Founded by a group of new faculty in 2012, STEAM Factory aims to increase connections and innovation across all colleges and disciplines, with a special focus on supporting faculty who are new to The Ohio State University or those switching/expanding to new fields. You will find excellent company and colleagues within our diverse membership that represents 66 departments, 13 Colleges and 34 Centers and Institutes across this university.
Apply to Become a STEAM Factory Member!
Central to the purpose of STEAM Factory, we're always looking to engage with the curious and pioneering scholars and academics across The Ohio State University seeking to find community and collaboration. To apply for STEAM Factory membership, please fill out this form and we will contact you with the next steps of the process!
STEAM Powered Perks of Membership
STEAM Factory presents many benefits of membership for faculty and staff. Below is a complete list detailing the advantages of membership...
Research and Interaction Opportunities
Additional Marketing and Promotional Benefits
Members benefit from Numerous Research and Interaction Opportunities provided by STEAM Factory
STEAM Exchanges
These monthly salon-style seminar series allow members to share their research in an interdisciplinary setting, find new avenues for collaboration, and learn about new tools and resources to enhance teaching methods. Click here for more information.
400 W Rich Collaboration Space
The space is 3,700 square feet of creative co-working space in a creatively supportive, bright and unique environment.
- 24/7 access to STEAM co-working space where members can work, relax, play & meet
- Opportunity to develop new friendships, ideas and collaborations with STEAM colleagues
- An exciting alternative classroom and event space to host grad students, faculty friends and visiting guests
- An accessible venue for engaged research and community outreach projects
To reserve space in the STEAM Factory, please fill out this space reservation form.
Formal and Informal Member Meetings
STEAM members don’t just collaborate with one another, they elevate each other. Members meet regularly to discuss a variety of topics including research, projects, presentations, and upcoming events as well as share resources within the university. These meetings occur in both large and small group settings in a wide variety of contexts. Members form professional connections that often lead to amplification and further development of both traditional and non-traditional research, teaching and service as well as provide opportunities for new interdisciplinary projects and opportunities to which members may not have been otherwise exposed.
Member Listserv
Members receive instant information on STEAM events, research and news via the membership listserv. They are also able to quickly connect with their widely diverse group of fellow STEAM members with opportunities for collaboration, requests for resources and information on different news items, events and program.
Special Member Events
In addition to events that are open to the public, STEAM Factory hosts many types of events and programs designed specifically for our members as a means to better facilitate connections, collaborations and conversations among academics from different fields.
Facilitation of Ohio State & Community Partner Funding Opportunities
STEAM Factory has played an important role in obtaining grants for both individual and collaborative projects for its members through writing letters of support, providing a vehicle to amplify the broader impacts of faculty research at The Ohio State University and developing its own collaborative grant submissions.
Ongoing Research Writing Groups
Members have developed ongoing writing groups to meet in the space and work on writing research, publications and grant proposals. These meetings are scheduled by members at their convenience.
Professional Development
STEAM hosts and participates in various professional development opportunities for members including interdisciplinary seminars and professional development panels. Members form lasting professional connections by collaborating and engaging with fellow STEAM members, as well as gain professional experience presenting research to both peers and the community.
Roundtable Discussions
As a community of peers, members enjoy roundtable discussions on various topics. These discussions further enhance the professional connections made amongst members as they connect over specific and themes topics for research and conversations.
Research Related Events
In addition to the STEAM Exchanges and Franklinton Fridays, there are also bigger events and symposia, as well as smaller, more informal meetings to discuss possible research opportunities.
Informal Lunches and Happy Hours
STEAM Factory dinners, happy hours and city outings provide faculty and staff casual settings to meet and get to know one another outside of common research or academic spaces. The community built from informal gatherings can also lead to wonderful conversations, intersections in interests and professional collaborations in the future.
Additional Marketing and Promotion Benefits
Franklinton Friday Presentations
On the second Friday of the month, the STEAM Factory space opens its space at 400 West Rich for an ever-evolving array of Ohio State faculty, staff and student research, seminars, art and music presentations, micro-lectures, engaging demonstrations, installations and activities. This venue allows members to practice summarizing their work in a succinct, relatable way and provides a more comprehensive, experiential and detailed experience of the extensive array of disciplines, research and talent housed within The Ohio State University community.
Outreach Events and Activities
Outreach events and special outreach events, seminars and workshops allow for the sharing of cutting edge research, projects and programs of STEAM faculty member research to a public that might not otherwise access it.
Community Partner Events
STEAM Factory engages regularly with a diverse group of community partners on events and other projects to both strengthen the Franklinton community and give members more opportunities to engage members of the public with research in dozens of varied disciplines.
Peer Promotion via Web and Social Media
STEAM Factory maintains an active online presence through its social media and website activities and often shares the accomplishments, accolades and events of its diverse and prolific membership. The website and social media channels provide not merely a marketing channel, but also an opportunity for raising awareness about individual members; projects are showcased on the website with text, photos and video provided by the Principal Investigator. STEAM Factory broadly and freely promotes individual members and their departments or other affiliations on the website. Such marketing adds value to membership, which then encourages greater membership and therefore more opportunities for collaboration.
Letters of Support and Grant Opportunities
Presentations at the ongoing Franklinton Friday Open House and other outreach opportunities at the STEAM Factory collaboration and co-working space in 400 W. Rich effectively demonstrate faculty commitment to broader impacts of research. STEAM Factory provides its members with grant proposal Letters of Support. As of August 2017, STEAM Factory members have been awarded over $9.3 million in grants that have included STEAM Factory letters of support, including multiple NSF Early CAREER award winners.