Children of the North Country will soon have another outlet to explore art, history, and science, among other things, with the opening of the new North Country Children’s Museum (NCCM) in Potsdam. Located on 10 Raymond Street near the Cactus Grill and Cantina, the museum will call a large, red two-story building (very similar to a barn) home.
The idea for the new museum has been bouncing around in the head of Museum Director Sharon V. Williams over the course of the last 14 years. After teaming up with her friend, April Vasher-Dean, the director of SUNY Potsdam’s art museum, in 2012, headway on the project began, and her dreams have started to turn into a reality.
Vasher-Dean says, “We are so delighted with how things are turning out. We plan to open doors in mid-April and can’t wait to share the excitement with families in the North Country.”
Different exhibits will include the Innovation Station, Adirondack Science, Mohawk Culture, Art Studio, Construction Zone, Kids Co-Op, and an Early Childhood PlaySpace. There will also be a classroom space for different rotating Saturday programs.
Some of the interesting features sure to entertain young visitors to the museum are: hard hats and vests for the construction area, waterproof art smocks, and aprons for learning about where their food comes from in the co-op exhibit. Volunteers are constructing a replica of the wood-fire oven that is used at the Potsdam Food Co-op’s Carriage House Bakery, and many are excited to see other local icons emerge in the décor and interactive elements of different exhibits.
The museum will focus primarily on exhibits that teach different aspects of science and mathematics. Exhibits will be targeted towards children aged 12 as well as their families. This will provide many local North Country schools the opportunity to travel to the museum and use it as an educational tool in conjunction with their current curricula.
Maddie Thibault ’20 will be an intern at NCCM this upcoming summer as part of the Saint Start Grant Program, which, according to the university website, aims to “enable sophomores to undertake research projects, creative work, volunteer service, or internships that will pave the way for success in their future.”
Thibault says, “I’m really excited about working with The North Country Children’s Museum over the summer. Living in the North Country, I see the need for something to help develop and encourage the children in the area to have positive outlets and a chance to pursue STEM options that usually would not be within their reach. I can’t wait to see the museum up and running and to be a part of it.”
With the museum opening soon, they are looking for volunteers to run activities for children and families, staff the front desk, bring special skills to teach, fundraise for the museum, andr share special talents.
They hope that by volunteering their time potentially through different organizations or their own initiatives, SLU students will take the opportunity to get involved with and give back to the local communities that support our University.