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Spotlight 2019

Pittsburgh, USA

Educators in the Pittsburgh region are taking risks, reaching higher, and pushing the limits of learning. Find out what we learned from taking a closer look at the education innovations flourishing in the "steel city" in 2019. This Spotlight broke the mold—we couldn't settle on just 10 innovations to highlight, so here you'll find 12 innovations that are impactful in their local context and scalable for education contexts around the world.

Watch the video Subscribe to updates Download a report

Together with The Grable Foundation & Remake Learning

Education Innovation Forged in the Steel City

In 2019, HundrED partnered with the Grable Foundation and Remake Learning to produce the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh, our first Spotlight in North America, to shine a light on the educators and innovators doing extraordinary things to help students in southwestern Pennsylvania flourish.

More than 80 schools, museums, libraries, and community centers in Pittsburgh shared their innovation with HundrED to show how they’re harnessing the power of creativity, ingenuity, and innovation to help children thrive. Together with our partners in Pittsburgh, HundrED identified 12 of the most inspiring innovations in the Pittsburgh region to share with the world.

The story of each of these innovations is captured in this collection of short video documentaries and in the innovation profiles below, where you'll learn more about their origin and impact, see step-by-step guidance for recreating their approach, and find contact info to get in touch with the innovators.

The HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh research report collects these innovations together with a detailed overview of the education ecosystem in Pittsburgh, the areas of strength that make innovation possible there, and the opportunities for change that drive the region’s commitment to helping each and every child can reach their full potential.

Cover photo by Ben Filio for Remake Learning.

Selected Innovations All innovations

Fabricating Change in Mental Wellness

Students diagnosed with mental health conditions design, build, prototype, and learn at Intermediate Unit 1 Educational Campus at Colonial, an alternative education sc...

Digital Fabrication, Fab Lab, Maker education, Mental Health, Project Based Learning, STEMSTEAM

This research-based learning space is a permanent exhibit inside the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. MAKESHOP is a drop-in environment where children and families mak...

Design Thinking, Informal Education, Interest driven learning, Makerspace, Museum Learning, Personalized Education, Personalized Learning, STEAM, STEM

The Labs @ CLP Summer Skills Intensives

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s 18 locations have dedicated space where teens can hang out, mess around, and geek out. Each summer, Intensives offer teens a chance to...

21st Century Skills, Community Informal Learning, Creative technology, HOMAGO, Libraries, Teen Empowerment, Youth Voice

When youth realize that their voice matters, they realize that they matter. Since 2013, Youth Express has used tools of radio to create and distribute commentaries, di...

21st Century Skills, Media, Self expression, Youth Voice, Youth Writing

Hillman Academy

Each summer, high school students perform authentic research alongside world-renowned scientists at the Hillman Cancer Center and throughout the University of Pittsbur...

Biology, Career Development, Chemistry, Computer Science, Education, Internship, Mentoring, Research, STEM

Summer Dreamers Academy

A no-cost, premier summer learning experience providing the academic benefit of summer school along with the fun of summer camp. Through a mix of high-quality, engagin...

academic growth, achievement gap, enrichment, opportunity gap, Out-of-School time, STEAM, STEM, summer camp, summer learning, summer learning loss

Simple Interactions

A practice-based, strengths-focused, and community-driven approach to support educators by affirming the importance of positive, responsive, and supportive human inter...

Manchester Craftsmen's Guild

Founded in 1968 on the belief that environment shapes behavior, Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild (MCG) has grown from a community-based ceramics program into a cornerstone...

3D printing, After School Activities, Arts, Ceramics, Craft, Digital Arts, Diversity, Fabric Arts, Inclusion, Media and Digital Literacy Skills, Mentoring, Photography, Screen Printing, STEAM, Visual Art, Visual Art After-School

transformED offers radically relevant professional learning experiences that emphasize hands-on practice with new ideas, skills, and tools, together with a technology ...

Emerging Technology, Innovative Thinking, Inspiring Teachers, Professional Development, Professional Networking

When two first-grade girls came to their teacher with the idea to start a business that donates profits to charity, a maker-learning program became an incubator for yo...

Charity, Empathy, Entrepreneurship, Making, School Business Partnerships, STEM

Global Minds Initiative

In schools across the United States and Canada, students from over 50 countries meet after school to combat intolerance and foster intercultural friendships. Designed,...

Bullying Prevention, Collaborative Learning, Cultural Exchange, Culturally Sensitive, Empathy-driven learning, Inclusion and Diversity, Language Awareness, Leadership Development, Social Emotional Learning, Youth Empowerment, Youth Voice

The Finch Robot

This educational technology tool can be programmed in five different coding languages, from Scratch to Java, making it immediately accessible to learners of any age an...

Access To Education, Coding, Computational Thinking, Computer Science, Gender Equity, Inclusion and Diversity, Physical Computing, Robotics, Rural Equity, STEAM, STEM

News

8 Things Pittsburgh Learned at the 2019 HundrED Innovation Summit

A delegation of 18 people from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA attended this year’s HundrED Innovation Summit as a result of HundrED’s Spotlight on Pittsburgh. It was affirmi...

TransformED: Making Educational Transformation Possible From Classroom To School To District

Becoming an inspiring educator requires a village! transformED’s unique approach to professional development has supported over 3,...

12 Ideas from Pittsburgh That Could Transform Education

The HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh identified the 12 most inspiring innovations in southwestern Pennsylvania. Read our report and watch the documentary video series to see why we think somethi...

How To Create Engaging & Relevant Learning Opportunities That Support Positive Youth Outcomes? - Melanie Claxton | HundrED WEBday

Melanie Claxton, Summer Dreamers Academy from Pittsburgh, USA went ...

Mark Your Calendars: The HundrED Spotlight On Pittsburgh Premieres On September 23

HundrED is thrilled to join its Pittsburgh partners The Grable Foundation and Remake Learning along with other stakeholders to honor the Pittsburgh...

Why Radio For Education In A YouTube Era?- Larry Berger | HundrED WEBday

Watch Larry Berger, Founder & Executive Director at Youth Express from the USA share why youth voice matters and how radio can act as an equalizer for participation...

How Do You Fabricate Change in Mental Wellness & Education? - Donald Martin | HundrED WEBday

Donald Martin, Executive Director of Intermediate Unit 1 from USA went live on the HundrED Facebook Page to share about 'Fabricati...

The Power of Simple Interactions in Young Children's Learning and Development

Simple Interactions affirms the importance of positive, responsive, and supportive human interactions in children's learning and development. Dana Winters, ...

Meet the Innovations Selected for HundrED's Spotlight on Pittsburgh

The HundrED research team and the Pittsburgh advisory committee have selected 12 innovations for the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh.

Transformative Innovations: Learning Pathways and Systems-Level Education Efforts in Pittsburgh

For the last in our three-part tour of the 82 innovations submitted to the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh, we're exploring t...

STEM Learning and Education Technology in Pittsburgh

For part two of our three-part tour of the 82 innovations submitted to the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh, we're exploring how educators in the Pittsburgh region are teaching Science, Technology, E...

Learning at the Intersections: Maker, Arts, and Interdisciplinary Education in Pittsburgh

While the HundrED research team and the local advisory committee are busy narrowing down to 10 innovations for our Pittsburgh spotlight...

Explore the 80+ Innovations Submitted to the Pittsburgh Spotlight

From farming with fish and learning math through dance to online learning platforms and school-based computer science immersion, educators in the Pittsburgh region have put the...

Looking for Innovation in Context: Meet the local advisory committee for the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh

Take a look at how the Pittsburgh local advisory committee will be sizing up innovations for the HundrE...

HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh: Your Questions Answered

We just wrapped up a series of info sessions and workshops to help people participate in the HundrED Spotlight on Pittsburgh. Here we share some of the most frequently asked questions and try...

Get to Know Pittsburgh Ahead of the HundrED Spotlight

Why is HundrED shining a spotlight on Pittsburgh? An overview of education innovation activity in the region.

Meet your guides to the HundrED Spotlight in Pittsburgh

Greetings from Pittsburgh, USA! We’ve just launched the HundrED Spotlight in our community, so let’s get acquainted.

HundrED Pittsburgh Spotlight Announced

In 2019, HundrED is shining a spotlight on the educators and innovators who are doing extraordinary things to help students in southwestern Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia flourish. The HundrED Spotlight Pittsburgh...