Building a Makerspace in South Lake Tahoe
At South Tahoe High School, it’s not unusual for more than half of students to graduate and stay in the community. In a town shaped by tourism, small businesses are the backbone of the local economy – and where many young people will build their futures. But in a region where costs are high and work is seasonal, many new businesses struggle to last beyond their first year.
For Isaiah Tannaci, Career Technical Education (CTE) Department Chair, that reality raises an important question.
Tasked by the school board to integrate entrepreneurship across its CTE pathways and supported by a Strong Workforce Program grant, he began to think beyond traditional classroom learning.
“For those staying in our community, how do we give them the opportunity for higher wages and sustainable living?” he said. “How do we help them envision a future where they don’t just take a job, but create something that lasts?”
While his initial idea was to open a retail space where students could design and sell products to test what might work, it eventually became clear they needed something else: a makerspace where they could develop, experiment, and refine their ideas before stepping out into the real world.
Around the same time, just a few miles away, the Marcella Foundation was asking similar questions.
Founded by Sean Fannan, a South Tahoe High graduate who went on to become a successful tech entrepreneur in San Francisco, the Marcella Foundation focuses on improving food access, literacy, and youth mentorship in the community.
As Melissa Uppendahl, Executive Director, recalled: “As our youth progress in their education, we asked ourselves, ‘How do we support them in what comes next in their lives?’ We imagined them moving from being learners to creators and innovators – in a space where they can tinker, prototype, fail, and iterate. The makerspace is really where that idea comes to life.”
So when Tannaci reached out to discuss funding for South Tahoe High’s vision of a makerspace, the timing felt unmistakable.
It was, as both described it, a moment of serendipity – two ideas taking shape independently, then coming together at exactly the right time. So they decided to build the makerspace together.
That partnership is now coming together through the Atrium, a 10,000-square-foot building that once housed a thrift store and will soon serve as the new home for the Marcella Foundation and its programs.
When it opens in late 2026, the Atrium will house a commercial kitchen, food storage and distribution hub, community space, and a fully equipped makerspace with tools and technologies many students would not otherwise have access to – from laser cutters, 3D printers, and sewing machines to a woodshop, metal shop, photography studio, electronics lab, and bike and snow gear repair stations.
All students in grades 9–12 in South Lake Tahoe will have access to the makerspace at no cost.
On the Road Before the Doors Open
To make the makerspace a reality, the team conducted a national search and found Joseph Minnich, a self-described “serial makerspace builder” who has done this before at universities across the country.
“Makerspaces are the ultimate place where you can go to build or fix anything,” Minnich said. “But more importantly, they’re places where you learn how to take an idea and turn it into something real.”
While the Atrium is still under renovation, Minnich has already taken the concept on the road. Using a truck and trailer outfitted with tools, his mobile makerspace brings hands-on projects directly into classrooms, working with teachers to make abstract concepts easier to understand.
For example, students learning geometry didn’t just memorize formulas – they cut and assembled cardboard pieces into hands-on tools to test angles and proportions and see how the math worked. “If you can build something to prove a scientific principle, it’s a pure form of learning and mastery,” he said.
When the Atrium opens, students will have access to more possibilities than ever before. For Uppendahl, it comes back to what the makerspace represents.
“We want students to walk into a space that inspires them,” she said. “A place where they feel capable and can try something new and realize they can actually make it happen.”
For Tannaci, it comes back to fostering an entrepreneurial mindset.
“My dream is that this becomes the incubator for local businesses here in Tahoe,” he said. “Where students can start, find something that works, and then take it out into the community.”
For a place where many students choose to stay, it’s a chance to build something of their own – close to home, starting with an idea and the tools to bring it to life.
Photos by the Marcella Foundation. Explore The Atrium to learn more about South Lake Tahoe’s one-of-a-kind makerspace opening in late 2026.