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Arts & Communication Fostering belonging through STEAM education

given the comprehensive process of design, prototyping, partnerships with other university facilities and local
assembly, and presentation. Overall, witnessing the organizations. A notable example of such integration exists
development and growth of students throughout the project at the Shift Retail Lab within Virginia Commonwealth
underscores the value of STEAM education in fostering University’s da Vinci Center, where students create
creativity, problem-solving, and community engagement products and receive public feedback, bridging the gap
through meaningful, hands-on learning experiences. between academic projects and practical applications.
6. Implications Looking forward, this study suggests several directions
for developing STEAM education’s potential to foster
This study’s successful integration of STEAM education, belonging and entrepreneurship: First, institutions
community engagement, and belonging through board should consider expanding access to technical resources
game design has several important implications for and expertise across disciplines. The success of students
higher education pedagogy and practice. Most directly, using 3D printing and laser cutting in an art appreciation
it demonstrates how art appreciation courses can be context demonstrates how technical tools can enhance
reimagined to foster deeper connections between students, creative expression and community engagement. Second,
their university, and the broader community while universities should develop more structured pathways
developing practical skills. for commercializing student projects. While this study’s
In the realm of art education, this approach aligns with board games effectively built community connections,
the emerging concept of an “artpreneur” – a blend of artist there is potential to further develop these projects for
and entrepreneur who actively promotes the value of their commercial purposes, creating additional opportunities
art. By forming artist communities, organizing exhibitions, for student entrepreneurship. Finally, institutions should
and exploring markets, these artpreneurs redefine success strengthen partnerships between academic departments,
in the field. technical facilities, and community organizations.
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Such collaborations can provide students with richer
The community board game initiative serves as a
model for how core art appreciation courses can integrate opportunities to develop both creative and entrepreneurial
skills while strengthening their connections to the broader
entrepreneurial thinking with artistic practice. Students community. By building on these implications, higher
not only learn art fundamentals and design principles but
also develop practical skills through hands-on engagement education institutions can create learning environments
with real-world challenges. This integration is particularly that simultaneously foster belonging, creativity, and
valuable because it helps students see themselves as active entrepreneurial capability. This approach aligns with
contributors to their community’s cultural landscape, broader institutional objectives of preparing students for
reinforcing their sense of belonging while building meaningful participation in both cultural and economic
professional capabilities. aspects of society while maintaining strong connections to
their communities.
The project’s success in fostering belonging through
creative production suggests broader implications for 7. Limitations
curriculum design in higher education. By providing This study is a qualitative exploratory investigation,
students with opportunities to showcase their work which inherently involves limitations. First, the data were
publicly and receive community feedback, institutions collected within a classroom setting, which may influence
can create meaningful connections between academic participants’ responses due to the formal learning
work and local engagement. This approach transforms environment. Second, the participants were students
traditional assessment methods into opportunities for enrolled in the course, which may limit the generalizability
community building and professional development. For of the findings to broader populations. In addition, the
example, students in this study not only demonstrated study was conducted over a single semester, providing
their understanding of art concepts but also developed
entrepreneurial skills through the process of designing, only a snapshot of the learning experiences and outcomes
refining, and presenting their board games. The rather than a longitudinal perspective. Future research
interdisciplinary nature of the project offers important could address these limitations by incorporating diverse
lessons for institutional support of student learning. The settings, longer study durations, and varied participant
successful collaboration between the art department demographics.
and university makerspace demonstrates how technical While the board game design project offers a valuable
resources and expertise can be leveraged to enhance example of issue-based STEAM education, makerspace
creative projects. This model could be expanded through utilization, and entrepreneurship, it primarily addresses a

Volume 3 Issue 3 (2025) 12 doi: 10.36922/ac.4437