CuriOdyssey

Wildlife habitats:curiodyssey houses nearly 70 animals - from golden eagles to river otters - giving children the opportunity to experience and understand the natural world. All of our animals are non-releasable, meaning they have been injured or imprinted and would not survive if returned totheir natural habitats. Our animals reinforce the organization's mission by taking center stage in our wildlife habitats, school-based programs and public programs. The association of zoos and aquariums (aza) accredits Curiodyssey. The aza accredits fewer than 10% of zoos and aquariums nationwide. We prepared for our 5th 5-year accreditation during this period.

Community outreach/guest services:we reached out in the community weekly through ongoing education programs in local low-income schools. We offered free admission and free or discounted field trips to the underserved. This year, we removed all fees and expanded the number of qualifying programs for families who participate in the increasingly popular museums for all initiative. Curiodyssey also provides free admission for casa volunteers and the children in their care. We continue to provide free admission for a child with the discover & go program through local libraries. We are continuously developing our website as a resource for science information for students, parents and teachers. Marketing plays a vital role in informing teachers, parents, and children about our educational programs and exhibits and encouraging a scientific mindset. Curiodyssey's rental spaces provide a natural setting for a variety of events, including birthday parties, weddings, company retreats, and other celebrations. For evening events, guests have access to our beautiful gardens and our main building, which houses a variety of fascinating interactive exhibits. With prior arrangement with our wildlife department, events may include an up-close encounter with one of our many animal ambassadors.

Exhibits/public programs:in september 2022 the new bay gallery and labs modular units were placed on the building's foundation, launching the final phase of preparation for the anticipated opening in spring 2023. The exhibits team focused on completing the internal design-to-build of more than a dozen phenomenon-based experiences to occupy the new "viewpoint" exhibition in the new bay gallery. Winter storms postponed the scheduled opening of the building to june 2023. The bay gallery increased access by to hands-on experiential learning for Curiodyssey's visitors in adding 25% more exhibits to the museum.this year we completed the second year of the stemcorps mentor program, connecting 50 students and mentors in biweekly virtual mentor sessions where different stem concepts were explored through hands-on stem kits. The stemcorps initiative was created to connect a Curiodyssey trained team of educators, mentors, caregivers and community partners to support youth from underrepresented communities and empower them to pursue opportunities to engage in science, technology, engineering, and math (stem) learning.camp Curiodyssey continues to be our flagship program. It engages campers in an immersive journey exploring natural phenomena through science and in the natural world. The camp program fosters creativity, imagination and appreciation for nature. Each camp provides personal, interactive experiences for preschool through fourth grade youth. Camp Curiodyssey grew from five to six camp themes, expanding access to summer steam learning. Accessibility and inclusion efforts increased this year with the relaunch of our camp scholarship program to reduce financial barriers to access Curiodyssey's camps and an inclusion program to support campers with needs and accommodations sensory sundays were launched in july 2023 as a quarterly event welcoming visitors with sensory sensitivities to Curiodyssey for a free afternoon of science activities, animal encounters, pop-up exhibits, and storytime. There were 530 sensory sunday attendees in the period across 2 events.

School/service volunteers - Curiodyssey offers an active school services program to bay area schools that includes on-site and classroom-based programs and field trips. The museum makes a special effort to accommodate schools and students who would otherwise be unable to enjoy the Curiodyssey programs. Volunteers are an essential part of Curiodyssey and contributed 8,820 hours in the period across the organization. Despite storm closures, the introduction of several new programs supported an increase of more than 1,000 volunteer hours served.gardens - Curiodyssey's 1.3 acres of gardens provide a beautiful and educational experience for visitors year-round. The gardens also serve as an outdoor laboratory for our classes and programs to investigate plants, insects, and birds.museum store - the Curiodyssey shop fulfills another part of the organization's educational goal by allowing visitors and members to purchase books, science kits, and other educational merchandise that directly relate to its mission.capital programs - in march 2023, one year after breaking ground, the organization completed construction on the new bay gallery & labs building. This is the first new building on the organization's campus in 50 years. After coyote point recreation area closed unexpectedly to the public for two and a half months due to storm damage and safety concerns, Curiodyssey reopened on june 1 and welcomed the public to the bay gallery & labs for the first time. Our guests experienced 1200 sq. Ft. of new science exhibit space, including 15 new exhibits in the viewpoint exhibition specifically designed for the gallery. The building also features 1500 sq. Ft. of flexible classroom program space as well as new outdoor program space and landscaping which allowed us to expand our summer camp opportunities. For its next project, the organization has initiated the schematic design phase for a new north american river otter exhibit.