Tag Archive for: The Wild Center

Kudos Affiliates! Spring 2025 Edition

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Kudos to these Affiliates on their recent accomplishments! Do you have kudos to share? Please send potential entries to Aaron Glavas, GlavasC@si.edu.

FUNDING 

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science (Denver, CO) received a $20 million gift from the Sturm Family Foundation to launch a new East Wing Project to rejuvenate their historic theater, lobby and plaza. 

Nebraska Tourism awarded a $10,710 grant to the Durham Museum (Omaha, NE) as part of the application cycle of the Community Impact and Visit Nebraska Marketing Grant programs. The funding will be used for the Image Library, Website & Advertising Expansion project. 

Union Station, Kansas City, Inc. (Kansas City, MO) received a grant of $20,000 from Bayer Fund. The grant will be used towards building a better future by helping provide scholarships for local students to visit both Science City and the Arvin Gottlieb Planetarium. The program is for students in grades K-12 at public or charter schools in the Kansas City metro area, including Jackson, Johnson, Wyandotte, and Clay counties as well as non-profit community groups that serve individuals from historically underrepresented communities. 

Conner Prairie (Fishers, IN) received a $2.5 million grant through Lilly Endowment’s Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative. The grant will support the Lenape Connection & Kinship on the White River project, which aims to amplify the voices of the Lenape people, honoring their cultural heritage, history and traditions. 

The National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium (Dubuque, IA) was awarded an Inspire Iowa Cultural Tourism Grant award of $50,000 in support of the summer 2025 traveling exhibit, Ice Dinosaurs: The Lost World of the Alaskan Arctic. Funding will support this new traveling exhibit, in addition to educational programming and a correlated regional marketing campaign designed to attract significant tourism to the River Museum and the region. 

AWARDS & RECOGNITION 

Newsweek USA Today’s Readers’ Choice Awards were recently announced and featured Affiliates in the following categories: 

Best Free Museum 

  • California Science Center (Los Angeles, CA) 

Best History Museum 

Best Museum Ship 

Best Music Museum 

Best Open-Air Museum 

Best Planetarium 

Best Science Museum 

Booth Western Art Museum (Cartersville, GA) and Tellus Science Museum (Cartersville, GA), were recognized for their contributions to the museum industry at the annual Georgia Association of Museums conference. The awards highlight both museums’ dedication to innovation, accessibility, and education. 

  • Booth Western Art Museum received a multimedia award for its bilingual digital tour. The museum developed a low-cost, web-based tour that delivers an engaging, bilingual experience and provides greater accessibility for the region’s Spanish-speaking community, which makes up over 13% of the local population. 
  • Tellus Science Museum’s annual summer internship program was honored with Georgia Association of Museums’ Student Project Award for developing a new Solar System Traveling Trunk program. The portable educational resource aligns with Georgia’s state science curriculum and provides interactive lessons for students suitable for a wide range of grade levels. 

The travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler recently published a list of the 51 best museums in the United States, which included the following Affiliates: 

LEADERSHIP 

Michelle Larson, CEO of the Adler Planetarium (Chicago, IL), announced she is stepping down to become president of Clarkson University in upstate New York.  The planetarium’s chief financial officer, Audris Wong, has been tapped as interim CEO while the board of trustees undertakes the process of hiring a permanent replacement for Larson. 

Nicole Harvey, a longtime employee of the Oklahoma Historical Society, has been named the next director of the Oklahoma History Center Museum (Oklahoma City, OK) after serving as interim director. 

Plimoth Patuxet Museums (Plymouth, MA) announced Executive Director, Ellie Donovan, is retiring from the Museum this year. Donovan has held several positions at the Museum, serving as Executive Director for the last 16 years. The trustees of the museum added Deputy Director of Research and Public Engagement, Tom Begley, will assume the role of Executive Director following Donovan’s departure. 

Kudos Affiliates!! Year End 2024

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Kudos to these Affiliates on their recent accomplishments! Do you have kudos to share? Please send potential entries to Aaron Glavas, GlavasC@si.edu.

FUNDING

National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium (Dubuque, IA) has received a $20,000 Cultural Leadership Partners Program Operating Support Grant. This grant will support the River Museum’s ongoing efforts to advance inclusion for visitors and staff. With support from the Cultural Leadership Partners program, the River Museum is now a KultureCity Sensory Inclusive Certified Facility. Features include sensory bags, free to check out at the box office, filled with tools to reduce stimuli and help navigate the museum for those with sensory-processing needs. Funding will also support sensory days programming that provides a sensory-friendly environment including dimmed lighting, limited ambient sounds, and no distracting exhibit motions during these public events.

Kenosha Public Museums Foundation (Kenosha, WI) received an annual grant from The Green Bay Packers Foundation to support the Weaving Cultural and Environmental Narratives: Honoring Native Women and Protecting Our Waters exhibition.

The Indiana Youth Institute awarded $20,000 to Conner Prairie (Fishers, IN) to focus on gaps/needs in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging and/or trauma-informed workplaces and are working to improve workplace conditions for youth workers.

History Colorado (Denver, CO) received a $164,000 grant from the Historic Preservation Fund. This funding will be matched by History Colorado to update geothermal heating systems and make various buildings at Fort Garland Museum and Cultural Center more energy efficient.

The Indiana Historical Society (Indianapolis, IN) is the recipient of a $48,653 grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., which will directly fund a planning framework for the United States’ 250th anniversary in Indiana. The grant will help Indiana’s commemoration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence by enabling the IHS to develop an interpretive framework and resource list that connects Indiana history to the nation’s founding principles. The framework will be made available to interested historical, cultural and community organizations to aid in local planning and programming efforts related to the United States’ semi-quincentennial in 2026.

The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission approved 28 Historical & Archival Records Care grants totaling $152,571 to support crucial efforts to preserve Pennsylvania’s invaluable historical records and make them accessible to residents across the Commonwealth, including Senator John Heinz History Center (Pittsburgh, PA) – $4,994, and Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor – $4,500 (Easton, PA)

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Dr. Takashi Hoshizaki, a founding member of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation (Powell, WY), received the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation during a ceremony at the Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, CA). Dr. Hoshizaki was recognized for his contributions to U.S.-Japanese relations, his leadership in creating the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation and for his career in the space program.

The American Alliance of Museums announced 25 reaccreditation awards made at the October 2024 meeting of the Accreditation Commission. The following Affiliates received re-accreditation:

The Association of Science and Technology Centers honored eight member organizations, including two Affiliates, with the Roy L. Shafer Leading Edge Organizational Award:

  • Denver Museum of Nature and Science (Denver, CO) was honored for The Institute for Science & Policy, which is part community engagement and part think tank. The Institute enables the museum to tackle “wicked problems”—those which can be difficult to define, complex, and with no clear solutions—in a way that centers community perspectives. Tackling such issues as water scarcity, energy transition, climate change, and misinformation, the Institute has leveraged the museum’s strong reputation as a trusted convener to engage a broad group of stakeholders includes journalists and policymakers.
  • The Wild Center (Tupper Lake, NY) for the development of their Youth Climate Program into a replicable program that is having a real impact on global climate discussions and on the youth who participate. The Wild Center has helped facilitate over 200 climate summits in nine countries and in much of the United States. These conference-style events kickstart youth-led projects by focusing on the knowledge and skills needed for effective climate change leadership. They have helped youth from around the world to build confidence and competence as climate leaders, empowered them to develop Climate Action Plans for their schools, and connected them with local government to create more climate-resilient communities—all while centering and involving the youth in all aspects of planning and implementation.

LEADERSHIP

Whatcom Museum (Bellingham, WA) Executive Director Patricia Leach announced she will retire March 31, 2025. She has been at the helm of the museum for the past 17 years and has enjoyed a 42-year career at the executive director level.

The Board of Trustees of The Rockwell Museum (Corning, NY) announced the appointment of Erin M. Coe as the new executive director, effective January 1, 2025. With decades of experience as a museum leader, curator, educator and arts advocate, Coe brings a wealth of expertise and vision to The Rockwell as it advances its position as a destination and community resource for American art and culture.

Kudos Affiliates!! Spring 2024

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Kudos to these Affiliates on their recent accomplishments! Do you have kudos to share? Please send potential entries to Aaron Glavas, GlavasC@si.edu.

FUNDING

History Colorado (Denver, CO) has been awarded a $58,798 Underrepresented Community Grant from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service. The funding will be used by the State Historic Preservation Office to survey 25 properties associated with the LGBTQ+ community in Colorado and designate three of these properties to the National Register of Historic Places.

The Hubbell-Waterman Foundation has granted $140,000 to the Putnam Museum and Science Center (Davenport, IA) as part of a multi-year grant for capital construction to advance its vision of a growing, thriving, inclusive community through investments in innovation and accessibility.

The Colorado Department of Local Affairs awarded the Pinhead Institute (Telluride, CO) $30,000 to assist historically marginalized communities statewide through educational programs.

Conner Prairie (Fishers, IN) received $5,000 from Indiana Landmarks to support efforts, including architectural assessments and repairs at historic structures, workshops, and digital walking tours promoting preservation and heritage. 

Denver bankers, Donald and Susan Sturm, have donated $20 million to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (Denver, CO). The gift will be used for the renovation of the museum’s theater, its east wing, and its outdoor spaces as part of an effort to expand the museum’s ability to develop new education and community programs.

Union Station, Kansas City, Inc. (Kansas City, MO) received a grant for $20,000 from Bayer Fund. This grant will be used towards building a better future by helping provide scholarships for local students to visit both Science City and the Arvin Gottlieb Planetarium. The program is for students in grades K-12 at public or charter schools in the Kansas City metro area as well as non-profit community groups that serve individuals from historically underrepresented communities.

Plimoth Patuxet Museums (Plymouth, MA) was awarded $10,000 from Americana Corner’s Preserving America Grant Program. The awarded funds will be used for the acquisition of reproduction items and materials needed to update the 17th-Century English Village’s palisade.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

The following Affiliates (Category & Place) were recognized in the final 2024 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards:

B

Best Free Museum

No. 3: Saint Louis Science Center (St. Louis, MO)

Best History Museum

No. 1: Heinz History Center (Pittsburgh, PA)

No. 2: National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Cincinnati, OH)

No. 3: Cincinnati History Museum (Cincinnati, OH)

No. 4: Mississippi Civil Rights Museum (Jackson, MS)

No. 8: National Museum of the Pacific War (Fredericksburg, TX)

Best Music Museum

No. 8: Birthplace of Country Music Museum (Bristol, VA)

No. 9: Musical Instrument Museum (Phoenix, AZ)

Best Open Air Museum

No. 1: Plimoth Patuxet Museums (Plymouth, MA)

No. 2: Mystic Seaport Museum (Mystic, CT)

No. 8: Conner Prairie (Fishers, IN)

No. 9: Hagley Museum and Library (Wilmington, DE)

Best Science Museum

No. 1: The Wild Center (Tupper Lake, NY)

No. 3: Michigan Science Center (Detroit, MI)

No. 4: Tellus Science Museum (Cartersville, GA)

No. 5: Saint Louis Science Center (St. Louis, MO)

L