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SUNNY Temp: 57 °F Wind: S at 3 mph Saturday, September 27, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend August 22, 2003 Museum director expects to meet challenges ScienceWorks’ new leader hopes that community support will carry into 2004 By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Christy Wallace Hostetler knows enough about science to respect the force of momentum. So the first goal of the first paid executive director of the popular ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum is to do everything she can to sustain it. "The museum has been developed with this wealth of community resources," said Hostetler, 37. "There’s so much energy and enthusiasm out there, I want to continue to find a way to tap into those resources." Not that it’s going to be easy. Even after seven months of initial success, including more than $300,000 in grants, 25,000 visits and more than 2,000 member families, museum supporters say the hiring of Hostetler means the hard work has just begun. Advertisement "Certainly the next year is going to be a challenge. That’s when the buzz starts to lose some of its steam," said Dave Bernard, a founder of the museum and current president of its 10-member board. "It’s going to be on Christy’s shoulders to continue it." Hostetler, the museum’s former marketing and public relations director, has specific plans in mind. There will be continued and expanded relationships, of course, with schools, with families, with community members who’ve already supported the museum. There will be new exhibits, including a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ flight this fall. There will be a new emphasis on creating and marketing exportable exhibits that can be sold to other small museums across the country. A paper airplane launching exhibit is among the first proposed exports. And there will be a continued push to bring innovative science education to the Southern Oregon and Northern California region. "Interactive science or children’s museums are the fastest growing segment of the museum industry," said Hostetler. "We want to be part of that." With a background in education, communication and nonprofit management, Hostetler was the unanimous choice to succeed volunteer executive director and co-founder Sharon Javna. Hostetler will earn $45,000 to manage the agency’s staff of six full-time equivalent staff members and an annual budget of more than $500,000. A former marketing director for the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Hostetler moved to Talent three years ago with her family. Her husband, Bruce Hostetler, is an assistant producer with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland and a freelance director. After volunteering for two years, she joined the museum staff last fall. Hostetler, who holds a master’s degree in speech communication, says she has no formal scientific credentials, but a considerable amount of scientific curiosity. She says she remembers the excitement of a science camp she attended at age 9 or 10 — a thrill she has enjoyed replicating for local kids. Even her own children, ages 5 and 3, have felt the impact of science education, Hostetler says. "They say, ‘Look, Mom, I found the center of gravity,’" she recalls. "It’s not a lesson that’s been poured into their heads. It’s something they’ve found interesting." ScienceWorks, located at East Main Street and Walker Avenue in Ashland, is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. New hours begin Sept. 1, when the museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Cost is $7.50 for adults and $5 for children ages 2 to 12. Children under 2 are free. Annual family memberships are $45 and include unlimited admission for two adults and up to four children. For more information, call 482-6767 or visit www.scienceworksmuseum.org Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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