Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo

Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo Breaks Ground on a New Facility

On Saturday, June 30, the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (JMZ) celebrated the groundbreaking of a new facility. The celebration included a ceremonial shovels-in-the-ground ceremony, as well as speeches by Mayor Liz Kniss, the Friends of the Junior Museum & Zoo (Friends) Board President, Aletha Coleman, and JMZ Executive Director, John Aikin.

Aletha Coleman thanked the City of Palo Alto and the Peery Foundation for supporting the effort to build a new museum and zoo. “The Friends’ Board of Directors is grateful to the Peery Foundation and all of our donors for helping the Friends raise $25 million to reimagine and rebuild the Junior Museum & Zoo. We are also thankful to the City of Palo Alto and the entire City Council for believing in this project and making it a reality.”

The Junior Museum & Zoo is being rebuilt after a decade-long effort to realize a new JMZ facility. Built in 1941, the old Junior Museum & Zoo building has become inadequate for the extensive early-education science programming that the JMZ provides both on-site and in local elementary schools. The old facility has also proven to be insufficient for the nearly 200,000 visitors it hosts every year.

The new Junior Museum & Zoo will include safer access, improved facilities and increased access for visitors of all abilities. The building will be modernized while retaining the kid-friendly and intimate qualities of the old facility, providing even more unique, educational experiences that are invaluable to children. Construction is expected to take 18 months, and the new JMZ will open in 2020. The current architectural designs and a project timeline can be found on the Friends’ website: https://friendsjmz.org/building-new-jmz/.

During construction the JMZ and the Friends will be housed at Cubberley Community Center, located at 4050 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto. Visitors can continue to enjoy many of their favorite exhibits, including the Kid-Powered Ball Machine and the giant Climbing Web. Some animals will also be located at Cubberley, including the snakes, skinks and hedgehogs. The JMZ is currently closed to visitors and is expected to re-open at Cubberley this summer.

Palo Alto City Council Allocates $1 Million for Experiences in the New Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo

JMZ Main Entrance
Front Entrance

The Palo Alto City Council approved $1 million in funding for the new Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (JMZ) to help the Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (Friends) include two exciting features in the new facility. In addition to the $25 million previously raised by the Friends, the City and the Friends will jointly raise an additional $2 million for a Tree House Fort and netting to cover the zoo. The Tree House Fort will add a children’s climbing experience, and the netting will provide an open environment for patrons to interact directly with the zoo animals.

Due to rising construction costs, the recently raised $25 million to rebuild the Junior Museum & Zoo was not sufficient to preserve all the new elements of the new facility. Fortunately, the City and the Friends working together will preserve exciting program elements that will be enjoyed by the community for generations.

Aletha Coleman, the Friends’ Board President, says, “We are grateful for the City Council’s support, which will help us complete construction on time and on budget, and we are excited to plan for groundbreaking.” The current architectural designs and a project timeline can be found on the Friends’ website.

The new Junior Museum & Zoo is expected to be under construction for 18 months, and will open in summer 2020. Children and their parents will enjoy safer access in the new JMZ, as well as improved facilities and increased access for visitors of all abilities. The new building will be modernized while retaining the kid-friendly and intimate qualities of the current facility, providing even more educational experiences that are uniquely valuable to children.

Palo Alto City Council Green Lights Construction of the New Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo

Dawn Redwood Courtyard
Dawn Redwood Courtyard

Palo Alto City Council has approved the construction of a new Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (JMZ) facility, including approving a construction management agreement between the City of Palo Alto and the Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (Friends). City Council approved the design of the new JMZ on December 4, 2017.

Built in 1941, the current Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo facility is proving inadequate for the pivotal role that the JMZ plays in early-science education. The JMZ hosts 184,000 visitors each year from the local community and beyond, and engages more than 19,000 pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade students every year in vital STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education lessons. The new Junior Museum & Zoo will include safer access, improved facilities and increased access for visitors of all abilities.

In January 2017, the Friends raised $25 million to rebuild the JMZ, thanks to a $15 million matching grant from the Peery Foundation and $10 million in private donations from local donors. The City of Palo Alto expects to contribute over $7 million to the project. The new building will be modernized while retaining the kid-friendly and intimate qualities of the current facility, providing even more educational experiences that are uniquely valuable to children. Aletha Coleman, Board President, says, “The Friends’ Board of Directors is honored to make the new Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo a reality for future generations of children and their families. The improved JMZ will continue to provide exceptional early-science programs that inspire a love of science and nature, as it has done for more than 80 years.”

John Aikin, JMZ Director, believes that the enhanced facility will help catalyze the JMZ as an essential resource for curriculum-based science education for preschool and elementary school students. “The JMZ provides opportunities for rich experiences in a fun and safe learning environment. The new Junior Museum & Zoo will leverage our position as a model for delivering science education, while adding animal habitats and formative exhibits that promote questions and exploration.” Groundbreaking is expected to take place in the summer of 2018, and the facility is scheduled to reopen in 2020. During construction the JMZ will be housed at Cubberley Community Center in Palo Alto.

The current architectural designs and a project timeline can be found on the Friends’ website.

Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo Receives Federal Funding for Inclusion and Access

JMZ Access and InclusionThe Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded the Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo (JMZ) grant funds in the amount of $270,124 under the IMLS “Museums for America” program. Funds will support a model initiative called Access from the Ground Up, a three-year program to ensure that the Junior Museum’s new facility, exhibits, and programs (opening mid-2020) are accessible to everyone, including children with special needs. Access from the Ground Up addresses the lack of quality science learning experiences for the growing number of children with physical and ateevelopmental disabilities.

Access from the Ground Up will accomplish its goals through three principal efforts—the development of new strategic partnerships, staff professional development, and the development of new accessible visitor experiences. The Inclusion Collaborative of the Santa Clara County Office of Education will serve as lead partner for the project, facilitating seven intensive access trainings for JMZ staff and volunteers. The project also calls for the creation of 27 new science exhibits for children of all developmental levels and abilities, along with a special quiet area for visitors called “the Calming Nook.”

“The support of IMLS is tremendously important because the visitor experience enhancements this grant supports will benefit not just children with special needs,” said JMZ Executive Director, John Aikin. “Increasing accessibility enriches the experience for everybody.”

About the Junior Museum and Zoo

The Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo (JMZ) has an 84-year legacy of inspiring a passion for science, an appreciation for nature, and a love of exploration. The JMZ experience changes children’s lives by introducing them to science and nature at a formative state. The JMZ provides enhanced experiences for children, from birth to middle school, offering direct access to nature and science through interactive exhibits, a zoo, and hands-on science programs for families and elementary school children. Each year, the JMZ receives approximately 184,000 visitors, and more than 18,000 young children take part in the many high-quality science programs the institution has to offer, including academic science lessons for schools and community groups, school field trips, summer camps, preschool and caregiver family programs, afterschool programs, science birthday parties, teen mentoring programs, and special events for families with children with special needs. The JMZ is operated by the City of Palo Alto with support from the Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo.

In May of 2018, the JMZ will move its entire operation to Cubberley Community Center for two years while it rebuilds its facility on Middlefield Road. While at its temporary location, the public will still have access to all of JMZ’s existing programs and indoor exhibits, and will enjoy some new surprises on the museum floor as well. Due to the temporary relocation, however, public access to some zoo animals will be limited and many will only be accessible to visitors through special programs, like school science lessons, birthday parties, and summer camps. Opening in mid-2020, the rebuilt JMZ will feature brand new fully accessible indoor and outdoor exhibits, enhanced visitor amenities, and a zoo experience that allows for freer movement of animals and a more intimate experience between visitors and animals.

 About IMLS

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s approximately 120,000 libraries and 35,000 museums and related organizations. The agency’s mission is to inspire libraries and museums to advance innovation, lifelong learning, and cultural and civic engagement. Its grant making, policy development, and research help libraries and museums deliver valuable services that make it possible for communities and individuals to thrive. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Halloween and Super Family Sunday

In celebration of Halloween, every year we host some super families at the JMZ for a fun and festive evening for parents and kids alike.

These Halloween events are part of our Super Family Sundays series, which are appreciation days for families who have children with physical disabilities and learning differences. Designed and hosted by a team of expert educators, we aim to provide a positive and liberating experience, in a tolerant and welcoming environment, for the whole family to enjoy together.

Super Family Sunday events are part of a broader inclusion and accessibility initiative that will be expanded in our new Junior Museum & Zoo, when it opens in 2020. We are pleased to share that we just received a major grant to help us with this kind of work.

Access from the Ground Up is a three-year project to make the new JMZ facility and its exhibits accessible to everyone. Funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services in the amount of $270,124, it will provide science learning opportunities to children with physical and developmental disabilities.

The JMZ will build relationships with partner organizations that serve children with disabilities, provide professional development for staff, and engage experts and families who have children with disabilities in the development of exhibits and Access Resources. As a result, the JMZ will be more accessible to visitors and more engaged with the disability community. The project will serve as a regional and national model for inclusion for museums and zoos of all types and sizes. Last year we hosted six Super Family Sundays and in the future we plan to do that and much much more, thanks to this grant and to others who support the JMZ on an ongoing basis.

Happy Halloween from all of us at the JMZ to all of you super families out there!

Super Family Sundays for Children with Special Needs

Super Family Sundays at the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo are appreciation days for families who have kids with physical disabilities and learning differences.

Super Family Sunday events are free and provide exclusive access to the Junior Museum & Zoo in a quiet, non-crowded setting. Each event introduces children to hands-on science activities and up-close and personal encounters with their favorite zoo animals.

These events welcome all children with all disabilities as well as siblings and grandparents.  Super Family Sunday gives kids “a chance to have VERY positive experiences here. More importantly, it’s fun, accepting, joyful and rewarding for us all,” says one parent.

The Junior Museum & Zoo’s special team of educators is trained to work with children who have disabilities.  Another parent who brings their child to Super Family Sundays says that “the entire JMZ team is amazing with all of the children and their behaviors. Beyond tolerance, [they] welcome and celebrate our community and children.”

Super Family Sunday events are part of broader inclusion and accessibility initiatives that will lead to a new Junior Museum & Zoo that is universally accessible for children of all abilities.

The Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo is proud to sponsor five of these events over the next year.  The next  Super Family Sunday will be on Sunday, October 29, 4:00 – 6:00pm.  Reservations are required. To receive a reminder email to RSVP, please contact us .

The Peery Foundation and Local Community raise $25 Million to build a new Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo

The Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (JMZ) will be re-imagined and rebuilt, architectural rendering of future JMZ facilitythanks to a $15 million matching grant from the Peery Foundation and $10 million in private donations from local donors. The Board of Directors of the Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (Friends) is pleased to present the $25 million rebuild of the JMZ as a gift to the community.

Dave Peery, Managing Director of the Peery Foundation, believes that the JMZ has the ability to transform the lives of young children through high-quality and hands-on science instruction. He states: “The JMZ has a demonstrated history of teaching vital science education to generations of children, regardless of their economic background. Our family is excited to help make the new Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo a reality, and ensure it will continue to bring science alive for future generations in this community.”

The current building, built in 1941, is proving inadequate for the increasing role the JMZ plays in educating mid-pennisula children. The JMZ teaches over 19,000 children in Palo Alto, East Palo Alto and Mountain View, and hosts approximately 150,000 visits a year. The new Junior Museum & Zoo will include safer access and improved facilities for visitors, a more integrated entrance from Rinconada Park, and additional parking.

John Aikin, JMZ Executive Director, emphasizes: “It is important to us that we retain the intimate and child-like qualities of the current facility. We will add more interactive exhibits and habitats that promote questions in young children without removing the safe environment in which they can explore.”

The construction project, which will be managed by the Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo, is currently going through Palo Alto city review, including City Council boards, commissions and the general public. Final council sign off is expected this summer and groundbreaking is planned to take place in the spring of 2018. The new facility is scheduled to reopen in 2020. The current architectural designs and a project timeline can be found on the Friends’ website: https://friendsjmz.org/building-new-jmz/.

“Community treasures, such as the JMZ, which make Palo Alto such a wonderful place to live and visit, would not be possible without the generosity of our private donors. We want to take a moment to celebrate and thank our donors for making the new JMZ a reality,” says Aletha Coleman, the Friends’ Board President.

Learning continues for children after their zoo experience

Tina Keegan, JMZ Exhibits Director, can tell you that a lot more is happening in this photo besides a good laugh between her daughter, Juniper, and Zookeeper Lee.

The day after this photo was taken, Tina says that, “We were eating fruit with our breakfast, and Juniper started telling me about how the fruit bats ate their fruit. She said they squish all the juice into their mouth and then spit out the rest of the fruit (the pulp). I love this story because she was using her powerful observational skills and then later thinking about it and comparing it to how she eats fruit. And she taught mama something that I didn’t know!”

This is an example of how learning continues after a child leaves the Junior Museum & Zoo. But according to Zookeeper Lee, it’s also an example of how a personalized interaction makes a lasting impression. “This is the difference between showing animals and artifacts on the floor as opposed to up on a table. I love to teach my classes on the ground – at the height of the children. To me, that connection feels key. You are down there at their level and you become much more accessible.”

What lasting connections has your child made at the Junior Museum & Zoo?

The Junior Museum & Zoo is excited to partner with Stanford University’s Social Learning Lab

Hear straight from the Lab about the work they’re doing at the JMZ

At the Social Learning Lab, we are interested in how young children learn about the world around them through exploration and interacting with others. The lab is lead by Dr. Hyowon Gweon and is made up of graduate students and undergraduate research assistants. The lab began running our research studies with children at the JMZ in January 2015, and we have had wonderful experiences interacting with our participants, parents, and staff at the museum.

Many of our studies examine how children interact with and learn about other people, and specifically, how they reason about teachers and act as teachers in social contexts. For instance, how do children decide what to teach others (e.g., do children know what is more useful for learners to know?), and do they know when teachers are uninformative (e.g., do children know when teachers omit useful information?). To investigate these and other related questions, we design short, fun, and engaging studies (we call them “games”), and the studies usually involve children playing with toys, puppets, or watching simple videos.

We involve a broad age range of children in our research, from 2-10 years old, and the studies take no longer than 15 minutes. Our research room is located inside the JMZ, and we are often walking around the museum looking for interested children and parents during the week and weekends. If you see us at JMZ, please feel free to chat with us if you are interested in participating or just curious about what study we are running that day!