Pressroom Story

RMSC Earns Grant on Efforts to Engage Community

In Brief:

Title: Rochester Museum & Science Center Earns Major Grant Based on Efforts to Engage the Community in the Invention Process

Location: 657 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607

Detailed Information: www.rmsc.org; Facebook; Twitter (@rocRMSC)

Rochester Museum & Science Center Earns Major Grant Based on Efforts to Engage the Community in the Invention Process

ROCHESTER, NY—The Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) received a major grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The RMSC was one of 152 institutions chosen out of 470 applications, and was awarded $149,733 in the category of "engaging communities."

IMLS funds support initiatives that advance an institution's strategic plan for the benefit of the community it serves. Museums for America (MFA), the program from which the grant was awarded, supports activities that strengthen museums as active resources for lifelong learning, as important institutions in the establishment of livable communities, and as good stewards of the nation's collections.

The RMSC earned the grant based on its plans to engage the community in a major exhibit experience. The RMSC will develop an interactive exhibit component—the "Inventor Center"— as the first phase of the larger Inventing Futures (working title) exhibit. The primary purpose of the "Inventor Center" is to create a participatory space where museum visitors will develop creative, critical thinking and social skills through hands-on engagement. Visitors are invited to design and build based on authentic problems faced by the industry and academics. The exhibit will reach more than 400,000 annual visitors. Visitors will learn about the inventive process while finding it accessible and relevant to their lives. The "Inventor Center" will strengthen science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills, contributing to contemporary and future innovation.

The IMLS is the primary source of federal support for the nation's 123,000 libraries and 17,500 museums.

Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) receives major funding from Monroe County. RMSC includes a planetarium, nature center and science/regional history museum. The Rochester Museum & Science Center stimulates broad community interest and understanding of science and technology, and their impact—past, present, future—on our lives. For more information about RMSC, visit www.rmsc.org. Find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@rocRMSC).

###