RAFT Blog, News, and Events

RAFT’s AI Chatbot: A Smarter Way to Support Hands-On Learning

March 4, 2026

At RAFT, we’re always exploring new ways to help educators bring hands-on STEAM learning into the classroom. With support from the Cisco Foundation, RAFT launched an AI-enabled chatbot designed to help teachers confidently implement STEAM lessons and provide more personalized learning support for students. This tool acts like a digital teaching assistant, helping educators adapt…

A Legacy of Learning: The Guidry Foundation and RAFT’s Endowment Fund

January 26, 2026

For over three decades, RAFT has been fortunate to be supported by partners who believe deeply in the power of hands-on learning. Among them is The Mark & Carolyn Guidry Foundation, longtime champions of education, creativity, and opportunity for all students. Founded in 1994, the Guidry Foundation was established by Mark and Carolyn Guidry to…

Annual Fundraiser Recap: RAFT to the Future of STEAM Education

September 25, 2025

On Wednesday, September 17, 2025, RAFT hosted its annual fundraising event: RAFT to the Future. Over 130 supporters were present at RAFT, which was transformed into a beautiful space for the special event for the night. That evening, we honored the individuals and organizations that have made a profound impact on RAFT and the education…

STEAM Dream Summer Camp 2025: A Season of Innovation, Discovery, and Fun

August 19, 2025

This August marks the exciting wrap-up of RAFT’s 2025 STEAM Dream Summer Camp and DreamBox season-our biggest yet! Over the course of eight action-packed weeks, we delivered more than 180 hours of hands-on STEAM programming, engaging TK-8 students from across the Bay Area in engineering challenges, storytelling adventures, and STEAM experimentation. With programs running across…

RAFT Warehouse Liquidation Sale this Saturday, October 27

Oct 26, 2018 |

RAFT is having a Warehouse Liquidation Sale at our San Jose location this Saturday, October 27, 2018! Plenty of great items for sale, including furniture and storage solutions not normally available at our stores. These items won’t last long, so come get them while…

Redwood City Store Closed Saturday, October 13

Oct 11, 2018 |

Please note, our Redwood City Retail Store at 101 Twin Dolphin Drive is located within the county office. Due to the building closure for furnace and roofing work, RAFT will be closed Saturday, Oct 13 and will re-open per normal hours on Wednesday, 10/17.

Redwood City Store Closed 8/22-8/25

Aug 22, 2018 |

Please note, our Redwood City Location will be closed Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday August 22nd, 23rd and 25th in order to support our San Jose store through staffing challenges. We will re-open per our normal schedule on Wednesday, 8/28. We apologize for any inconvenience…

Redwood City Store Closed 8/15-8/18

Aug 15, 2018 | Comments Off

Please note, our Redwood City Location will be closed Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday August 15th, 16th and 18th in order to support our San Jose store through staffing challenges. We will re-open per our normal schedule next week. Thank you for your patience and…

Back To School Sale arrives in San Jose! Redwood City temporarily closed

Aug 2, 2018 |

In order to serve our members better, we need to pull our Redwood City team to San Jose on Saturday, August 4th for our big Back to School sale. We hope to see you then!

Membership pricing now available on-line!

Jul 25, 2018 |

Exciting news for RAFT members. Now you can order Kits from our on-line store and receive your member discount (plus shipping and handling). Perfect for our remote members or those short on time. As a member you should be receiving an email from Netsuite,…