Continuing the San Diego Air & Space Museum’s efforts to support the community through virtual outreach, the museum is using this holiday season to give back to those in need with the creation of the new From Our Space to Yours Community Scholarships program.
“In honor of the incredible team of hard-working individuals who have come together to support the Museum throughout this difficult year, the recipients of the From Our Space to Yours scholarships will be chosen not by leadership, but by members of our staff,” said Jim Kidrick, president and CEO of the Museum. “The scholarships are a great way to recognize the great work being done in our community at this important time.”
Each member of the Museum team was invited to nominate a group to receive a free one-hour virtual workshop. The group could be their child’s classroom, their parent’s senior center, or an organization they feel is doing good work in the community, such as an afterschool program or nonprofit. The pool of nominees was narrowed to three recipients by random lottery, and each organization was contacted to schedule one of the museum’s numerous virtual workshop offerings.
From Our Space to Yours will continue on a rolling basis throughout 2021, with one to two staff-nominated organizations receiving new scholarships each month. The new hour-long workshops offer options for all ages and ability levels and are comprised of behind-the-scenes virtual museum exploration with hands-on engineering activities. The challenges are engaging and accessible for at-home audiences, using only materials commonly found around the home. The museum has also received several grants to fully or partially fund workshops for schools and community organizations and continues to work with outside partners such as ArtsBusXpress to fund Title 1 school virtual field trips. Interested organizations should contact the Education department.
Additionally, the education department continues to offer the popular preschool Little Engineers program, and the new Air & Space at Your Place afterschool program, as remote learning opportunities for families with a “pay what you can” pricing model to increase accessibility for those experiencing financial hardship.
