The Leadership Manhattan Beach Class of 2025 has announced its capstone community project: to create a mobile makerspace cart for students at Da Vinci RISE High School, which serves foster youth and students experiencing other life challenges. 

The mobile creative hub will provide students with access to tools and materials that aim to foster hands-on learning, innovation, and self-expression. The cart will be stocked with a variety of supplies to explore technology, art, and design in an engaging and dynamic way. By offering a flexible, mobile resource, the project aspires to enrich the learning experience for current and future students at RISE.

“The makerspace project will have an immense impact by providing RISE students access to tech, resources and materials to breathe life into their ideas and creatively explore their interests,” said RISE Principal Naomi Lara.

RISE was founded in 2016 to reimagine high school to meet the unique needs of youth navigating foster care, housing instability, probation, and/or other circumstances that have caused disruptions in their academic journeys. Through the facilitation of a flex-scheduling, credit recovery model, students are given the voice and choice necessary to pursue their academic goals while honoring the additional responsibilities they have in their lives.

“Our students need and deserve to see themselves as makers – leaders with agency, critical thinking skills, and passion projects,” said RISE Board President Lida Jennings.

The RISE learning sites are embedded within or near multiple social-service-provider locations in high need areas across Los Angeles, including the Richstone Center in Hawthorne.

RISE was 1 of only 10 schools in the nation to win a prestigious "Super School" grant to reimagine high school in connection with XQ: The Super School Project, funded by Laurene Powell Jobs. It was also named one of America’s most innovative and effective schools and a semi-finalist for the $1 million Yass Prize in education.

The makerspace project was selected to provide students at RISE with an interactive space to develop new skills and bring their ideas to life, according to organizers, who say that the initiative reflects Leadership Manhattan Beach's commitment to fostering learning opportunities for all while strengthening the connection between Manhattan Beach and surrounding communities.

The makerspace cart will be unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony in April 2025, celebrating the collaboration and generosity of the Manhattan Beach community.

Click here to make a tax-deductible donation to the project.

Leadership Manhattan Beach Known for Community Projects

Leadership Manhattan Beach is a 501c(3) non-profit that offers a comprehensive leadership program to educate and develop future leaders. Each year the organization selects nearly two dozen individuals from the community, including seniors, business leaders, volunteers, and high school students. Participants learn more about city departments, community involvement and philanthropic opportunities. 

In addition to receiving hands-on exposure to local government and community organizations, LMB participants work together annually to design and execute a capstone project that benefits the greater community.