ARIZONA SCIENCE CENTER
Never stop wondering. Never stop imagining.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
By 2021, Arizona is projected to have a 21% increase in STEM jobs. These opportunities will require a workforce that is competent in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics - yet, Arizona’s education system continues to rank among the lowest states in the nation, especially in STEM subjects. Significant achievement gaps exist for minority and low-income students in Arizona compared to white and higher income peers, with STEM scores falling as much as 35 points below the national average. Research has shown that students who are exposed to STEM education at a young age are more likely to act on this knowledge in school and outside activities to support their interests. Supplementary educational exposure for Arizona students, especially underrepresented students, is critical to sparking students’ interest and setting them on the right path for post-secondary education opportunities and meaningful careers.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Science Learning for People of All Ages
Since its humble beginnings nearly 40 years ago, Arizona Science Center (ASC) has evolved into one of Arizona’s leading cultural and educational institutions, combining an expansive variety of on-site learning experiences with results-driven educational outreach programs to students, educators and families throughout the state.
ASC strives to cultivate and elevate science learning for people of all ages, drawing more than 500,000 visitors annually. At ASC, guests can explore more than 300 hands-on science exhibits, interactive galleries, live demonstrations, shows in our state-of-the-art Giant Screen Theater and planetarium, and world-renowned traveling exhibitions. Additionally, each month ASC offers unique science evening programming for adults, and throughout the year, families can participate in special science weekends and other signature events including Snow Week and the Arizona Science & Engineering Fair (AzSEF).
More than140,000 students and teachers visit ASC each year on educational field trips from 100 Arizona cities and towns, with nearly 48,000 of these from low-income, Title I schools. ASC also offers STEM camps and special programs including Girls in STEM and CREATE U, hosted in ASC’s makerspace facility CREATE. Launched in 2015, CREATE encourages innovation, design, and creation through the use of state-of-the-art equipment and traditional crafting tools where visitors can apply STEM principles and explore their creativity. In addition, more than 5,000 educators participate each year in ASC’s professional development programs through the Freeport-McMoRan Center for Leadership in Learning.
Moreover, responding to needs in the greater community, ASC offers an extensive variety of outreach programs, working on-site at schools, community centers, and partner organizations throughout the state to deliver impactful programs including STEM camps, Science on Wheels, Universe on Wheels, and CREATE on Wheels. Our educational outreach programming reaches nearly 60,000 youth and adults every year.
Science on Wheels
Science on Wheels is an outreach program that comes to your school, community, or venue. Spark excitement in youth with programs ranging from large-scale school assemblies and family festivals to smaller classroom experiences. Inquiry-based activities align to both Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
American Alliance of Museums (AAM) 2021
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of free participants on field trips
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Women and girls, Ethnic and racial groups, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Science Learning for People of All Ages
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Free STEM education programs for underserved populations include Field Trips, Science on Wheels, CREATE U Afterschool Program, CREATE on Wheels, Girls in STEM, and Special Events.
Number of teachers trained
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Science Learning for People of All Ages
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
The Freeport-McMoRan Center for Leadership in Learning provides opportunities for educators and administrators in STEM professional development workshops and trainings.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Arizona Science Center’s mission is to inspire, educate and engage curious minds through science. Each year, more than 780,000 children, youth and adults are engaged in creative learning opportunities combining science, technology, engineering, and math. As the only statewide resource for informal STEM learning experiences, Arizona Science Center empowers community members of all ages, and from all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds across the state, to become innovators in an ever evolving world. With the limited resources of Arizona’s public educational institutions, this is paramount not only for the future of our students, but for the future prosperity of our state.
With input from the community, Board, and staff, Arizona Science Center adopted The 2020 Vision, a five-year strategic plan. The four pillars of The 2020 Vision are: (1) to become a customer-driven organization; (2) to provide engaging science experiences; (3) to promote and build a culture of excellence; and (4) to continue to build upon long-term viability and sustainability. Board, staff, and community members have begun the process of developing a strategic plan for the next five years.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Nearly 40 years ago, the Junior League of Phoenix, an organization of women committed to improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers, had a dream of creating a hands-on science learning museum. After much research and study, the Arizona Museum of Science and Technology opened in 1984 in the lower level of a parking garage beneath the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Phoenix.
Community interest and the increasing need for supplemental science education programs in Arizona’s K-12 schools led to the expansion and development of the Arizona Science Center and what is today a 204,000-square foot facility at 7th Street and Washington in the heart of downtown Phoenix. This innovative and interactive science center offers more than 300 hands-on exhibits, major featured exhibitions, a planetarium, and a giant-screen theater. In 2000, the Science on Wheels program was launched to bring hands-on STEM learning and activities directly to classrooms, libraries, and community centers, reducing access barriers, especially for low-income, Title I and rural schools.
Recognizing the need for professional development and resources for Arizona’s educators to strengthen STEM learning in the classroom, the Freeport-McMoRan Foundation Center for Leadership in Learning joined Arizona Science Center’s family of programs in 2011. More than 5,000 Arizona educators participate in training, coaching and mentoring annually to build competence and confidence as teachers and to improve student success from early childhood to post-secondary education.
CREATE at Arizona Science Center opened in 2015, after acquiring and transforming space next door to the Center formerly operating as the Phoenix Museum of History. Arizona Science Center Board of Trustees members and executive leadership took this opportunity to incorporate the Arts into STEM education programming, a critical component of design needed to move STEM concepts forward and to help ensure a prosperous future for Arizona. CREATE is a 6,500-square foot collaborative work space for learning, exploring, making and sharing. Traditional and high-tech tools, equipment and materials, in addition to training and facilitator-led programs, encourage CREATE designers to creatively apply STEM concepts. CREATE on Wheels was launched in 2018, modeling the highly successful Science on Wheels program, to bring CREATE experiences and STEM learning directly to classrooms, libraries, and community centers.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Current Arizona Science Center (ASC) Programs Include:
FIELD TRIPS – Field trips to ASC provide a rich learning experience, support Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards and Next Generation Science Standards, and create excitement for learning science. Each year, more than 140,000 K-12 students and teachers are exposed to STEM through a field trip to ASC.
FOCUSED FIELD TRIPS – Nearly 50,000 students and teachers from Title I schools are able to visit ASC free of charge for field trips each year. Teachers are provided curriculum-enhancing pre- and post-visit resources and activities for reinforcing scientific concepts in the classroom. All teachers have access to a free membership to ASC and professional development workshops for STEM educators offered twice a month.
SCIENCE ON WHEELS – This mobile outreach program brings STEM learning opportunities directly to 60,000 kids and adults, including 20,000 from Title I schools, in classrooms and community centers across the state annually. Experiences are especially valuable for rural and low-income schools and communities where visiting ASC is difficult. Teachers also benefit by learning new ways of teaching science and engaging students in hands-on application.
CAMP INNOVATION – More than 70 camp sessions, covering 24 STEM topics, are facilitated each summer over 9 consecutive weeks. Camps are also held during fall, winter, and spring breaks, as well as other school holidays, for grades PreK-12. Approximately 1,300 children and youth participate in Camp Innovation’s dynamic programming each year with scholarships available for low-income families.
CREATE ON WHEELS – This new mobile makerspace program takes the magic of CREATE directly to schools and community centers across the state, turning student into tomorrow’s innovators, inventors, and problem solvers. Students have hands-on access to tools, materials, and supplies including drills, digital laser cutters, 3D printers, soldering tools, and Arduino kits.
CREATE U AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM – ASC partners with Title I schools to provide hands-on, immersive after-school experiences that introduce students in grades 6-10 to concepts and tools for creative engineering and applied problem solving. Each year, this 13-week program impacts more than 100 students.
GIRLS IN STEM – Girls in grades 4-8 are engaged in a variety of Girls in STEM programs featuring hands-on engineering design challenges, opportunities to meet and visit with female mentors in STEM, exploration of the Center’s exhibits, and collaborative problem-solving activities. This program impacts 500 girls each year and more than 200 are from Title I schools.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR TEACHERS – ASC’s Freeport-McMoRan Foundation Center for Leadership in Learning provides opportunities for educators and administrators in STEM professional development workshops and trainings. ASC trains more than 5,000 teachers and educational leaders across the state of Arizona annually.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
VISION – To be a global leader in creating engaging science experiences to foster a community where people value science, technology, engineering and math as a way to inform decision-making and enrich lives.
GOAL – Arizona Science Center will be a global leader in promoting science education through inspiring and engaging experiences that cultivate curiosity, support critical thinking and promote an understanding of the critical role that science plays in our lives.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
ARIZONA SCIENCE CENTER
Board of directorsas of 05/08/2022
Mary Martuscelli
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data