ASTC bestows nine awards for excellence

WASHINGTON, D.C., USA – The Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) has honored seven member organizations and two individuals with field-wide honors, the Roy L. Shafer Leading Edge Awards. The awards were presented on October 7 and 9 at the ASTC 2023 Annual Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Since 2005, the Leading Edge Awards have been presented to ASTC members and their teams in recognition of extraordinary accomplishments that enhance the performance of their organizations while also significantly advancing and inspiring the entire field.      

“We continue to be inspired by the work of our community to serve their missions and to lead with their communities to increase understanding of and engagement with science and technology among all people,” said Christofer Nelson, President and CEO of ASTC. “The work of the honorees is emblematic of the achievements of our members across North America and around the world.”

The awardees were selected from 59 nominations across the five categories:

Awards for Business Practice

The Business Practice category recognizes outstanding accomplishments in the administration and financial sustainability of ASTC-member organizations. This includes—but is not limited to—revenue generation, marketing, public relations, fundraising, human resources, operations, and partnerships. Two awards were presented this year:

• The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh has had a long-standing partnership with Hosanna House, a local nonprofit that strives to end a lifecycle of poverty and help individuals and families reach their maximum potential. The two organizations worked together to envision and build the Center for Aviation Training and Technology (CATT), which includes a STEM makerspace, interactive exhibit space, and a museum honoring the Tuskegee Airmen with a new Aim High exhibit on the contributions of African American pioneers in aviation and potential careers in aviation. The partners have developed an innovative business model where all parties benefit from the revenue generated by a traveling version of the exhibit. Thirty percent of the rental income from this exhibit is paid as a royalty to support Hosanna House’s ongoing program. With the exhibit booked for the next three years, Hosanna House is guaranteed $120,000 in additional support.

• National Children’s Museum in Washington, D.C., sought to capitalize on its location between the White House and the U.S. Capitol and proximity to national and world leaders in STEAM. So it developed a unique roundtable series that engages thought leaders from across sectors, industries, and areas of expertise—and not coincidentally, exposes them to the museum’s work. These events, which are small by design, allow participants to engage in authentic and meaningful conversations on topics such as children’s health and education, empowering the next generation of climate innovators, and building a diverse STEM talent pipeline. In addition to distinguished panelists, the museum has invited mission-aligned existing and prospective donors and partners to participate in these conversations, to tour the facility, and to see the power of play-based learning firsthand. This engagement has already yielded tens of thousands of dollars in new funding with more than $2 million in discussion.

Awards for Community Service

The Community Service category recognizes outstanding accomplishments in addressing the needs of the member’s community. The focus of this award is on service to the community beyond the STEM engagement mission central to the organization. Two organizations are honored this year:

• Children’s Discovery Museum in Normal, Illinois, teamed with a local Head Start and Early Learning Center to establish the Growing STEAM Potential through the Power of Play program, which provides low-income and at-risk children with equitable access to STEM resources and playful learning experiences. The program was subsequently expanded to include early learning classrooms with local school districts, youth organizations, and other partners, based on requests from community members, teachers, and school administrators. The program—which now includes an in-classroom program, specialized field trips, family fun events, and a private night at the museum—also addresses other needs since they recognize that children cannot focus on learning when their basic needs and social-emotional health are not being met. For example, the program also incorporates literacy, at-home learning, hunger, and access to transportation, with inclusive at-home science kits, partnerships with the local public library system, catered events, and a call for passes for public transportation to the museum.

• COSI—the Center of Science and Industry—in Columbus, Ohio, stepped in to provide educational resources to underserved youth in urban and rural areas who were especially hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and often unable to connect to virtual learning. The science center joined with meal providers to pair food boxes with Learning Lunchboxes, at-home STEAM learning kits. The program has since expanded to 13 different themed kits which have been distributed to over 230,000 families across the United States and around the world. COSI has built partnerships with a range of organizations to develop and distribute the kits, including other science and technology centers, NASA, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Office of Vice President Kamala Harris.

Awards for Resilience

The Resilience category recognizes organizations that have overcome a significant challenge with a focus on how the institution approached hardship to achieve new life, mission, and potential. Two awards were presented this year:

• Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, Canada, sits on a challenging topography, with the museum cascading down a steep hillside. A routine inspection on June 3, 2022, showed that a pedestrian bridge linking the entry pavilion with the rest of the museum was at risk of potential structural failure and needed to be closed immediately. This meant that the center’s front door—and really the only way to enter the facility—was separated from the rest of the building, which housed all of the exhibits and program spaces. Within two days, the team had completely re-envisioned the visitor experience and established a new public entrance at the bottom of the property, converted back-of-house space into a new public gateway. Even beyond the quick pivot, the museum was thoughtful in incorporating everything from shuttles to changing weather conditions, actually improving the visitor experience in some ways, such as incorporating the shuttles into the museum experience.

• In 2019, Palouse Discovery Science Center in Pullman, Washington, had just completed an overhaul of their facility and just when momentum started to grow, everything was upended by the pandemic. But that wasn’t all: the museum discovered that its roof was in dire need of replacement as water was damaging its exhibits, electronics, and more. Faced with a cost that was more than half of its annual budget, the museum turned to its community for support. And they responded, exceeding the campaign’s ambitious fundraising goal. With the roof replacement completed earlier this year, the science center is stronger than ever, with attendance twice that of before the pandemic and able to plan to expand its offerings and engage a wider audience.

Award for Visitor Experience

The Visitor Experience category recognizes outstanding accomplishments in visitor experience, which includes—but is not limited to—exhibitions, education programs, technology applications, theater and film programming, visitor services, research, and evaluation. One award was presented this year:

• When it set out to develop a new exhibit focused on space, the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania wanted to make sure it was relevant to its community. So in addition to involving local and national experts, the center engaged students at a local high school to tell the museum what was most interesting about space and space research. But instead of talking about the wonder of space, the students reflected on their challenges and how they didn’t see themselves in space. This feedback dramatically changed the plans so that the exhibit would now focus on the social, ethical, economic, and scientific implications of building a new society on Mars. This allowed the exhibit to wrestle with the topics most relevant to the students, such as who gets to go to Mars and how to establish a new society there—as well as topics like sustainability, climate change, and social justice. The museum also worked with partners to develop a paid internship program for high school students named Launch Your Future. Carnegie Science Center found the inclusive process so successful that it plans to replicate it for each new exhibition and major program and has incorporated the culture of listening into the organization’s long-range strategic plan.

Awards for Individual Leadership

The Individual Leadership category recognizes extraordinary accomplishments in a leadership role for the individual’s organization and/or the field as a whole. This includes—but is not limited to—leadership in developing and applying new ideas and/or enhancing best practices. The award recognizes leadership, regardless of professional position or supervisory status. Two individuals were selected this year:

• In less than four years in the role, Aimee Davis, Senior Director of Learning at the Field Museum in Chicago, is already credited with having reinvigorated her department, bringing new thinking and energy. She has more than doubled the number of staff at the Learning Center, allowing it to dramatically expand its programs and partnerships. She revamped the museum’s volunteer program, launched a mobile cart program to showcase the museum’s research and collections, expanded a summer camp program, and established a new division to cultivate relationships with community organizations across Chicago. The nomination from members of her staff highlighted Aimee’s ability to inspire a shared vision and mobilize resources, her commitment to diversity and inclusion, her focus on developing the talents and capabilitites of her staff, and increasing job satisfaction for both long-term and newer staff. It cites Aimee’s personal qualities that make her a trusted partner able to connect with individuals from diverse backgrounds and perspectives within and especially beyond the museum.

• Seeing students on a field trip to a research facility in his country become quickly bored as scientists failed to connect with learners, Kenneth Monjero thought there must be a better way. Through participation in several science engagement conferences, Kenneth had the dream of building the first permanent interactive science center in Kenya and in all of East Africa. Science Centre Kenya, which Kenneth directs, now has a paid staff of eight, plus a growing cadre of volunteers. A companion online program—Fun & Educational Global Network—reaches throughout Kenya and in a dozen other countries. And an onsite STEM outreach program serves 1,000 students each week. “Ken from Kenya”—a.k.a. “Dr. Fun”—is honored for his leadership in championing science engagement in Africa and for his perseverance in making Science Centre Kenya a reality.

About ASTC

Founded in 1973, ASTC is a network of more than 600 science and technology centers and museums, and allied organizations, engaging more than 110 million people annually across North America and in more than 40 countries. With its members and partners, ASTC works towards a vision of increased understanding of and engagement with science and technology among all people. www.astc.org

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