Lake Erie Nature & Science Center

Programs: School services, public programs, and preschool:the center focuses on giving young children and school-age students hands on experiences to discover the natural world. Its resources are wildlife, exhibits, planetarium and park setting near the shores of lake erie. In the last year, the center served more than 23,000 preschoolers and their parents through various early childhood programs including our nature-based preschool classes. The center served more than 4,500 girl, cub and boy scouts with approximately 70 unique scout programs. More than 14,000 students from kindergarten to college participated in summer camps, school programs and field trips, involving physical, life, earth and space science concepts. The center works with teachers and curriculum specialists to ensure that field trips are aligned to ohio academic content standards. Project wildlife is a youth service learning program that provides high school students hands-on learning with native animals, which is an experience unique to the center.

space science education:the center's walter r. Schuele planetarium is one of only two in the cleveland area that are publicly accessible. The newly transformed planetarium uses digital technology and opto-mechanical systems to provide a wide array of educational programs about astronomy and physics. The center welcomed more than 16,000 children and adults through daily planetarium shows and public astronomy programs for all ages. Approximately 5,000 school age students and scouts benefited from astronomy related programs in the planetarium including field trips and group programs. The center continues to host a college level astronomy course as part of a partnership with cuyahoga community college.

wildlife exhibits, rehabilitation and programs:the center's wildlife rehabilitation facility is the only one of its kind in cuyahoga county. Members of the public brought more than 1,400 injured or ill animals to the center for care, representing more than 120 different species. Professionally trained wildlife rehabilitation specialists responded to more than 4,200 telephone inquiries. This year, enrollment for project wildlife totaled 18 high school students for this unique youth service learning program. Five college students were in the wildlife internship program. The center provided public enjoyment of wildlife with more than 150 live animals in outdoor and indoor exhibits, many of which were updated and modified this year to highlight native species.