STEAM Upgrades for Youth Centers!

Committee: Youth

Location: Youth Centers

Cost: $110,000

Short Description:  Support learning, creativity, and fun for Cambridge’s Youth. This project funds upgraded STEAM equipment for Youth Centers: new computers, learning technologies, more creative art supplies, diverse books, gaming technology, recreational equipment, TV monitors and more!

Long Description:
STEAM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math

This project is from the PB Youth Committee and it supports learning, creativity, and most importantly, fun! The PB STEAM Youth Center Upgrades will fund new computers, learning technologies and software, more creative art supplies, diverse books, gaming technology, recreational equipment, TV monitors and more! These supplies will be added to all youth Centers around Cambridge.

Advanced computers and learning technologies are essential for our Youth Centers. New computers will support digital design, research, updated software compatibility, printing capabilities, and much more! This, in addition to new TV monitors will bring our Youth Centers up to speed.

Cambridge is a diverse community, and the books our children have access to should reflect that diversity. Providing Diverse books related to religion, race, identity, social justice, LGBTQ representation, etc. is essential to education. Seeing books that relate to them will help them feel safe and feel like they are a part of the community. This project will provide educational materials to learn about diverse groups of people, different stories, new perspectives, and help young people be more aware and respectful of other people’s races and religion.

Having free gaming equipment in Cambridge centers that youth kids could access would make life more fun, and it would benefit kids who want to experience gaming activities that they cannot access on their own. Even the most basic games boost multi-tasking and decision-making skills. Having more virtual equipment, and recreational equipment in youth centers would especially benefit those who can’t afford to have gaming equipment in their own house.

Providing more art materials could benefit the community and youth in a positive way by helping them express themselves more. Easels, for holding up papers and such making it easier to draw or paint on. Crayons, markers and pencils for drawing and coloring should be included. Paint brushes, Paint sponges, water colors, and additional artistic supplies should be made more available to young people. These can be calming and satisfying for people to do. Coloring books should be provided too for kids, teens and older because coloring in a coloring book or doing art at all can be good for mental health and a very healthy coping mechanism for stress and other things.