Wendy Keller, Executive Director

CELEBRATING A GIANT LEAP

"Since 2013, we have taken significant steps toward creating a children’s museum in North Dakota. Our public-private partnerships with the City of Minot and Minot Park District, together with generous support from regional businesses, foundations and individuals, expressed the enthusiastic desire to bring the Magic City Discovery Center to our region. In fall 2020, the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation and Department of Defense awarded us a $6.3 million grant, adding a giant leap to our steady steps!

ESTABLISHING A FIRM FOUNDATION

The dream of a discovery center - hybrid children's museum/science center, began in a brainstorming session about community and regional needs. The spark of an idea ignited a fire of enthusiasm in a small group of passionate volunteers who worked tirelessly to successfully organize and operate the Magic City Discovery Center in an interim location for four winters, drawing over 20,000 visitors. By the end of those four years, our visitors had spoken! They wanted an innovative and permanent discovery center.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Construction has begun and this spectacular building will be complete by the end of 2022! With help from donors to our new Launch Campaign, funding the behind-the-scenes costs (furnishings, staff, computers . . . everything down to the garbage cans), we will open the doors to you! You don’t have to wait until then to experience the STEAM-based learning opportunities of this children’s discovery museum. Currently we offer Discovery on the Go!, an outreach program able to bring engaging STEAM education directly to you in your school or community. Reach out to us, then watch for the Magic City Discovery Center trailer coming to your area soon!"

A MESSAGE FROM THE MAGIC CITY DISCOVERY CENTER BOARD PRESIDENT

Karen Rasmusson Board President

ON OUR WAY!

"Thanks to the support of Senators Randy Burckhard and Karen Krebsbach the Magic City Discovery Center will receive $5.9 million from state special funds. With these funds we will complete a rooftop science and event area, outside exhibits, cover COVID related costs and cutting edge technology.

The Magic City Discovery Center will be the best discovery center, not only in North Dakota but the Upper Midwest! Our 37-foot superstructure climber will be as tall as the climbers at the children museums in Chicago and Phoenix! The Magic Climber is an interactive structure representing slices of North Dakota from our prairie dog burrows to the B-52 in the sky. There are 12 exhibit galleries and 150 STEAM based exhibits. The Magic City Discovery Center is very excited to announce that we will have the only Smithsonian Spark!Lab Invention Center in the region and only 1 of 10 in the nation. Magic City Discovery Center will be an educational hub for the region and will bring an estimated 70,000 to 100,000 visitors per year. Thank you to all our supporters and a shout out to our future contributors. As Ben Franklin stated “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

CO-CHAIRS' MESSAGE

Randy Burckhard & Kathy Aas

Karen Krebsbach & Kathleen Gaddie

THANK YOU

"It has been gratifying to see the hard work to raise funds for our new building bring this project from a dream to reality. The Magic City Discovery Center will engage and captivate children’s interest as they learn and develop new skills while having fun. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) learning is essential for the success of our children, state and country. The Magic City Discovery Center is the best large-scale endeavor for children in decades and will continue to be a treasure for our entire state for many years to come. It is a community-focused asset that we invite you to support. We are proud to be a part of this wonderful enhancement for our community, our families, and, especially, our children."