press release
National Children’s Museum Receives $250,000 Grant to Support School Field Trips and Education Programming
For immediate release:
November 8, 2018
– This gift from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will increase underserved student access to STEAM education –
Washington, DC – National Children’s Museum (NCM), a Congressionally designated cultural and educational institution that has served children and families in Washington, D.C. for 45 years, received a $250,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which will be used to support field trips for D.C. public schools to National Children’s Museum.
This investment compliments the Museum’s commitment to community giving by expanding learning opportunities for low-income schools. The grant will support STEAM-based field trip experiences for 80 individual school classes, serving thousands of students in grades kindergarten through sixth.
“It is critical to our mission that National Children’s Museum is accessible to every child. We are honored and grateful to receive this grant, which will fund the development of education programs within the community, and also provide field trips for low-income schools during the 2019 school year,” said Crystal Bowyer, president and CEO of National Children’s Museum.
To prepare for the new visitors, Elise Lemle, Director of Exhibits and Education, and her team will develop a grade-specific STEAM curriculum to help guide the students’ experience. As part of the curriculum, students will spend time in the Tinkerers Studio learning lab, which will allow for hands-on instruction and playful exploration, as well as a takeaway that integrates relevant themes and concepts of their learning experience.
About National Children’s Museum
Founded as the Capital Children’s Museum in 1974, the Museum served kids and families in the Washington region for thirty years in Northeast Washington, D.C. The Museum was renamed in 2003 when the U.S. Congress designated it the National Children’s Museum. For several years, NCM operated as a museum without walls by serving the region through traveling exhibitions, partnerships with other nonprofits, as well as community and school outreach programs. From 2012-2015, a small museum space was opened to the public at National Harbor, but closed in preparation for NCM’s next chapter in downtown D.C. Today, National Children’s Museum is poised for its greatest chapter yet, as it prepares to reopen off Pennsylvania Ave in Spring 2019.
###
