Center's Mission to Increase Interest in Science
Posted on: Tuesday, 14 December 2004, 06:00 CST
A simulated space station and mission control room will serve as the cornerstone of a science learning center expected to open in 2006 in Sharonville.
Officials from iSPACE, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing student interest in science, math and technology, unveiled plans Saturday for a 15,000-square-foot building that will include a Challenger Learning Center, robotics lab and information technology lab.
The center will be located at the Great Oaks Institute of Technology and Career Development corporate office campus, 3254 E. Kemper Rd.
Representatives from the national Challenger Center For Space Science Education, a program supported by the NASA, were on hand for the announcement.
The iSPACE center will become the newest Challenger Learning Center location. Kentucky has three such centers: in Paducah, Radcliff and Hazard. Ohio has one in Dayton.
The centers offer a two-room simulator with a space station and mission control room, patterned after NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The centers offer students a chance to fly a simulated mission to the moon or to Mars or to rendezvous with a comet.
The Challenger center would draw from a pool of 150,000 students in grades 5 through 8 in 28 counties in Ohio, Northern Kentucky and southeastern Indiana. It also would offer professional development opportunities and lesson plans for teachers.
Other programs, such as a robotics laboratory and student- inquiry lab, would be available to students. Public programs would include family science nights, scouting and club programs and camps.
"Our highly energized programs will be very unique in this area and will help to position Cincinnati as a leader in science, mathematics and technology education," said Linda Neenan, iSPACE executive director.
Business and education officials say student interest in science and math has waned in recent years.
"iSPACE can provide off-site, hands-on, inquiry-based science experiences for students and educators that are not always available in the school itself," said David Distel, superintendent of the Hamilton County Educational Service Center.
"While our schools are focused on providing the best possible experiences that stimulate interest and enable the hands-on study of science, science and technology labs are simply very expensive to install, maintain and upgrade. We see an opportunity for strong partnerships between schools and iSPACE so that these programs are available for all students."
The $3 million start-up expense for the new iSPACE center, which includes funding from a number of private foundations, also will cover two years of operating costs, Neenan said.
Source: Cincinnati Post
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