Our Story
How FUSE Started

With initial funding from the MacArthur Foundation, we piloted FUSE Studios in public libraries, summer camps, and afterschool clubs in and around Chicago during 2011. Led by Northwestern University Learning Sciences Professor Reed Stevens, FUSE was initially designed with the expectation that it would be implemented in various out-of-school contexts, but with hopes it might also find a home in schools. The design principles of the FUSE approach are rooted in prior ethnographic studies by Professor Stevens and other researchers on alternatives to the traditional classroom model for how to organize creative and compelling learning environments. Despite no marketing effort to schools, word-of-mouth about FUSE’s potential to provide students with new, engaging learning experiences led to gradually increasing interest in bringing FUSE into schools. Starting in September 2013, implementation of FUSE in schools began in partnership with Schaumburg District 54, the largest K-8 school district in Illinois. This district, along with many others, now implements FUSE as part of their school day curriculum.
Adoption has spread beyond the Chicago area to include elementary, middle, and high schools in 18 states and in Helsinki, Finland. In the 19-20 school year we expect over 26,000 students to take a FUSE class at one of the almost 200 schools implementing the program.
Research

- what and how students learn in FUSE studios
- how FUSE impacts students’ interests in STEAM disciplines and fields
- the different ways students learn with and from other students
- the new roles that teachers play in FUSE classrooms
- how students develop 21st-century skills in FUSE
- the different ways students extend and go beyond FUSE challenges, during and after FUSE
We have also begun to study the different ways in which teachers adopt and adapt the FUSE program to fit their local needs and goals and how these adaptations influence student learning and experience. Given the rapid expansion of FUSE, we are also studying the conditions that influence how FUSE as an educational innovation is spreading and taking root in schools across the US.
Here are select publications detailing our research findings on FUSE:
- “Failure is just another try”: Re-framing failure in school through the FUSE studio approach. International Journal of Educational Research, Volume 99, 2019.
- Interest development and learning in choice-based, in-school, making activities: The case of a 3D printer. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 2018.
- Exploring the Adoption, Spread, and Sustainability of an Informal STEAM Learning Innovation in Schools. International Society of the Learning Sciences, 2018.
- FUSE: An Alternative Infrastructure for Empowering Learners in Schools. International Society of the Learning Sciences, 2016.
- ‘Re-mediating’ Learning. Computer Supported Collaborative Learning, 2015.
RESEARCH TEAM
Reed Stevens
reed@fusestudio.net
Principal Investigator
Kay Ramey
kay@fusestudio.net
Post-Doctoral Researcher
Jaakko Hilppo
Jake@fusestudio.net
Post-Doctoral Researcher
PROGRAM TEAM
Lizzie Perkins
lizzie@fusestudio.net
Program Director
Gabi Nelson
gabi@fusestudio.net
Digital Media Producer
James Freetly
james@fusestudio.net
Program Coordinator
Anne Hayden Stevens
anne@fusestudio.net
Creative Director
Colin Sheaff
colin@fusestudio.net
Senior Software Developer
General Inquiries about Studios
hello@fusestudio.net
FUSE in the News








Recent Press
02.21.21 Lighting a FUSE at Union Middle: Smithfield, Northwestern University provides STEAM grant (The Samson Independent)
10.9.19 Golfview Elementary Magnet School Implementing STEAM Into Their Curriculum (Space Coast Daily)
4.29.19 Smithfield Foods Makes Sizable Donation to Support STEAM Education in Rural Communities (3BL Media)
12.18.18 Lehigh middle students learn to power mini go-karts, use 3D printers, model dream homes (Fort Meyers News-Press)
11.06.18 FUSE for STEM Learning and Interest Development: An Interview with Reed Stevens (CIRCL: The Center for Innovative Research on Cyber Learning)
8.15.18 Madison Middle Hosts Ribbon Cutting for First Boeing Funded FUSE Studio in Titusville | (Space Coast Daily, FL)
3.22.18 12 Schools Selected for New FUSE Studios with CompTIA-Funded Tech Activities for Students (CompTIA)
3.20.18 Learning Best Through Tinkering, Imagination, Creativity, and Invention Through FUSE Studios (CompTIA)
2.21.18 CompTIA Funding 10 Additional FUSE Studios for STEAM Education in Schools (CompTIA)
2.08.18 Boeing Awards Grant for STEAM Initiatives to Brevard Schools Foundation (Brevard Schools Foundation, Brevard, FL)
2.08.18 Boeing Awards Grant for STEAM Initiatives (Hometown News, Brevard, FL)
2.08.18 FUSE Challenges Evanston Sixth Graders (SESP, NU)
1.10.18 At Northwestern, researchers 'FUSE' fun challenges with STEAM learning (Big Ten Network)
12.29.17 FUSE Studio inspires STEM learning at Peoria school (Seattle Times)
11.15.17 The Case for Shop Class: How Vocational schools and gap years can help ease academic anxiety (Chicago Tribune)
11.09.17 < a target="_blank"href="https://theislandnow.com/community-news/floral-park-fuse-lab-encourages-innovation/">Floral Park FUSE lab encourages innovation (The Island Now)
09.20.17 FUSE Studios Expand to 23 New Schools (SESP News, Northwestern University)
5.31.17 Manual Academy selected for 'Limousine Level' Learning Lab (Peoria Journal Star)
5.25.17 The Common Denominator between Sesame Street and the Internet? Learning. (Edweek Blog)
3.17.17 21 Schools Selected for New FUSE Studios with CompTIA-Funded Tech Activities for Students
3.11.17 Highland Park High School Unveils '21st Century Learning' Renovations (Daily North Shore)
1.11.17 CompTIA Partners with FUSE at Northwestern U to Expand STEAM Education in 21 Schools
Fall 2016: The FUSE Phenomenon. (Inquiry Magazine, Northwestern School of Education & Social Policy)
10.01.16 Finnish Educators call FUSE an 'Inspiration" (SESP News)
9.6.16 Finnish Educators seek closer look at FUSE Program (SESP News)
4.20.16 CPS Military Academy receives FUSE grant for 2016-17 school year
11.30.15 - Clark County students explore interests with FUSE (Springfield News-Sun)
11.30.15 - Local jewelry designer creates FUSE challenge (Northwestern News)
9.13.2015 - District 54 STEM coach shares enthusiasm for problem-solving with students, teachers
8.26.15 - Game to Learn (Evanston RoundTable)
4.15.15 - Gardiner students try their hands at solar and wind power
12.20.14 - New classes at District 47 aim to expose kids to science, tech fields

FUNDING PARTNERS
Funding partners help FUSE reach high need populations and schools in targeted communities. The Nellie Mae Foundation, Smithfield Foods, Boeing, Creating IT Futures, CompTIA, The MacArthur Foundation, Hive Chicago, Siemens Industries Inc., IBM, and Motorola Mobility have all funded FUSE. Schools are funded in Chicago by The Boeing Corporation. Schools are also funded by Siemens and the Nellie Mae Foundation. FUSE has also been funded by the MacArthur Foundation and Hive Chicago.
NSF FUNDING
FUSE research, program design and staff are generously supported by grants from the National Science Foundation under NSF grants DRL-1348800 and DRL-1433724. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.









Contact Us
If you are interested in getting started with the FUSE program, fill out this form and our director will get back to you shortly.
If you are a current FUSE school and have a question about your studio or materials, please email nelson@fusestudio.net.
If you are a current FUSE school and have a billing question, please email james@fusestudio.net.