by Lorine Parks
“You can’t do STEM projects with disabled students.” That was a dare, thought Ben Dickow, and he always liked dares.
Ben is the President and Executive Director for the City of Downey’s Columbia Memorial Space Center. And finding new approaches for STEM projects is just one of his innovative ways to put Downey on the map of Southern California. A map which, by the way, in his mind is in the shape of a bull’s eye, and the center is directly over Downey.
Bringing southern Californians into Downey’s Space Center is the reciprocal of reaching out to let people know what a wonderful museum we have here. The Center stands on the authentic spot where North American Rockwell made space travel history by building the capsule that sent men to the moon.
We have a genuine capsule on display that landed on the moon and then came back to Earth, and the original life-size mock-up of the Space Shuttle.
STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, and that’s the emphasis the Downey Unified School District’s Programs now take. “Our mission is “to ignite a community of critical thinkers throughout Southern California with innovative and world-class STEM experiences,” says Ben.
But who are our students, and what makes up our population now? As of the 2010 census, among major groups, we are 63% Latino; 9% non-Hispanic white, 9% (Caucasian); 9% Asian-American. 54.0% of Downey residents are of Mexican ancestry, 3.9% Salvadoran, 2.0% Cuban, 2.0% Guatemalan, 1.1% Peruvian, and 1.0% Nicaraguan ancestry.
Downey is at the southern end of the San Gabriel Valley and the eastern-most margin of South Central Los Angeles. That means that 60% are low-income and under-resourced. 11.8% of the population are living below the federal poverty line. “That’s a lot of kids and parents for us to serve,” said Ben.
Look where we’ve come from. Dairy was originally a major industry in Downey. The Central Milk Agency marketed the milk for seven hundred dairymen whose dairy herds ranged from thirty to two thousand head. Then farmers in the area grew grain, corn, castor beans and fruit, and by 1935 Downey was characterized as an "orange-grove town.” Aerospace appeared during World War II when Vultee produced 15% of all of America's military aircraft by 1941. That company was a pioneer in the use of women in manufacturing positions, and was the first aircraft company to build airplanes on a powered assembly line.
Vultee became a part of North American Aviation, (later North American Rockwell, then Rockwell International which was then bought by the Boeing company) whose facilities were the birthplace of the systems for the Apollo Space Program as well as the Space Shuttle. For over 70 years, Downey's Rockwell NASA plant produced and tested many of the 20th century's greatest aviation, missile, and space endeavor
Downey was brutally hit by cutbacks in the defense budget. Rockwell International, who once had over 30,000 employees coming in to Downey every day, had less than 5,000 in 1992. The seventy-year history of airplane and space vehicle manufacturing in Downey came to an end when the Rockwell plant closed in 1999. The former North American Rockwell plant was demolished, and the site now features the Columbia Memorial Space Center where Ben, as Director, works to bring back recognition for Downey. Downey Landing, the shopping center, is named for the landings on the moon, a fact that has been forgotten even by many locals.
Getting Downey back on Southern California’s cultural map has been Ben’s goal. “Here’s what we do,” he said: “Events, Exhibits and Programs.” Starting by building a strong home base, all Downey students are now invited to enjoy the CMSC for free.
Events? A City of STEM Festival was held in April, 2017; Mary Stauffer’s 100th Birthday Celebration, an Open House on Sunday August 27th, which showcased our unique exhibits and served punch and cake; Spooky Science Nights.
Exhibits? “Apollo;” “Steps to the Moon;” Challenger Learning Center; Robotics Lab; Gravity Well; Drop Tower: and the authentic Astronaut’s Suit, always fun for having your picture taken.
Programs? Girls in STEM; Early Childhood STEM; Columbia Astronomers’ Club; Scouts programs such as Boy Scouts Robotics Merit Badge, Girl Scouts workshops in Earth Sciences and Space Explorers for Brownies. Connections with JPL teachers widen the scope, and Teachers Labs enrich the schools.
And those disabled STEM students? Ben showed us a remote-controlled miniature gizmo developed in its hands-on learning program for children with disabilities. It looked like something from the future, maybe in a galaxy far, far away.
“Most people say don’t know anyone who is a scientist,” Ben said. “But everyone knows a doctor, and doctors are scientists.” It’s this “disconnection” between concepts and everyday reality about science that Ben wants to correct. Go see for yourself: the Space Center is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 am to 5 pm.
PREVIEW OF COMING ATTRACTION: Next week we will hear the thrilling story of The Burning Man. It’s a Festival in northern Nevada, and Rotary San Pedro President and architect Pete Mokler will visit us to share a unique view of an annual gathering of nearly 80,000 people in a remote alkali basin in the northern Nevada Black Rock Desert.
“The Art and Spirit of Burning Man” recounts Pete’s experiences while leading the Reno Rotary Club to this outland of humanity over several years between 2010 and 2016. Pete will present a selection of art installations, temporary architecture, radical desert performance and fantastic mutant vehicles that are regular sights at this explosion of creativity held at what is annually known as “Black Rock City.”
To provide some context to this seemingly peaceful madness, Pete will recount the history of the event and discuss the “Ten Principles” as laid down by founder Larry Harvey that are the guiding rules for the largest temporary city in the world. These principles are human based values of health, fairness, inclusion, peace, care for the environment and each other, and revelry of the human spirit, values which mirror much of what Rotary strives to accomplish.