STEM partner, Einstein Project expands staff

GREEN BAY, WI – March 4, 2022 – With a swift rebound from the impacts of COVID, The Einstein Project is expanding into new schools and delivering STEM learning opportunities in many new and exciting ways. Einstein’s Sandbox, a mobile creativity lab, brought enriching experience to over 1500 kids at 55 events in city parks in Green Bay, Appleton & Oshkosh in the summer of 2021.

Einstein Project Executive Director, Chad Janowski said, “With the summer of 2022, just around the corner, we are looking forward to providing more fun learning experiences, at more locations, impacting more kids.”

To prepare for another successful year the Einstein Project brought on board Mark Hawkins as the mobile programming coordinator. Mark brings 20 years of experience as a visual storyteller with his photography business. Most recently, he spends many hours as the chief volunteer at Hands On Deck, a nonprofit that he founded 5 years ago to work with youth and families through wooden boat building and accessing the waters of the Fox River and Green Bay.

Mark Hawkins

Mark will be joined by a team of college students serving as mentors for the youth that they work with in each community, providing guidance and inspiration for the pursuit of careers in STEM fields and the cultivation of creative thinking and expression.

Assisting in fundraising for the summer mobile programming will be one of the first tasks for Matt Hohner, the Einstein Project’s new resource development coordinator. Matt joins the Einstein Project with nearly 20 years of fundraising and development experience. He is also active within the Green Bay community. He is currently the President-Elect of the Green Bay Preble Optimist Club, a member of the Allouez Economic Development Committee, and part of Leadership Green Bay – Class of 2022 through the Greater Green Bay Chamber.

Matt Hohner

Hohner said, “It is important to me to ensure today’s youth are receiving the best education possible. The Einstein Project provides the STEM education that is so critical in helping young minds grow and become leaders of tomorrow. I am excited to be part of this dedicated team at Einstein Project.” Hohner continued, “their passion for the organization and their mission is evident and contagious.“

About the Einstein Project

The Einstein Project was created in 1991 with the goal of providing engaging and impactful science education in the classroom. Housed in the Brown County STEM Innovation Center, the Einstein Project is expanding collaborations with the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and Brown County Extension to continue to positively impact STEM capabilities and foster curiosity in students throughout Wisconsin.

The Einstein Project leases STEM curriculum and materials for over 30 school districts across Wisconsin and into neighboring states. They provide professional development and consultation in science curriculum, instruction, and assessment. In 2018, the Einstein Project Merged with Proto, inc., a nonprofit makerspace formerly housed in the Brown County Library. This merger provided a link between in-school and out of school hands-on learning that builds bridges between STEAM subjects, the humanities and 21st Century Skills. Professional Development for schools starting makerspaces has been a lead initiative in those efforts. The Einstein Makerspace delivers programming for all ages, kindergarten through retirement, at the STEM Innovation Center on the UW-Green Bay Campus.

Post by Chad Janowski • STEM Learning Architect
Executive Director • Curriculum Cultivator • Kit Development • Education Advisor