We’re thrilled to announce that the staff of the Challenger Learning Center in Wheeling, WV will be joining us for a special presentation on the work they do at the CLC, programs they have available both onsite and online, and the history of how the center came to be, with this being the eve of the upcoming 40th Anniversary of the Challenger Explosion.

What started out as a tragedy on a frigid Florida morning on Jan. 28, 1986, transformed into a monumental educational triumph. The Challenger Center for Space Science Education, which serves as a living legacy to the seven astronauts lost on the space shuttle Challenger, for more than a quarter century has used science and math to help students build the skills most needed for the 21st century, including decision making, teamwork, problem solving, and communication.

The Challenger Learning Center in Wheeling opened in 1994 and is one of 48 centers worldwide. Since their founding they have reached more than 350,000 students and adult learners. Each year more than 30,000 students fly missions either on site in Wheeling or via videoconferencing through their e-Missions™ program. Wheeling’s Challenger Learning Center has been honored repeatedly at the annual awards conference in three categories: Most Students Served, Most Missions Flown, and Most Teachers Trained.

During a two-hour mission, participants serve on one of eight teams in mission control or on the space station. Merging the power of imagination with the excitement of discovery, students become engineers and scientists as they simulate a space mission. The experience provides students along with teachers and adult learners with simulations that emphasize teamwork, problem-solving, decision-making and communication skills.

With the addition of the Micronauts program, Wheeling is the only Challenger Center whose Micronauts program has its own exhibit hall. Their colorful and vibrant exploratorium invites younger children, those in grades K-3, to experience a variety of hands-on activities that will spur their interest in science and math and the joy of learning.