Jacqueline E. Wanner • Educator Capstone Porftolio

A makerspace is a collaborative work space inside a school, library or separate public/private facility for making, learning, exploring and sharing that uses high tech to no tech tools.
(Makerspaces.com, 2014-2020)

A Place to Explore, Learn, and Create

I invite you to visit the Macomb Makerspace website and learn more about us and our mission, meet the team that keeps things running smoothly, learn about some of the events we have participated in, and while you're there, be sure to take a look at some of the fun and innovative projects coming out of the space.

CEP 811/822 + Innovation Grant = The Macomb Makerspace

Flash back to March 2016, the first week of my CEP 811 course at Michigan State University (MSU) to be exact, this was when I was first introduced to the maker culture. I had never heard of the "maker movement" before and certainly didn't know it had its own culture! I remember watching Dale Dougherty's TED talk "We are Makers" (several times over and over again just because I enjoyed it so much), it was then that I understood what "making" meant and I do believe that we are all makers in ways we don’t even realize and in ways that we do realize.

Jump ahead to the 2018 Fall semester at Macomb Community College, the semester that the Macomb Makerspace opened its doors and welcomed students. I took a new found passion (for making), collaborated with a colleague who shared the same passion, and together we applied for an Innovation Grant at the college. The Innovation Grant award is not a guarantee. You have to have an innovative idea with goals, a purpose, outcomes, and objectives that align with the mission of the college. Early in 2018 we were awarded an Innovation Grant through the college to create a Makerspace! The Macomb Makerspace was born!

I continued my research into Makerspaces in CEP 822 at MSU where I spent the semester working on an action research project focusing on Makerspaces, specifically the obstacles that inhibit people from attending a Community College Makerspace. This research proved to be so insightful and beneficial and will serve as a foundation for building upon and enhancing the Macomb Makerspace. Feel free to check out my action research project on the MCC Makerspace.

We continue to grow, create, make, collaborate with departments across the college, participate in events, bring new equipment into the space (or make and print our own), and look for funding opportunities. Our Makerspace is a space where students can dream big, make stuff, play, create, design and have fun without worrying about making mistakes or failing. We hope that our maker community environment will instill confidence in students and possibly inspire the next generation of technological innovators. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak started out in a garage, we have the Macomb Makerspace!