Kaiser Permanente, in collaboration with the Los Angeles Unified School District, on March 7 unveiled a new STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) lab at 109th Street Elementary School in South Los Angeles.
The STEAM lab offers a dramatic, 360-degree space-themed mural that wraps around a large classroom in vivid colors, as silhouettes of children and robots explore the celestial bodies. STEAM hero portraits, bios and educational equipment are displayed, inspiring students to pursue their interests and excel.
The new STEAM lab will serve third- through fifth-grade pupils at the 400-student K – 5 grade school, said Principal Chrystal Battey-Brown.
“This is an awesome opportunity for our students,” she noted, following an unveiling ceremony held at the school. “We’re preparing our students for jobs that don’t exist, yet. With this STEAM lab, thanks to Kaiser Permanente, our students will be able to become the best people they can be!”
Kaiser Permanente has a long-standing commitment to improving the health of the communities it serves, including in South Los Angeles, said community health managing director, Angela Coron.
“We are committed to continuing support like this, and finding new and different ways to help make communities healthier. That’s why projects like this are so exciting,” she said. “As a health care organization, being involved with a school enhancement project like this is very important to us, because students are important to us. Simply put, schools are the heart of health! Healthy children grow up to be healthy adults, and healthy adults make up healthy communities. That’s why Kaiser Permanente is committed to projects like this that have a positive impact on our communities.”
The new STEAM lab is the result of a collaboration between Kaiser Permanente and LAUSD’s Jordan-Locke Network of schools.
