High School Students Visit from Seattle with Support from an Education Research Organization Founded by Gabe Newell, Owner of the Heart of Racing Team
By Tony DiZinno
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Now in its second year, IMSA STEM Powered by Gainbridge and Konica Minolta has welcomed hundreds of students at track and over 15,000 more digitally to learn more about the science, tech, engineering and math elements that go into an IMSA race weekend.
But while most events have featured local high school students visiting the IMSA paddock, this past weekend at Long Beach came with a special and fun twist.
A group of high school students from the greater Seattle area traveled to Long Beach with foundry10 support. Foundry10 is an education research organization started by Gabe Newell. Newell, an American businessman and philanthropist who is the owner of the Heart of Racing Team, is also the co-founder and president of the video game company Valve Corporation, which includes the digital gaming distribution service/storefront Steam.
The foundry10 organization features a philanthropic focus on expanding ideas about learning and creating direct value for youth. The students participated in the second IMSA STEM event of 2026 joining others hosted as part of the Roar Before the Rolex 24.
The connection between Newell’s organization and the Heart of Racing Team saw the students learn a bit about IMSA up front with Heart of Racing Team’s two-car effort, split at Long Beach between its No. 23 Aston Martin Valkyrie in Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) and No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo in Grand Touring Daytona (GTD). Heart of Racing Team sporting manager Paul Charsley connected the foundry10 organization with the IMSA STEM team and plans were put in motion for a busy Friday in the bustling and compact Long Beach paddock.
As Lisa Castaneda, co-founder and CEO of foundry10 and a former teacher explained, getting students to a STEM opportunity of this level came with additional excitement and expectation. It was the students’ first time at any IMSA race or a race of a larger scale beyond local races in the Seattle area.
“They had some time to prepare and learn a little bit more; they were picked for this trip, and they have known for a while,” Castaneda said. “It’s a whole new opportunity for them. Some of them may know about F1 or NASCAR, but there’s this new world of racing that is super interesting.”
“It’s something that I think is incredibly important for the entire sport,” IMSA President John Doonan added of the IMSA STEM program. “I have a personal interest and fascination with it, simply because I have had an experience and been able to do this previously in IMSA.”
Students flowed through three interactive learning stations: IMSA Technology Lab (at the Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian transporter), Engineering Safety (at IMSA Technical Inspection) and Tires, Traction and Tread (at the Michelin Tire Center) and proceeded to take in a wealth of knowledge during the day. In addition, students spent time on Thursday with the Heart of Racing Team as they prepared for the race.
It was hard to determine which one made the biggest impact on the students, which is a great problem to have.
“I would say I’ve learned something new at each of them,” Castaneda explained. “The garage tour was really cool; we saw them working in action. The kids liked the indoor area; we got to see the screens and all the technical stuff. But the inspection, none of us really knew what was going on in inspection (beforehand). It was super interesting.
“They saw the crossover between things they see mathematically and how it is used in action with the cars. The inspection guy talked about the importance of tires, and then we learned how exciting that is from Michelin.
“They all led to one another, so that was a great progression.”
Additionally, this was a learning experience for both Castaneda and the teachers at foundry10, who made the trip too.
“We wanted the teachers to have this experience as well,” she said. “That helps us for bringing things up, and it’s connecting to what we’re doing in the classroom.
“We don’t want this to be something that is independent of their classroom experience. Having the teachers here to reinforce and then for the students to share their experience will be super helpful.”
And then, of course, there’s the “wow” factor. Beyond the stations, seeing the IMSA cars up close and personal provides a sense of enthusiasm and joy that is best experienced at-track even beyond the social, digital and TV worlds.
The Valkyrie is a crowd-pleaser, but as one of 28 cars from five GTP and nine GTD manufacturer brands present at Long Beach, it wasn’t the only one that made an impact on the students.
“They studied in advance and they knew they’d come with the Heart of Racing,” Castaneda said. “They knew about the cars, but that’s the difference between watching something on the internet or TV and actually coming in person.
“Because their jaws sure dropped when they came to see the Valkyrie! And just to see all these cars!
“One of the things that is so great about IMSA is their ability to be in the (open) paddock, see the cars rolling by. At lunch (at Apex Café, where the paddock dines at-track) they were like, ‘There’s drivers and teams here!’ Not only is the food good but they can see everyone who’s in action.”
Following this race, the next IMSA STEM event will be held Friday, May 1, at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. A group of 30 from a local high school are set to attend.
IMSA STEM Photos by Brian Cleary/bcpix.com