NISE Network Blog
Partner Highlight: Science Education Helping a Community Recover From Disaster on the Island of Hawaii
November 19, 2019
Christian Wong, Executive Director, Hawaii Science and Technology Museum, Hilo, HI
Thursday, May 3 2018 started like any other typical Hawaiian day in paradise on the island of Hawaii, the state’s largest and most geologically active island, when without warning first responders began receiving calls of cracks in the roads and unusual noises in Leilani Estates Subdivision. To this day many residents continue to struggle to recover from this life altering event, buoyed only by hope and the Aloha Spirit of family and friends in this tight knit community accustomed to coming together to rebuild after natural disasters. The State and County of Hawaii continue to deliver assistance to the communities most affected by the eruption and have tapped the Hawaii Science and Technology Museum, a NISE Network Partner, to help rebuild the local workforce and industries through STEM education and programming.
Partner Highlight: A Summer-Long Community Library Program Celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Mission
November 4, 2019
Jake Milliron, Mobius Children's Science Museum & Science Center
The Mobius Children's Science Museum & Science Center serves a large geographic community in Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho, reaching both rural and urban communities. This past summer, in support of the nation-wide program, A Universe of Stories, the children's museum created programming using their Explore Science: Earth & Space toolkit and mobile planetarium engaging 1950 visitors across 24 different library events, which was a 20% increase from previous summer library programming!
Congratulations to NISE Network NanoDays partner M. Stanley Whittingham from Binghamton University, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on lithium ion batteries
October 29, 2019
Catherine McCarthy, Science Museum of Minnesota
The 2019 Nobel prizes were recently announced and one of the NISE Network NanoDays partners Stan Whittingham at Binghamton University, NY was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on lithium ion batteries.
Lights, Camera, Action! Filming for a new set of training videos has wrapped for the 2020 Explore Science: Earth and Space Toolkit
October 27, 2019
Brad Herring, Museum of Life and Science
NISE Network project staff from the Museum of Life and Science, the Sciencenter and the Children’s Creativity Museum just wrapped filming a new set of content and facilitation training videos to accompany the hands-on activities in the new 2020 Explore...
Sustainable Museums, Sustainable Futures
October 22, 2019
Rae Ostman, Arizona State University
In September, professionals from 30 different museums joined forces to help create a sustainable future. They represented the first cohort of NISE Network’s Sustainability Fellowship program, which will include over 90 organizations in 2019-2020. This program is a key part of the Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability in Science and Technology Museums initiative, which provides professional development, educational materials, and other resources to help museums integrate sustainability into their public engagement work, operations, and community partnerships.
American Chemical Society (ACS) 2019 Fall National Meeting Highlights
October 22, 2019
David Sittenfeld, Museum of Science
This past August, members from the NISE Network's Explore Science: Let's Do Chemistry project participated in the American Chemical Society's (ACS) Fall Meeting in San Diego, CA, which included presenting project activities and findings as part of a half-day symposium about chemistry education beyond the classroom. Additionally, during this year's ACS ChemLuminary Awards, a special ChemAttitudes Partnership Award was presented to the Kentucky Lake Local Section for their use of the Explore Science: Let's Do Chemistry kit, serving and engaging over 500 children across their rural region in hands-on chemistry activities.
Partner Highlight: The EcoTarium’s Lunar Launch in Worcester, Massachusetts
September 27, 2019
Rachel Quimby, Public Programs Coordinator/Museum Educator
Trois, deux, un…blast off! This past July, visitors from as close as next door and as far away as Paris, France gathered around the upper plaza of the EcoTarium in Worcester, Massachusetts to celebrate 50 years since Apollo 11 headed into space. Along with cheering on two chemical rocket launches, attendees of the Lunar Launch Party also sent stomp rockets flying, blew the tops off film canister rockets using a mix of acids and bases, drove model rovers through an obstacle course, designed and tested small-scale parachutes for astronauts, and watch planetarium shows. Read more about Worcester on the Moon events and festivities.
Paul Martin awarded ASTC Leading Edge Award for Leadership in the Field
September 17, 2019
Catherine McCarthy, Science Museum of Minnesota
Congratulations to Paul Martin - the 2019 recipient of the ASTC Leading Edge Award for Leadership in the Field (non-CEO). Paul has tirelessly served on the leadership team of the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network) since 2005. Kudos...
Partner Highlight: Pop-Up Science with NASA at the Michigan Science Center in Detroit, MI
August 30, 2019
Charles Gibson, Director of Outreach
In mid-July, the 23rd annual GLOBE meeting took place in Detroit just a few miles from the Michigan Science Center (MiSci). MiSci had spent months planning Apollo 11 50th Anniversary programs between July 16th-20th, from the Global Rocket Launch Challenge to the Moon Landing Celebration it’s safe to say our members and patrons were excited to visit and participate in an array of hands-on Earth and Space activities and events.
Partner Highlight: Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Moon Landing
August 30, 2019
Alicia Morgan, Vice President of Education and Programs
The Frontiers of Flight Museum’s “Moon Day” in Dallas celebrates the past, present, and future of space flight and has become the largest annual space-themed exposition in Texas. Moon Day was established in 2009 by the Museum, in collaboration with the National Space Society of North Texas, as a family-oriented annual event on the Saturday closest to the anniversary of the first Moon landing. This year, the Museum’s 10th Anniversary Moon Day focused on the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission and was held on July 20th—the exact date of the first landing on the Moon.