Launching Fall STEM Events + Bayview goes global at ASTC!

[Mission Science Workshop]

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Bayview Science Workshop at the ASTC Conference
Mission Science Workshop was honored to present at the Association of Science and Technology Centers Annual Conference in San Francisco alongside our amazing panelists and partners. Please read a summary of our session below.
Putting Bayview on the Map

“When I was little and visited Pier 39, I saw maps of San Francisco and asked my dad, ‘Where is our house on the map?’ He told me Bayview Hunters Point wasn’t on that map.”

With that story, Dr. Vidrale Franklin — principal at Charles Drew College Preparatory and a lifelong Bayview resident — opened our ASTC conference panel. Her words carried the weight of history and the urgency of why we came together: to ensure Bayview’s children, families, and educators are not only seen, but uplifted and supported.

In our session, Bayview Science Workshop: A Case Study of a Community Science Center in a High-Need Neighborhood, Mission Science Workshop brought together an incredible group of panelists: Dr. Franklin, Charles Drew Principal; Malcolm X Academy teacher Codion Isom; YMCA Bayview’s Drew Kodelja; Brian Sauer Director of Education for Boys and Girls Club San Francisco and our own Bayview Workshop coordinator, Paul Ostrach.

Why Bayview?
Codion Isom, Malcolm X Kindergarten teacher nailed it. “Why not Bayview?” This neighborhood is full of brilliant kids. Dr. Franklin made it even clearer when she explained that “Yes, we are in a disadvantaged neighborhood, but we are capable if you give us opportunity. Our babies are brilliant and smart — they just need opportunity. Now I hear them say, ‘I want to be a pediatrician’ or ‘I want to be a scientist,’ and before the Science Workshop I mostly heard basketball players.”

How we built it
Drew Kodelja, Associate Executive Director for the Bayview Hunters Point YMCA explained how we put the community first. Our commitment to the Bayview has always been long term. Is about building relationships, showing up consistently, and caring for students and families. Brian Sauer, Education Director for the Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco echoed this, noting that his staff continues to request our hands-on STEM programs over the years — proof that kids are excited about science and wanting more. Brian has been working with Mission Science Workshop for almost 20 years and he highlighted our consistency and commitment over the years. Our partners reminded us that this change began when MSW came to the community with a question: “What do you need?” That choice — to listen first — built trust and made the work feel like a long lasting partnership.

The impact so far
Since opening in early 2023, the Bayview Science Workshop has served over 3,000 students each year across 13 schools. But the numbers only tell part of the story. “First Saturday” is now a well-known term in Bayview, and kids walk over bringing friends and family along. The workshop feels like theirs. It is theirs. Families who might never travel across the city for science programs now have a space right in their neighborhood — and, remarkably, people from other parts of San Francisco are coming into Bayview because of it.

Our panelists highlighted how rare that is. MSW’s secret power is that every workshop reflects its neighborhood — Mission, Excelsior, Bayview — each with its own vibe, its own rhythm. In Bayview, that has meant creating a space where students feel ownership, where curiosity is contagious, and where a snowball effect is filling the room every weekend. Dr. Franklin reminded us that MSW doesn’t just bring science to the community — it lifts up the brilliance that’s already here.

Looking forward
The lesson that resonated across the panel: longevity matters. Trust takes time. By showing up year after year, asking what the community wants, and adapting as we go, we’re proving that every neighborhood deserves a community science center. And in Bayview–Hunters Point, it’s already putting the neighborhood on the map — literally and figuratively.

We are deeply grateful to our panelists, our partners, the families of Bayview and The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation for believing in this work. Together, we’re showing that science is not just for some — it belongs everywhere, and to everyone.
Open Community Days!
Please visit us at our weekly Tinker Tuesdays at the Excelsior Site every Tuesday from 3 to 5 pm and our Open Saturdays at each of our San Francisco Locations in Mission, Excelsior and Bayview for Free Science, Engineering, wood shop, circuitry, biology, geology, live animals and more! Stop by, be curious, tinker and build from your imagination with all our tools, materials and exhibits. Always Free and Open to Everyone!
We will also be at the Bay Area Science Festival on Saturday October 25 with Gracie, our full Gray Whale Skeleton for students to explore anatomy and marine conservation. Hope to see you there!

More Information Here: Bay Area Science Festival (https://www.bayareasciencefestival.org/)
Open Community Saturdays for the School Year!
Full Force STEM for the start of SY 2025–26!
Blood Vessel Week at Gordon Lau where we saw all the classrooms of this amazing 680 student Elementary School in Chinatown. We brought our giant artery for immersive human anatomy and health science programs and hands-on activities.

Blood Vessel Week at Gordon Lau Elementary

Students at the Bayview Science Workshop during Exploration time
Open Community Saturday at the Excelsior Science Workshop
Library Tinkering Program at Hoover Middle School
We are also very excited to launch two new Girls in STEM programs this Fall, one for upper elementary students and another for High School Students at the Excelsior Science Workshop! Please let us know if you want to support or be part of these amazing programs.
Impact Report School Year 2024-25
Please read our impact report from last school year highlighting our impactful programming and record-breaking numbers of almost 20,000 youth reached multiple pear year across our different science and engineering programs and more that 80 different schools and community organization partners!

Click on the image below.
https://www.missionscienceworkshop.org/_files/ugd/77a8ed_8216c2018b3e486d9fb78e243713b435.pdf


** Full Report Available in PDF Format Below
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Impact Report 2024-25 (https://www.missionscienceworkshop.org/_files/ugd/77a8ed_d130fd8c73bb4a329830dfa89fb0eda7.pdf)
Thank you for your support and helping us bring high-quality and accesible science education to all.
Con mucho aprecio,
MSW Team
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Mission Science Workshop . 4458 Mission St . San Francisco, CA 94112 . USA
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