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Visiting Spark!Lab in Reno

June 7, 2013 by Michelle DelCarlo

The Spark!Lab team recently traveled to Reno to visit our National Network partners at the Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum. Here’s a little bit more about our adventure!

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The Spark!Lab team recently traveled to Reno to visit our National Network partners at the Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum. We had a great time, learned a lot, and were impressed with the exciting projects staff members are working on. 

Spark!Lab Team Members touring the workshop at The Discovery – we’re jealous of their tools!.jpg

The Spark!Lab team touring the workshop at The Discovery

The Spark!Lab team touring the workshop at The Discovery — we’re jealous of their tools!

Conversational Learning

Part of the goal of this visit was to be able to support our partners through further training. This included modeling behavior on Spark!Lab facilitation techniques, providing tips for success and sharing our experience. But we also wanted to do a lot of listening and so had some great conversations on the challenges and successes they’ve had. We really appreciate the perspectives people brought to the table, and are excited to move forward to make our partnership stronger.

Discussing Spark!Lab with The Discovery Staff.jpg

Discussing Spark!Lab with The Discovery staff.

Discussing Spark!Lab with The Discovery staff.

Reno is Awesome

I don’t care what anyone says—I love Reno. I’ve travelled a lot, and I always know when I’ve found a true gem. Reno is one of those places. You can walk down the street and visit a world class museum, drop into a truly strange casino, take a fresh breath of air on the river walk, or hover over a cup of killer locally-roasted coffee. I’m really excited by the future of our Spark!Lab here, because I know Reno is a place where interesting ideas flourish.

Drinking excellent coffee at local sensation Hub Coffee Roasters.jpg

Drinking excellent coffee at local sensation Hub Coffee Roasters.

Drinking excellent coffee at local sensation Hub Coffee Roasters.

Invention is Present in Reno

Over a conversation with one of The Discovery’s staff, we found out that copper-riveted Levi’s jeans were invented in Reno. And that Reno is a major staging point for Burning Man, the annual inventive festival that is pretty hard to describe. It’s a place where a mundane invention—the neon light—has been lifted up as an art form and is being hailed as an important piece of Reno history.

neon from nevadaart.jpg

Neon sign depicting cowboys

From NevadaArt.org

Stay tuned for more exciting updates from our partnership in Reno and beyond! 

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