an AI class this upcoming Monday night at the CRC!

Make AI Work for You: A Hands-On Class for Adults
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​​Curious about AI but not sure where to start? Join us at the CRC on Monday, June 1 for a practical, beginner-friendly class with AI expert Craig Marchand. This is not a tech lecture. It is a session about you. You will leave with a personal AI setup you can use in any tool, whether ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, so it understands how you think, communicate, and work. No experience needed. Just bring a phone or laptop!

⏰ Monday, June 1 @ 5:30 PM
📍Career Resource Center: 260 Schoolhouse Lane, Nashville

05/24/2026

Two weeks ago, Mike Shank and the Meyer Shank Racing IndyCar team took time out of their Month of May to talk with our Sparks Gamer Girls in the paddock at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Today, that same team won the 110th Indianapolis 500.

Congratulations to Felix Rosenqvist, the No. 60 crew, and the entire Meyer Shank Racing organization on an unforgettable victory, with both cars finishing inside the top five. We are beyond thrilled for them.
And we are still thinking about what their visit meant. In the most demanding stretch of their season, with two cars to prepare for the biggest race in the world, this team stopped to show a group of girls from Brown County how their operation runs and what a career in motorsports actually looks like. The people who did that just won the Indy 500.

None of it happens without Kids on Track and CoForce, who opened the door and made this day possible for our team.
Thank you for believing these girls belonged in that paddock.

A girl who started this season on a gaming laptop met the team that would go on to win the greatest race in the world. That is the entire idea behind this program.

Thank you and congratulations, Meyer Shank Racing IndyCar & IMSA GTP Fan Page.

thesteamery.org

05/11/2026

From gaming laptops to the bricks. Our Sparks Gamer Girls closed Year 1 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with full paddock access through the Kids on Track program. They met drivers, toured a Honda Racing transporter, held real Firestone race tires, and saw firsthand how data and engineering drive the sport. Thank you, and the crew at , for making the day happen.

04/26/2026

The STEAMery is developing a new pilot program called Project Fish, and we are looking for AI-comfortable volunteers to help shape it.

Project Fish fits directly with our mission: hands-on STEAM education, technology access, workforce development, creativity, and practical opportunity for Brown County.

We have already received a $25,000 donor gift to help fund the first version of the program. Now we are building the volunteer and planning team.

Project Fish is not just an AI class.

It is a pilot testing whether we can help people build more income stability by teaching them how to create AI-supported digital assets and small business models they own.

Project Fish is testing an idea: can we pursue the goals of income stability by helping people build their own income-producing systems?

Participants would not receive cash. They would receive tools, training, coaching, technology access, and accountability.

Examples could include niche websites, newsletters, digital products, AI-supported social media services, small business landing pages, or simple online business assets.

We will be opening applications soon for candidates for the first Project Fish cohort. The first cohort will be small so we can test the model, support participants closely, and measure outcomes before expanding.

We are also looking for volunteers with experience or comfort in AI tools, websites, Canva, digital marketing, online publishing, small business, social media, e-commerce, teaching, or coaching beginners.

You do not need to be an expert. We need practical people who want to help Brown County residents learn, build, and participate in the future of work.

If you are interested in volunteering or being notified when cohort applications open, please comment below or message The STEAMery. More info on our website: https://www.thesteamery.org/projectfish

04/04/2026

Second Story Studio has done such an among job with this program! We’re so glad to have them and the kids on board! Thank you, Peaceful Valley Heritage and Preservation for funding the program!

03/23/2026

Year 3 of BOTS Club is well underway at Helmsburg Elementary, and these kids are building real things.

Every Thursday, grades 3–5 students are learning to code in Scratch, exploring how AI makes decisions, and debugging their own games, start to finish. The program wraps up with a showcase at the Brown County Fair where students present their completed projects. Huge credit to Chelsea Busby and Purdue Extension Brown County for taking over this program!

This is hands-on computer science education, right here in our community and completely free for families and school.

03/19/2026

Real science is happening right here in Brown County.

The STEAMery's Biotech Program is running hands-on lab sessions inside Helmsburg Elementary School's 5th grade classrooms every Thursday morning. Students are working through forensic investigations, owl pellet dissections, pond water microscopy, and DNA extraction, using real equipment and maintaining lab notebooks just like working scientists do.

Every session is delivered during the regular school day so that every 5th grader can participate. No cost to families or the school.

This is what it looks like when STEAM comes to the community before the building is even finished.

Learn more at www.thesteamery.org

03/18/2026

The votes are in your hands, Brown County.

Over the past four weeks, Youth Art League students in grades 5–12 showed up at Second Story Studio and got to work - mastering collage, painting, printmaking, and pastels. Now they've channeled all of it into two original card sets, and the team that sells the most wins the title of Youth Art League Spring Champions.

Meet the teams:

Team Summer Flow - bright, botanical, full of warmth.
Team Shrimpy Dreams - bold, unexpected, and unforgettable.

Every card set purchase counts as one vote. Proceeds go directly toward keeping Youth Art League free for Brown County students.

Cast your vote here:

Vote for Team Summer Flow:
https://www.ssstudio.art/product-page/youth-art-league-card-set-team-sunset

Vote for Team Shrimpy Dreams:
https://www.ssstudio.art/product-page/youth-art-league-card-set-team-shrimpy-dreams

Youth Art League is a free student art program for grades 5–12, offered in partnership with Second Story Studio. Made possible through funding provided by Peaceful Valley Heritage and Preservation.

03/15/2026

A lot has happened since our last open house.

The STEAMery now has 6 programs running or launching across Brown County, all before construction even begins on our permanent home.

Our All-Girls Esports team just kicked off at Visit Hard Truth for Season 1 with EliteGamingLIVE.

The Biotech Program is doing real lab science with 5th graders at Helmsburg Elementary School.

Youth Art League is going strong at Second Story Studio.

Coding Club is in its 3rd year with 4-H at Helmsburg Elementary School.

Adult AI classes are underway at the Brown County Career Resource Center.

And our Community Grow Lab is in active development.

Want to see where all of this is headed? Join us tomorrow evening for our monthly Vision Open House at The Beamery Building in Helmsburg. Walk the future space, hear what's next, and meet the team making it happen.

Monday, March 16 | 6 to 7 PM The Beamery Building, Helmsburg, Indiana
www.thesteamery.org

https://www.facebook.com/share/1F3pzo3oGo/

Send a message to learn more

03/02/2026

We're thrilled to announce our newest STEAM initiative launching in the next two weeks at Helmsburg Elementary School! Our Biotech Program will bring cutting-edge science education directly to Helmsburg 5th graders through an incredible hands-on curriculum.

What Makes This Special:
🧬 Led by a local volunteer who is a former UCLA researcher and 5th grade science teacher - Jodie Silbaugh
🔍 Forensics investigations and owl pellet dissections
🎨 Pigment extraction from pond water transformed into art
🖼️ Student-created bioart pieces created from our exploration for our fundraising auction

This program perfectly blends rigorous scientific inquiry with creative expression, showing our students that science IS art, and art IS science.

Why It Matters:
This isn't just about learning biology; it's about inspiring the next generation of scientists, researchers, and innovators right here in our community. Thanks to our board's approval and community support, we're investing in experiences that will spark lifelong curiosity.

📅 Program begins March 2025 | Integrated into 5th Grade Science Curriculum

Want to support programs like this? Get in touch, we'd love to share how you can help us grow STEAM education in Brown County! Check us out at: www.TheSTEAMery.org

02/27/2026

Brown County’s FIRST All-Girls Esports Team is here! Register by March 4.

Grades 5–8.
8 roster spots.
$0 cost to families.

Players will compete in a nationally recognized league (EliteGamingLIVE), play 5 official Game Days plus a Championship, and explore real STEM career pathways.

This is not just gaming.
It’s strategy. Engineering. Confidence. Leadership.

Season launches March 9 at in Nashville.

No experience required.

This first team starts with girls. Co-ed and boys teams are planned as the program grows.

Spots are limited to 8 players.

Register now:
www.thesteamery.org/esports