Everhart Museum of Natural History Science & Art

Purpose: Serving as Centers of Community Engagement In this two-phase project-Pathfinders: Forging Lives, Founding Home-the Everhart Museum will first renovate its education workspace, the Junior Gallery, converting it from a childish and neglected area into a comfortable, more formal space. In phase 2, the museum will inaugurate a continuing partnership with the Scranton School District's after-school initiative, the BEST program. Ten students will be invited to the museum, where, for 12 weeks, they will explore the history of their families and their place in the context of northeastern Pennsylvania. Their narratives-representing families with long-established roots as well as newly sown connections-will explicate Scranton's collective history, ultimately creating a visually compelling and descriptively revealing exhibit for the public. Mounted in the Junior Gallery, the exhibit will transform the room into a nostalgic, emotional, and interesting venue, where an observer of any age can look at the display, view ancestral stories, and connect with the community. This collaboration with the Scranton schools will continue on a trimester basis, allowing at least seven more groups of 10 students and their families to share in the Everhart, appreciate their heritage, and enlighten the community about the cultural dimensions of the region.