STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerman attaches an arm to a skeleton for educational use at the lab’s office in Metairie.
STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerman has a lot to smile about as he playfully holds up a magnifying glass, one of many items that educators will be able to check out from the lab’s new Metairie headquarters, which opens March 22.
A skull set is used to measure the size of skulls and tell where each skull falls in evolutionary history for use at the STEM Library Lab.
A model showing the inner workings of the human body is among the science materials available for teachers’ use.
STEM Library Lab librarian Szabi Varga, center, helps Ruchira Pal, left, a teacher at Sarah T. Reed High School, with sorting through materials.
STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerma, left center, and librarian Szabi Varga, right, inside part of the lab’s new office in Metairie.
STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerman attaches an arm to a skeleton for educational use at the lab’s office in Metairie.
Arielle Hunter can’t even begin to describe the challenges of being a high school science teacher.
“This is one of the only jobs that you have to prepare for the workday. And then you leave that workday with work to grade, and then you have to prepare for the next day,” said Hunter, the director of science curriculum at Livingston Collegiate Academy in east New Orleans and a former biology teacher.
Since conducting science labs means finding resources, testing them ahead of time and thinking through logistics, they quickly become a huge burden, Hunter said.
The local nonprofit STEM Library Lab, however, has come to her rescue.
A skull set is used to measure the size of skulls and tell where each skull falls in evolutionary history for use at the STEM Library Lab.
It lets teachers check out everything from weather probes and anatomy models to magnets, compasses and telescopes geared for teaching students from kindergarten to 12th grade, all for free.
“With the library lab,” Hunter said, “you can look at demos and get inspired (for lessons) in a space where you can immediately check out the equipment.”
Although the library has been based in New Orleans since its 2018 launch, it recently moved to Jefferson Parish.
The STEM Ecosystem Hub in Metairie (3011 N. I-10 Service Road E.) opens with a ribbon-cutting celebration March 22. The new, 12,000 square-foot building was made possible through support from the Brown Foundation.
STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerman has a lot to smile about as he playfully holds up a magnifying glass, one of many items that educators will be able to check out from the lab’s new Metairie headquarters, which opens March 22.
The hub houses thousands of science and nonscience resources, all available to participating schools and teachers across the area. It also includes a store equipped with standard teaching supplies, a teachers’ lounge that serves as a coworking space, and a print center conducive to bulk-printing jobs.
“The premise of this building is to connect teachers and nonprofits in the ecosystem,” said Todd Wackerman, the founder and executive director of STEM Library Lab.
“Some of the stuff is hard to find. It’s not like you can just go to Walmart and buy whatever piece of equipment you need,” said teacher Karen Marshall, who creates lessons for third through fifth grade science students. “And then there’s a budget. So the library has been a huge help, financially and logistically.”
STEM Library Lab librarian Szabi Varga, center, helps Ruchira Pal, left, a teacher at Sarah T. Reed High School, with sorting through materials.
Wackerman, a former physics and math teacher, was in search of free or affordable resources for his students when he came up with the concept for the STEM Library Lab. He and his team began brainstorming in 2016, ran a pilot program in 2017 and eventually established the nonprofit in a single room.
“We were creating a room full of science classroom equipment so that local teachers could access the physical stuff they needed to teach their classes effectively,” he said. “In the course of doing that, we have verified and validated that there is a need. Teachers need stuff to do their jobs effectively, no questions asked.”
But Wackerman says teachers face a wide range of challenges when executing hands-on science experiments.
“Over the past few years, we’ve been pivoting to say the STEM Library Lab is not about being a library of science equipment,” he said. “It’s about figuring out what are the things stopping teachers from doing their jobs effectively, and finding solutions.”
STEM Library Lab founder Todd Wackerma, left center, and librarian Szabi Varga, right, inside part of the lab’s new office in Metairie.
Wackerman’s team also offers professional development to teachers.
“A teacher will walk in and say, ‘I’m looking for resources about the solar system.’ And we’re like, ‘Well, we’ve got some resources about the solar system, but you should talk to the NASA Solar System Ambassadors Program,’” he said. “Part of what we do is point teachers away from our services, and to whatever nonprofit or entity in the community can best suit their needs.”
The STEM Ecosystem Hub also boasts a virtual space with a database where nonprofits, hospitals, museums, universities and businesses can upload opportunities for teachers and families — whether it be field trips, extracurricular activities or volunteer positions.
Lab services are free to all teachers throughout southeast Louisiana.
A model showing the inner workings of the human body is among the science materials available for teachers’ use.
Although the library lab has supported teachers in at least 16 Jefferson Parish schools, the vast majority of its impact is felt in Orleans Parish, where it has helped more than 300 teachers from 64 schools. The goal with moving to Metairie is to retain all Orleans Parish schools and teachers, while offering them more space and materials.
“The spot in Metairie is extremely central,” said Wackerman, noting the facility sits near the corner of Causeway Boulevard and the I-10.
Teachers can sign up for services online at stemlibrarylab.myturn.com/library/inventory/browse, and begin borrowing supplies by visiting the facility on weekdays between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Before discovering the library, Marshall ordered materials from Amazon.com.
“I would come to school on a Saturday … spread everything out on the floor, and spend six hours packing kits for each teacher,” said Marshall, who works as an eighth grade science teacher at International School of Louisiana (ISL). “That was not sustainable, especially because I was still teaching a full eighth grade load.”
When she read about Wackerman’s STEM Library Lab, she thought, “He’s never going to be able to do what I need him to do.”
The two met, however, and Wackerman told Marshall he could help. After discussing the collaboration with ISL’s principal, they got down to business.
“We’ve been working with him for approximately three years,” Marshall said. “We’re getting into a rhythm … (Wackerman) knows what’s happening at school, and he’s always ready. He packs, drops off and picks up the kits.”
This gives teachers time to focus on lessons and lectures.
“It allows us to dig deep into science concepts, without spending time packing kits,” Marshall said. “Students can really experience science the way it was always meant to be experienced: through exploration, questioning, using their hands, using their senses and making observations.”
Hunter said her attendance is highest on lab days — especially frog dissection days.
“Kids would talk about it from the first day they came into class, and say, ‘When are we doing this?’ Because they had heard about it from previous classes,” she said. “It’s a big motivator for students when they know: not only do our teachers trust us to do these labs, they have the resources and time to do them.”
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WHEN: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. March 18-19; noon to 5 p.m. March 20
WHERE: The Pontchartrain Center, 4545 Williams Blvd., Kenner.
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