Association of Science and Technology Centers

10/20/2025

Join ASTC’s Natural History Network!

The Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) is expanding and deepening our support for the natural history community through a new network intended to help natural history professionals.

Here, you can:
• Connect with peers through a dedicated online forum
• Share resources and knowledge in an accessible repository
• Collaborate across roles, departments, and institutions to develop session ideas for a dedicated track at ASTC’s annual conference

We are hosting our first virtual hangout on Wednesday, October 29, where we will recap conference highlights and explore what topics the Network should tackle next. You can register here, https://www.astc.org/conference-event/natural-history-network-first-meet-up/.

To access the online forum and the repository of resources, join us here, https://community.astc.org/communities/community-home?CommunityKey=c772e070-bb43-487f-836a-0199c54e220e. Note that you will need a myASTC account to join—and be sure to adjust your settings to receive notifications for new posts, events, and resources!

08/25/2025

Last chance to register for our webinar tomorrow on Professional Pathways in Informal STEM Learning (ISL), which supports professional learning and development for anyone who works in ISL. Whether you’re just starting out or advancing your career, these learning resources can help you understand, plan, and advance your skills, knowledge, and capabilities. Explore the tools at astc.org/isl-pathways.

08/18/2025

Professional Pathways in Informal STEM Learning (ISL) supports professional learning and development for anyone who works in ISL. Whether you’re just starting out or advancing your career, these learning resources can help you understand, plan, and advance your skills, knowledge, and capabilities. Explore the tools at astc.org/isl-pathways.

08/13/2025

ASTC members know that our work in Informal STEM Learning (ISL) calls for specific skills and knowledge and the ability to apply it. ISL Professional Pathways was created by and for professionals who are doing this important and challenging work across many settings, including science centers and museums.

In this short webinar, you’ll learn about:
The research supporting and emerging from the Professional Pathways project
Ways you can use the professional learning tools, both as an individual and in your organization
Tuesday, August 26, 2025 | 2:00-2:45 pm ET
Learn more and register: https://www.astc.org/conference-event/professional-pathways-in-informal-science-learning/

06/06/2025

McWane Science Center welcomed Brandan Lanman as its new President and CEO last week. He joins from Orlando Science Center, where he served most recently as Vice President of Visitor Experience, launching a number of new projects and exhibits. Welcome to Birmingham!

Meet Brandan Lanman, the new CEO of McWane Science Center! Discover his passion for STEM and his go-to snack in this Q&A.

06/05/2025

This World Environment Day, join the global call to end plastic pollution.🌍

Plastic is everywhere, from our deepest lakes to the food we eat, but together with science centers and museums, we can tackle this crisis. ASTC Seeding Action Member UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center () is leading the way, fighting in Lake Tahoe through research, partnerships, community outreach, and education.

Explore their story map “Big Problems in Tiny Pieces” (https://tinyurl.com/mpck324k) and visit the “Tahoe’s Plastic Problem” exhibit engaging visitors in both the science of plastics as well as the solutions to the current global plastic crisis.

Seeding Action supports science centers and public networks, inspiring hope and action for a healthier planet. Ready to make a difference? Visit seeding-action.org to join the movement!

06/02/2025

🚨 Calling all creative STEM minds! 🚨

The IF/THEN®️ Exhibit Kit RFP is now open! We're looking for passionate designers, developers, and fabricators to create the next hands-on STEM exhibit kit for family audiences—featuring IF/THEN®️ Ambassadors and launching nationwide in 2026.

🔧 Design + build 2–4 interactive floor experiences for ages 6–12
📦 Fabricate & ship 50–60 kits across the U.S.
💰 Budget: Up to $207K
📅 Proposal deadline: July 10, 2025
📂 More information: https://www.astc.org/ifthen/champions-network/

📂 RFP:https://www.astc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/IFTHEN-RFP-Kit-Three.pdf

👉 Need inspo? Check out the Kansas Children’s Discovery Center’s STEM Play Workbenches!

05/30/2025

ASTC’s New Leaders Fellowship program empowers and equips emerging leaders from across the science center and museum field. Applications for the 2025-2026 cohort are now open!

Learn more and apply by June 9 at www.astc.org/newleaders

05/29/2025

Union Station Kansas City has named Petra Kralickova, MBA, as its new Chief Experience Officer and Vice President of Customer Engagement, where she will lead efforts to fully integrate and align the customer experience and journey.

Kralickova most recently served eight years as the Executive Director of The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures after earlier roles at the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library and the Kennedy Museum of Art at Ohio University.

05/28/2025

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History has been named to the Prix Versailles list of World’s Most Beautiful Museums for 2025. The museum recently completed a $150 million renovation and expansion whose design reflected the geological history of Northeast Ohio. According to the citation (https://www.prix-versailles.com/_files/ugd/a1118c_467038345ea344589a0c5d25dc35a5e7.pdf), “When architecture becomes an expression of the natural world, it fosters a sense of wonder and discovery. That primary mission of any museum is magnificently deployed here in Cleveland.” https://www.independent.co.uk/us/travel/museums-beautiful-awards-cleveland-nebraska-b2754668.html

The Unesco Prix Versailles architecture competition has named attractions in Cleveland and Nebraska on its list of the world’s most beautiful museums for 2025

05/23/2025

We are so excited to announce the keynote speaker for the Annual Conference, September 5–8 in the San Francisco Bay Area:

Ed Yong is a Pulitzer Prize-winning science reporter whose fascinating presentations on animals and the natural world are infused with humor, joy, wonder, and infectious enthusiasm.

After years of pandemic reporting left him burnt out, Yong turned to a new hobby—birdwatching—to help him heal and reconnect with his original beat of nature writing. In birdwatching, Yong found a much deeper connection to the natural world. He tells that story in An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us.

Yong is also the bestselling author of I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us, a groundbreaking, informative, and entertaining examination of the relationship between animals and microbes.

Register now for to hear from Ed Yong and hundreds of other inspiring and informative speakers.

ASTC 2025 Annual Conference September 5–8, 2025San Francisco Bay Area Plenary Sessions The ASTC 2025 Annual Conference will include several plenary sessions that will bring the entire community together. Information will be added here as sessions are announced. Saturday, September 6, 2025 Opening ...

05/22/2025

Join ASTC’s Community Science team for an interactive webinar focused on our newest tool: the Community Science Attributes Rubric. Whether you’re just starting a new partnership, in the midst of a collaborative project, or looking ahead, this practical tool can help teams assess and strengthen collaborative, community-based work. In this interactive webinar on May 29, we will introduce the tool and practice applying it to example and existing Community Science projects. https://www.astc.org/conference-event/community-science-attributes-interactive-workshop/