The Impact of Shop Class
Impact
Coming soon
About our Climate Impact
Climate Impact
- Tiny Home Academy – students design and build climate-resilient micro-homes with efficient power and water systems.
- Fix-It Café & Community Bike Shop – repair broken appliances and bikes, extending their life instead of replacing.
- E-bikes – sold and serviced as affordable, low-carbon transportation options.
- Workshops & Events – practice repair over replacement, reduce waste with reusable dishware, recycling, reclaimed wood, and salvaged goods.
- Facility Features – EV charging for neighbors and free classes on climate science, energy, and sustainable design.
- Learning Garden & Urban Farm – hands-on outdoor classroom for solar power, water reclamation, composting, beekeeping, urban agriculture, and small-space food growing.
At Shop Class, sustainability is hands-on. We teach skills, spark ideas, and inspire climate-conscious makers for the future.
stuff
Founded in 2021, Community Shop Class (Shop Class Inc 501c3) is a neighborhood learning center that fosters community resilience, youth empowerment, and neighborhood learning. The neuro-inclusive education framework delivers classes, learning programs, youth camps, and neighborhood events that inspire collaboration, volunteerism, and sustainable living. All programs are built and delivered by a neurodiverse coalition of coaches, educators, industry professionals, and community advocates. Shop Class champions its mission to revolutionize equitable access to tools, education, and housing in Oak Park (an SB 535 Disadvantaged Community and a Climate Investment Priority Population). Strategic partnerships with SMUD, Hire Hope Education, Outreach Construction, Sierra Service Project, Sacramento Sustainability Academy, SABA, The City of Sacramento, and CADClass.org have helped shape the organization into a true neighborhood resource for Oak Park and all of Sacramento. The primary goal for 2025 / 2026 is to continue development of our charter and after-school programs and to launch our dynamic, effective, inclusive, and engaging workforce development program called The Oak Park Builder’s Academy.
The flagship program at Shop Class is currently the Tiny Home Academy. The 4-week class helps learners explore elements of carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and sustainability. This innovative class has helped almost 100 young people build confidence and experience with tools and building, but it lacks post-graduate employment or education opportunities. The course is designed to be exploratory without a focus on a single career path. The Builder’s Academy will be two weeks longer than the Tiny Home Academy and feature a carpentry-specific, skill-focused curriculum that will lead to more tangible, positive employment and educational outcomes.
Other Shop Class programs include:
- City of Sacramento Youth Events (50k budget to host 24 activities per year).
- Official Americorps NCCC Tool Confidence and Safety class 30a (2022, 2023, 2024) Developed by Shop Class Inc.
- Weekly ceramics, welding, meditation, and STEAM-focused classes and events.
- Home of the ADHD Inventor’s Club and host for weekly ADHD, ASD, and LD peer support groups and project-based learning activities.
- Home of the Oak Park Fix-it-Cafe, ToolBox 101, Inventor's Camp, charter school and after-school programs and clubs.
Shop Class Inc. is an organization founded and operated by people impacted by ADHD, ASD, and Learning Differences. The organization is guided by a Community Impact Statement that reflects our dedication to equality. Our programs help disinvested women, BIPOC, Queer, and neurodivergent young people build confidence as they explore entrepreneurship and trades work.
The Team
MATT VALEEN
AJ - Allison
AJ - Allison
Matt is a dedicated volunteer at Community Shop Class, bringing a rich background as a former Manufacturing Engineer. At Community Shop Class, Matt finds fulfillment in collaborating with students and supporting a creative, learning-filled environment. He’s seen firsthand how students with no prior experience can develop new skills and confidence, sometimes in just a few minutes, other times through sustained effort. It’s rewarding for him to see students succeed and take pride in the projects they design and build.
Hobbies: A lifelong maker, Matt has enjoyed working with his hands since childhood- whether in his father's garage, cutting wood with a hand saw, or piecing together bicycles from spare parts. His early education included classes in wood shop, metal shop, crafts, and electronics, which laid the foundation for his hands-on skills.
Most likely to: Be found sharing his skills, inspiring students, and being part of a community dedicated to making and learning.
AJ - Allison
AJ - Allison
AJ - Allison
AJ helps things run smoothly as the Shop Coordinator, Assistant Janitor, and Kids Coach. With 4 years of experience in start-ups and nonprofit work, AJ helps balance creativity & logistics with plenty of elbow grease.
Hobbies: Includes art, design, making, "organizing chaos into order", and making sure Shop Class stays a place where everyone belongs. At thier core, AJ is a helper of the people - believing that whether it’s janitorial work or big-picture leadership, the real job is creating a space where others can thrive.
Why Shop Class Matters to Me:
Shop Class matters because it’s more than tools and trades - it’s a chance to change the trajectory of someone's life. I believe in the equality and love the Shop provides. Shop Class provides me with the opportunity to help my community, love on the individual, and be a part of something that shows people they matter.
Most likely to: Be found starting a break dance competition among a group of strangers.
Eli Muñoz
AJ - Allison
Eli Muñoz
Eli is the official Community Bike Shop Mechanic.
Eli values the culture of shared knowledge at Community Shop Class, where anyone can learn skills ranging from carpentry and 3D printing to laser cutting. He sees the shop as a vital stepping stone for both children and adults to explore various trades, build confidence, and even prepare for future job opportunities in their chosen fields.
Hobbies: He finds great satisfaction in working at the bike shop, often accompanied by a mix of reggae and plenty of Brutal Death Metal while repairing and tuning bikes.
With experience as a bike mechanic at Peak Adventures shop at Sac State, Eli’s journey brought him to Sac City, where chance connected him with Community Shop Class at just the right moment- the shop was looking for a mechanic, and he was the perfect fit.
Most likely to: Accidentally startle small children with brutal death metal at 9am on a Tuesday.
The Team
ARDELL HARRISON
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
Stephanie has been a member of and an advocate for the Maker community for over 15 years. She is the Co-Founder and CEO of MakerUSA, a national non-profit organization which helps communities build stronger pathways for underserved students into making-related careers and entrepreneurship through talent and capacity. From 2014-2016, she served as the first Senior Advisor for Making at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where Stephanie worked with a team to develop President Obama’s Nation of Makers initiative, to broaden access to the Maker Movement. She was previously the Managing Director for Citizen Schools’ Makers + Mentors Network and has advised foundations on maker education, makerspaces and innovation. Stephanie has a Ph.D. in Information Science from Cornell University where her research focused on the social impact of democratizing 3D printing. In her spare time, Stephanie loves listening to jazz on her record player, biking along the American River Parkway and working on personal projects at Shop Class!
Why Shop Class matters to me: One of my favorite memories of the Shop is taking my son to Shop Class and seeing him in awe as he watched the laser cutter in action for the very first time!
Most likely to: be found actively encouraging others and making by trial by fire...
CHAD ORCUTT
STEPHANIE SANTOSO
CHAD ORCUTT
Chad Orcutt is the founder of Shop Class Learning Centers, a space he created out of a deep belief that every kid deserves to hear that they are good - especially those who don’t always fit the traditional learning. As a neurodivergent educator with ADHD, Chad understands firsthand what it means to learn and think differently. Rather than viewing that as a limitation, he has built Shop Class as a “theatre of education,” where curiosity, creativity, hands-on learning and storytelling take center stage.
For Chad, Shop Class isn’t just about teaching trades like woodworking, laser cutting, or 3D printing - it’s about creating a stage where kids and adults alike can discover confidence in themselves and their abilities. His mission is to make education less about conformity and more about expression, exploration, and the belief that everyone has something valuable to offer.
Hobbies: Everything Shop Class
Nickname: “CHAD!”
Most likely to: Stand on structures not meant to be stood on.