The Hill District was once the center of culture in Pittsburgh, home to musicians, artists and a thriving nightlife.
“It was a dynamic place,” says LaKeisha Wolf, executive director of Ujamaa Collective a nonprofit founded by women of African descent who are artists, artisans, entrepreneurs and others.
In its heyday, the Hill District was known as “the crossroads of the world.” Jazz greats such as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Bill Evans played at the famous Crawford Grill on Wylie Avenue. The neighborhood featured prominently in Pittsburgh native and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson’s works. The neighborhood is now enjoying a revitalization following years of economic decline. The 2016 Oscar-nominated movie of Wilson’s play, “Fences,” starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis, was filmed in the Hill District.
“There’s such a strong spirit of self-determination,” Wolf says.
It is that sense of self-determination that propels Ujamaa Collective, which began in the Hill District in 2008, and became a nonprofit two years later.
“These were artists working out of their homes making a variety of products … and we would all face similar challenges,” Wolf says. “We got together and vended collectively and looked at cooperative strategies.”
Ujamaa Collective is participating in Remake Learning Days again because “we learn best when we have the space and the room to be creative, to think outside of the box, to almost make something out of nothing. I really think Remake Learning and its leadership, the ways it’s been formulated and worked on by having genius and diverse voices shape it, it has made room for learners of all background, and especially learners of color, to be embraced in that space.”
Ujamaa Collective this year will take 10 young women to Ghana, where they will not only be exposed another culture, but also learn about beauty standards and creating beauty care.
When the girls return to Pittsburgh, they will participate in Ujamaa Collective’s summer youth program — the nonprofit has applied for a grant from Remake Learning — that focuses on beauty and youth products.
“There will be new avenues for creating products that are healthy for their bodies, their environment, even understand and push back at some of the products and companies in our communities and see the big picture they have — the potential to make these products themselves and define who they are based upon their own new standards of measurement,” Wolf says.
“Communities all over the world are self-determining,” Wolf says. “People are not waiting for a savior to show up and save them. There are cultures and groups all around the world can offer us a lot if we are open.”
The Citizen Science Lab, also in the Hill District, challenges people through science. Pittsburgh’s first public community life sciences lab, this hands-on laboratory specializing in discovery-based learning and STEM enrichment is open to everyone.
It and Ujamaa Collective join five other Hill District organizations in this year’s Remake Learning Days: Campus School of Carlow University, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Hill District, Hill Youth Partnership for Enrichment, Nazareth Prep, and Pittsburgh Festival Opera.
This year, the Citizen Science Lab will host a lunar lander challenge as part of its Remake Learning Days festivities.
Attendees will “create a mock lunar lander with household items, and then get their marshmallow astronauts to safety,” says Carrianne Floss, program manager.
The goal is to introduce attendees to physics, she says, “gravity and force, and things they will have to think about. They will think about how the astronauts were able to land safely on the moon and it is up to them to devise their own creativity that is able to keep their astronauts safe.”
Remake Learning’s “connection to STEM is something our kids are excited about,” says Erika Hedin, youth services librarian at the Hill District branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, “the hub of community engagement and community involvement.”
“That focus is given more importance and it gives us extra resources to do things and have extra programs they really enjoy,” she says.
The library will host a coding and making session during Remake Learning Days. “We will build little creatures, and the kids are going to learn about how to do coding and how to make what they build move,” Hedin says. “It’s like a robotic petting zoo, but we are leaving it more flexible. They can make what they want.”
Remake Learning Days is “a great way for people to learn about different STEM enrichment opportunities,” says the Citizen Science Lab’s Floss. “It helps reach new families and get them interested in science and gets them to find out about Citizen Science Lab.”
Adds Wolf, Ujamaa Collective’s executive director: “It really has allowed educators who think and teach outside the box, to show up and be authentic and say, “Here is a space that supports me.’”
We would like to thank The Heinz Endowments for their generous support of Remake Learning Days in the Hill District.
Remake Learning Days events in the Hill District:
5 – 8 p.m., Thursday, May 9 | Hill Youth Partnership for Enrichment
The Hill Youth Partnership for Enrichment is a collaborative after-school network of seven providers. Each program provides academic enrichment, STEAM activities, and/or an Art focus. The 2019 showcase will be a presentation of different media forms each partner has used to fit their programming style. The showcase will allow families and the community to see the opportunities students within the HYPE partnership have access to.
1:30 – 2:30 p.m., Friday, May 10 | Campus School of Carlow University
Students are invited to create a project reflecting this year’s Earth Day theme, Protect Our Species. They have been challenged to highlight or solve a pressing environmental problem by designing an invention, game, or project that uses recycled materials and ingenuity. Makers will participate in a live “Share and Tell”, and participate in recorded interviews detailing their creations.
10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturday, May 11 | Ujamaa Collective
Non-profit Ujamaa Collective invites you into our Creative Classroom to celebrate peace around the world! This event is a part of Remake Learning Days of Southwestern PA. Create the word “PEACE” in your language of choice using our software & vinyl cutter, add it to the map and let’s heal the world with our words! And take a vinyl cut sticker with you to add more peace to your own home.
Labs Workshop: Cri-Cut Stencils
3 – 4 p.m., Tuesday, May 14 | Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Hill District
Make something cool! Learn to use digital technology and traditional tools. All experience levels welcome. Materials and equipment will be provided. For teens in grades 6-12.In this workshop we will be designing stencils with a Cri-Cut machine and using airbrush tools to create designs.
4 – 6 p.m., Tuesday, May 14 |The Citizen Science Lab
In this challenge, attendees will use what they know and can investigate about gravity, motion, and forces to design and build a shock-absorbing system that will protect two “astronauts” when they land. Attendees will follow the engineering design process to design and build a shock absorbing system out of paper, straws, and mini-marshmallows; attach their shock absorber to a cardboard platform; and improve their design based on testing results.
STEM Super Science: Robotics and Coding
4 – 5 p.m., Wednesday, May 15 | Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Hill District
Experiment, play and learn in an interactive technology featuring robotics and coding activities. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) All Hands On Tech programs support learning and literacy by introducing children to technology.
Real-World Learning at the Citizen’s Science Lab/Nazareth Prep
12 – 3 p.m., Friday, May 17 | Nazareth Prep
Learn how two innovative organizations–Citizen’s Science Lab and Nazareth Prep–work together to address complex educational challenges. Both focus on discovery-based learning, STEM enrichment and make real-world learning experiences accessible to youth to ensure today’s you gain 21st century learning skills.
The Enchanted Forest – Children’s Opera
4 – 6 p.m., Friday, May 17 | Pittsburgh Festival Opera
Join Pittsburgh Festival Opera as we present our annual children’s opera family performance. The Enchanted Forest is a “choose your own adventure opera” where the audience decides who plays what characters and other parts of the story. The performance features professional singers, puppets and great fun.