A BRIEF HISTORY
Founded in 2017, The STEAM Engine Co.
In 2017 our Founder, Marissa Thomas, was running professional development workshops for teachers in digital technologies at various independent schools. When she tried to expand, she realised that many public schools could not afford their own class set of robotics kits. That's when she got accepted into the Monash Generator's program to develop a startup. Thus evolved the idea of Violet, a cost-effecitve robot.
By 2018 we had sold over 100 Violet robots and developed our second education kit, bumble-B which sold out by the end of that year.
In 2019, our Founder wanted to further pursue her passion for Girls in Engineering. The idea for STEAM City was developed through Marissa's Honour's engineering research project, to find ways to engage girls into Engineering. To date, STEAM City has created the most impact at The STEAM Engine Co., seeing a 73% improvement in confidence to pursue Engineering in year 8 female students, for example.
After completing a double-degree in Engineering and Commerce at Monash University, Marissa set out to run The STEAM Engine Co. full-time in 2020. However, Covid-19 had other plans and so Marissa closed up shop and decided to pursue her passion for education by starting a Master of Teaching (Secondary) Internship at the University of Melbourne. This enabled her to start her teaching career as a STEM Teacher at Edenbrook Secondary College, which opened in 2021.
In 2022, The STEAM Engine Co. makes a brief return before our Founder returns back to Teaching in 2023. We are thrilled at the opportunity to see what impact we can create for girls in engineering before the end of the year.
If your school is interested in engaging your girls with our
STEAM City program, we are still taking bookings for Term 4.