STEM - Hall Neighborhood House

The Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center at Hall Neighborhood House is a hands-on, state-of-the-art educational center focused on science, technology, engineering, and math. It’s a place where students of all ages can perform experiments, participate in activities, and make use of incredible tools like 3D printers, Beebot programmable robots, circuit boards, Ozobots for coding, computers, and more!

Thanks to the generous support and bold vision of John and Connie DeMattia, students have a fun and safe space to learn and explore exciting career fields and scientific principles.

Best of all, the Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center at Hall Neighborhood House is a hub that supports other STEM Learning Centers at public schools throughout Bridgeport! Our awesome educators not only run exciting programs right here at Hall Neighborhood House, they also equip and partner with teachers in Bridgeport Public Schools.

Students at Hall—and in classrooms across Bridgeport—are diving into coding, robotics, math, science, and engineering activities that are teaching them to solve problems and investigate how the world works.

What is STEM?

STEM is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math—four key disciplines that are central to many of the fast-growing and most lucrative industries and careers.

A solid STEM education is essential for students today. In fact, Harvard said that the need for a STEM-capable workforce was an “urgent national priority,” and the National Science Foundation added that “to be prepared for the STEM careers of the future, all learners must have an equitable opportunity to acquire foundational STEM knowledge.”

Hall Neighborhood House is proud to help meet this need through the Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center!

STEM at Hall

Now, with the new Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center, we are ready for so much more exciting STEM education! As Hall’s STEM Coordinator David Mestre shared, “Our scope of work is actually going to exponentially increase. The STEM Center is being reimagined and reinvigorated with the support of many generous donors, all in the name of Alan Wallack.”

STEM in Bridgeport Public Schools

One of the most exciting things about the Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center is that it serves as a hub supporting STEM programming in Bridgeport Public Schools. Our vision is to have a STEM Learning Center in each of Bridgeport’s 28 public schools, making STEM education available to over 13,400 students in grades K-8.

“We are thrilled about the opening of the Alan Wallack STEM Center at Dunbar! This center is set to ignite a passion for science, technology, engineering, and math in our students, enabling them to innovate and shape the future. The stunning wall wrap has already captured the interest of our students. We are eager to provide training to our teachers and unveil our new STEM lab. We anticipate that it will have a profound impact on our students inspiring a new generation of thinkers and creators.”

Sherene Kennedy, Principal
Paul Laurence Dunbar School

Check out the grand opening of the Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center!

On September 20, 2023, we gathered with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation and community leaders to cut the ribbon on our brand new Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center. Watch a video of this special celebration!

About Alan Wallack

Alan Wallack created a legacy for students of all ages in our community, and we are thrilled to honor his memory through the new Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center at Hall Neighborhood House.

Alan was born and raised in Bridgeport, graduating from Bassick High School and Salem College. He then went on to receive two masters degrees from the University of Bridgeport. After college, he served the City of Bridgeport Board of Education for 37 years as the city-wide athletic director, then worked an additional 17 years as the construction coordinator, overseeing the construction of schools and ball fields throughout Bridgeport. At the same time, he was extensively involved in the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation and was a force behind the Foundation building six youth development parks in Bridgeport and Hartford.

In partnership with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation, we are thrilled to unveil the Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center at Hall Neighborhood House—the first of its kind in our community, and our first step toward putting a similar STEM Center in every public school in Bridgeport. Ultimately, we hope to honor Alan’s legacy by impacting over 18,000 students.

Alan is survived by his wife Marilyn and daughters Traci and Rachel. His friendship, compassion, wit, charm, and service to the youth of Bridgeport are sorely missed, but we are inspired by his example to continue creating facilities and opportunities for students throughout our community.

About Our Partnership with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation

The Alan Wallack STEM Learning Center was launched with support from the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation. Their proven curriculum, technology, and resources allowed us to hit the ground running. The Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation is dedicated to STEM education and knows just how important it is for young people to gain experience in science, technology, engineering, and math. In fact, “In 2016, [they] launched the Ripken Foundation STEM Initiative to provide underserved elementary and middle school youth in disadvantaged neighborhoods the opportunity to participate in STEM activities. Today, the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation has over 365 fully operational, turnkey STEM programs in 20 states as well as 11 district-wide public-school systems, impacting nearly 116,000 kids with the help of over 2,400 teachers/educators/mentors.”