Patricia Adams

Mission/Purpose - Curious Kids’ Museum

Mission- Curious Kids' Museum (CKM) is "an interactive, hands-on discovery center for children, dedicated to stimulating curiosity and awareness in the areas of science, technology, history and culture. Through its exhibits and programs, The Museum encourages people of all ages to explore themselves and the world around them in a unique and open-ended manner." Board of Directors Minutes, Bylaws, Jan. 1988, Reaffirmed in 2002.

History - CKM began in 1987 as an idea shared by a group of Twin Cities (St. Joseph and Benton Harbor, MI) educators and parents to provide the children in Southwest Michigan with alternative approaches to science education. Challenged by the lack of quality educational opportunities outside the school environment, the founders' goal was the establishment of a hands-on museum for children. From the beginning, CKM has planned with foresight, care, and community support. Through Lake Michigan College, the founders conducted a comprehensive feasibility study, finding tremendous community agreement with the need for such a facility. Building on the best work of others in planning CKM, the founders visited numerous children's and science museums, gathering information from around the country. One year and a half before CKM opened, a community-based Board of Trustees as well as an Advisory Council were formed, bringing together diverse talents and commitments by educators, business, healthcare, & gov’t. The vision for CKM was firmly established: a place where children and families pursue their natural curiosity about the world through exploration and play with interactive exhibits, making learning fun and increasing self-esteem.

The site committee worked with the City of St. Joseph to locate an appropriate facility, Veteran’s Memorial Hall, a 7,000-sq. ft. city-owned, minimally-used building, in St. Joseph, on the bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. It was ideally located near downtown and able to attract future visitors to locations for shopping and dining, bringing economic dollars to the community. CKM and the City jointly renovated the building after much fundraising and contributed labor and materials. Additional support and funds enabled CKM to produce the over 100 interactive exhibits in science, culture, and local history that would welcome 54,282 visitors during its first 15 months, a new destination to an economically challenged area. Over 800 CKM members support and enjoy the Museum regularly.

Because of its proximity to Benton Harbor, an economically depressed, predominantly African-American community, CKM board members were especially concerned that Benton Harbor would be served. The importance of cultural inclusiveness was recognized as a high priority of the original Board and remains one today. This belief is practiced through Outreach programs, free family passes and field trips, special funding for all school children & groups unable to pay admission, a new program to bring science and art to Benton Harbor and rural neighborhoods, free admission and transportation on Halloween and Xmas vacations, and a partnership in a HUD grant to bring science and art to a particularly underserved neighborhood. CKM’s StarLab with 5 constellation/space modules provides the hands-on curriculum "Night Sky" experience to over 1800 Benton Harbor 6th grades students annually at Benton Harbor Library-transportation included. Transportation, a real issue in Benton Harbor, is offered often.

In recent years, CKM achieved stable attendance of 70,000 annual visitors by providing a rich range of exhibits and program experiences. Because this level of attendance often stretched CKM's modest facility to the limit, the Board planned for expansion. After a successful $200,000 capital campaign with in-kind community support, CKM opened an additional 2700 sq. ft. of exhibit space in 1997. Programming expanded to include weekly family programming every Saturday plus Wee Discover, Creation Station, Friday FunDay. Outreach Science serves over 12,000 school, library and afterschool participants annually. Collaborations with other groups yielded major results in the form of five community events with 6 new partners these past years, drawing thousands of people to the area. The Museum continued its quality growth (MAPIII assessment) with the hiring of a full-time, paid Executive Director in 1999, two new room-sized exhibits in 2000- 2001, Curious Kids in Outer Space and The Ship-Navigating the Great Lakes, new job descriptions and performance reviews, accounting system, manager training, short and Long Range Vision and Goal Planning for the next five years, and customer service training. Attendance increased to 72,226 in 2001, the highest ever. Gift shop and Entryway were renovated. CKM earns 61% of its operating funds while the national average for museums is 44% (Germann Consultants-2000). "Per square foot, the amount of CKM activities that cognitively, tactically and emotional meet the needs of kids ages 1-8 is exceptional. No others in the Tri-State area do that." (Chicago Tribune writer and mother of 2 children-- unsolicited spontaneous comment at CKM. Residents’ survey results list CKM in the top five reasons for quality living in SW Michigan (Economic Benefits Survey-1/02). Triple AAA lists CKM as one of only 28 Great Experiences for Members (GEM) designated in Michigan. NASA lists CKM as an educational partner. Growth challenges CKM as it enters its "Teenage Years" (MAPIII)