C3RC - Coastal California Classroom Research Collective
The Coastal California Classroom Research Collective, established in 2024, is an interdisciplinary community of practice that uses science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) to encourage engagement, creativity, and local stewardship through sharing, education, and research.
This organically growing collective focuses on community building and foundational research, channeling the exciting energy of a group that welcomes new voices and perspectives. By framing its work as a shared story, the collective helps others connect emotionally with its mission and recognize the broader impact of interdisciplinary collaboration.
The Coastal California Classroom Research Collective is supported by the Robert E. Kennedy Library, the Bailey College of Science and Mathematics, and a Center for Expressive Technologies (CET) Seed Grant.
What is STEAM? Why does it matter?
Why STEAM?
Of history’s most influential scientists, philosophers, and artists many were both artists and naturalists. They understood that creativity isn’t limited to a single discipline—it’s a mindset, a way of seeing and engaging with the world that crosses boundaries and builds connection. We hope today’s showcase invites you to think differently about how we observe, understand, and relate to the world around us. STEAM adds the arts to traditional STEM. This isn’t simply decorative — it’s a recognition that our most pressing challenges, from climate change to social inequity, demand holistic approaches that blend analysis with imagination. For librarians and information specialists, this is highly relevant: we are already in the business of connecting data, culture, and communities.
Learn By Doing
At Cal Poly, Learn by Doing is a deliberate process whereby students, from day one, acquire knowledge and skills through active engagement and self-reflection inside the classroom and beyond it. ‘Learn by Doing’ means learning through experience. Our location on California’s Central Coast gives us a living laboratory — oak woodlands, estuaries, kelp forests. These ecosystems are central to our work, and connect directly to global frameworks like the Sustainable Development Goals and stewardship of place.
