Washington Pavilion Receives $24K IMLS Museums for America Grant

On September 15, 2016 the Institute and Museum Library Services (IMLS) announced $21 Million was awarded through its largest museum grant program to help museums improve service to the public. The Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science will receive $24,500 in funding from the IMLS Museums for America Grant program.

In all, there were 206 grants awarded for museum projects totaling $21,149,000. The Washington Pavilion's program was selected from a pool of 548 the highly competitive applications.

With the awarded grant funds, the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science will formalize and grow their Community Learning Center's Teacher Circle program, which provides area educators a synergistic and unique opportunity to effectively integrate STEAM education into their curriculum. By bringing educational leaders from the area on-site to make professional connections and develop meaningful lessons, the program will encourage the use of museum services and resources to help create effective STEAM lessons for K-12 students. "Defining leaders in STEM and STEAM education and cultivating community learning touchstones is an imperative need, as defined by significant public and private discourse in the region," stressed Rose Ann Hofland, Director of the Washington Pavilion Community Learning Center. "The Washington Pavilion serves as a natural hub for STEAM education. As a facility with a performing arts center, visual arts center, and science center all under one roof, the Washington Pavilion is uniquely positioned to lead the effort to incorporate the arts into the STEM and 21st Century initiatives that are being put forward in the state of South Dakota and nationally," continued Hofland.

The training program will strengthen the quality of teachers' educational methods and materials to ultimately promote the integration of STEAM lessons in schools across the Sioux Falls region. The Teacher Circle program strives to increase teachers' ability to bring high-quality lesson plans to the classroom, provide students the opportunity to engage with more meaningful STEAM material, and enable the Washington Pavilion and the Community Learning Center to grow its educational impact in the region.

"Museums play a vital role in their communities supporting learning experiences and inquiry for people of all ages, fostering civic engagement, and serving as stewards of collections that represent the nation's cultural, historical and scientific heritage," said IMLS Director Dr. Kathryn K. Matthew. "The federal support provided by IMLS will help museums all over the country, enabling their best efforts to provide the highest level of public service."

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's 123,000 libraries and 35,000 museums. Our mission is to inspire libraries and museums to advance innovation, lifelong learning, and cultural and civic engagement. Our grant making, policy development, and research help libraries and museums deliver valuable services that make it possible for communities and individuals to thrive. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov and follow IMLS on Facebook and Twitter.

The Washington Pavilion is the region's home for the arts, entertainment and science. Located in a beautifully renovated historic building in downtown Sioux Falls, it is one of only a few facilities in the world to bring together under one roof the performing arts, visual arts and interactive science. The vast array of high quality programming and educational activities available through the Husby Performing Arts Center, Kirby Science Discovery Center, Visual Arts Center and the Community Learning Center ensures that people of all ages and walks of life can rely upon the Washington Pavilion to entertain, inspire, educate and enrich. There is, indeed, something for everyone here. For information about our programs, call (605) 367-7397 or, (toll free) at 1-877-Wash Pav or visit www.washingtonpavilion.org.

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