About.

OUR MISSION

The Tri-Valley STEAM Center is a planned hub for local youth, STEAM and hobby groups at the Livermore Municipal Airport. Our mission is to use aviation & aerospace as an introduction to a multitude of fun hands-on STEAM activities - and motivate youth to consider careers in these fields. We are already working with almost four dozen different groups to provide informal STEAM learning opportunities to area youth. Our programs are open to all, but we have an emphasis on expanding opportunities for young women and minorities.

OUR START

Efforts to build the TriValley STEAM Center were initiated by leaders of the Robot Garden makerspace in Livermore. Since 2012 members of the Robot Garden "maker community" have offered numerous programs to the public.

In late 2016 Robot Garden agreed to sponsor a coed Boy Scout program called an Aviation Explorer Post. In this program, youth are introduced to careers in aviation and aerospace. With Robot Garden as the sponsor, there has been an emphasis on hands-on technology & building.

Robot Garden has established a makerspace at the Livermore Airport. It has 3D printers, CNC mills, laser cutters, and metalworking tools. This equipment is being housed in a rented hangar as well as a publicly accessible meeting room at the Five Rivers Aviation building.

When Five Rivers Aviation heard about building the STEAM Center at the airport, they jumped in with both feet. As a new airport business themselves, they built their own new hangars only about two years ago. So, they are bringing their expertise to the table to help build a new community resource.

We are already working with the Livermore mayor, city council, and airport commission to build this new STEAM Center. Details are being fleshed out before starting fundraising, and digging up the first shovelful of dirt. If you want to help out, contact one of us from the list below. Or, go to the Contact Us page and sign up for our newsletter.

Our Team
​

Eileen Manger
Spokesperson, Tri-Valley STEM Center
​[email protected]
925-699-1274 - cell
Eileen should be your first point of contact for any and all questions regarding this new addition to the Tri-Valley. As a parent of two girls herself and someone with a background in real estate, Eileen is confident the Tri-Valley STEM Center will be a valuable resource for local families and their children. She thinks the STEM Center will make the Tri-Valley a better place to live!

Tom Manger
President, Robot Garden Makerspace
​Advisor, Aviation Explorer Post #997
​[email protected]

Tom has two daughters in Pleasanton schools and has been a strong advocate for informal STEM learning for youth. Both daughters like hanging out and working on projects at the airport!

Jim Berry
Past President, Robot Garden
​[email protected]

Jim is a long time Robot Garden member. He has helped to ramp up RG programs for both adults learning new skills for career transition and for youth looking to learn new STEM skills. When given the opportunity to sponsor the Aviation Explorer Post, he didn't hesitate to say, "Yes!".

Pete Sandhu
​​President, Five Rivers Aviation
​[email protected]

Pete built Five Rivers Aviation from the ground up. He built new hangars and offices as part of taking over the fuel concession at the airport. As a father of two kids himself, he is excited to see the new STEM center get built and the youth show up to test their STEM skills against real world problems.