OMAHA NEWS-LEADER CHRONICLING THE STORIES AND PEOPLE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY. THIS IS KETV NEWS. WATCH SEVEN’S CHRONICLE. THE FACE OF DOWNTOWN IS CHANGING BY THE DAY, BECOMING MORE VIBRANT AS THE SEASONS PASS. GOOD MORNING. I ROB MCCARTNEY. THANKS FOR JOINING US FOR CHRONICLE. SEVERAL MAJOR PROJECTS HAVE TAKEN SHAPE, CREATING A HUB OF ACTIVITY, CELEBRATING COMMUNITY THROUGH RECREATION, MUSIC, ARTS, HISTORY AND SCIENCE. SO TODAY WE’RE TAKING YOU BACK IN TIME TO THE MUSEUM THAT HONORS THE TRADITIONS THIS TOWN WAS BUILT ON. CHRONICLE GETS AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT A RESTORATION PROJECT ENSURING THE DURHAM MUSEUM WILL BE AROUND TO TELL OUR STORIES TO FUTURE GENERATIONS. PLUS, THE REDESIGN OF THE RIVERFRONT. WHAT’S NEXT FOR HEARTLAND OF AMERICA PARK AND LEWIS AND CLARK LANDING AN OMAHA AS MUSIC SCENE HITS A NEW HIGH NOTE STEEL HOUSE OMAHA SET TO OPEN IN MAY. AND WE’RE GOING TO TAKE YOU INSIDE FOR A PREVIEW BEFORE THEY OPEN THEIR DOORS TO A SELLOUT CROWD. BUT WE BEGIN WITH A MASSIVE INTERACTIVE STEM LEARNING CENTER THAT PUTS YOU IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT. WE’RE JUST DAYS FROM THE KEY LUMINARY. COM’S GRAND OPENING ALONG THE RIVERFRONT. CHRONICLE’S JACK KENAN GIVES US A SNEAK PEEK AT THE LUMINARY, GM’S UNIQUE FORMULA THAT WILL BRING ALL WALKS OF LIFE TOGETHER, INSPIRE FUTURE LEADERS AND SATISFY THE FOREVER CURIOUS. AT THE HEART OF THE EXPERIENCES HERE IS THE NOTION THAT IT’S THE LEARNER SHOULD DRIVE ALONG THE RIVER’S EDGE AT LEWIS AND CLARK. MORE THAN 100 HANDS ON EXHIBITS AWAIT YOUR EXPLORATION THIS APRIL. THE LUMINARY WAS GOING TO BE A PLACE FOR EVERYONE, ALL AGES, IDENTITIES AND BACKGROUNDS TO COME AND EXPLORE THE ASTONISHING PHENOMENA THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD, OUR COMMUNITIES AND OURSELVES. NOT JUST A DESTINATION FOR SCIENCE AND MATH LOVERS. YOU JUST HAVE TO COME SEE IT FOR YOURSELF. THE 82,000 SQUARE FOOT SPACE HOPES TO INFORMALLY IMMERSE YOU IN A HANDS ON, THOUGHT PROVOKING AND INSPIRING WORLD. THE REAL THING WE’RE TRYING TO DO IS TO GET PEOPLE TO GAIN CONFIDENCE AS LEARNERS AND EXPLORERS. AND SO WE USE THE SCIENCES A VEHICLE FOR THAT. BUT IT’S REALLY ABOUT SOMETHING EVEN DEEPER. ALONGSIDE FOR THE RIDE, ESSENTIAL STAFF KNOWN AS LUMEN MOTORS, TASKED WITH ENSURING A RICH VISITOR EXPERIENCE. JUST TRYING TO MAKE PEOPLE FEEL LIKE THEY’RE REPRESENTED WHEN THEY COME. PEOPLE ARE COMING. I LOOK LIKE ME, YOU KNOW, WHEN I WAS A KID, THERE WASN’T REALLY A LOT OF PLACES BUILT LIKE THIS IN OMAHA. THE ILLUMINATOR PROGRAM GIVES MORE THAN 50 YOUTH AND YOUNG ADULTS WORKING PERIENCE AND PEER TO PEER MENTORSHIP NO MATTER WHAT THEY WANT TO DO IN LIFE. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A SCIENCE MAJOR. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE IN SCHOOL. I JUST WANT WHEN YOU COME INSIDE THAT YOU HAVE THAT EXCITEMENT THAT WE CAN GIVE TO GUESTS, THAT WE CAN GIVE TO THE TEAM IN MY SCHOOL, I’VE BEEN TELLING PEOPLE WHAT I SO FOR ME AS I DON’T GENERATIONS COME ON, DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT BECAUSE THIS IS SOMETHING NEW IN OMAHA AND I’M SO EXCITED ABOUT IT. ILLUMINATORS WILL BE THERE IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS. MY FAVORITE SECTION OF THE LUMINARY ROOM IS MAKE IT COUNT AND IT FOCUSES ON THAT AND NUMBERS AND FINANCES AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT. AND THEY HOPE TO ENCOURAGE YOU TO START A NEW ADVENTURE. DON’T BE SCARED TO LEARN ABOUT SCIENCE. EVEN IF YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING. JUST COME AND ENJOY. YOU’RE GOING TO LEARN SOMETHING EVERY DAY HERE IS IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH, SO DON’T BE AFRAID. THE LUMINARY M IS A PLACE FOR EVERYONE, ALL AGES, IDENTITIES AND BACKGROUNDS. WHEN WE THINK ABOUT DIVERSITY, IS NOT JUST ABOUT AND IT IS ABOUT ACCESSIBILITY, ABOUT KNOWLEDGE. WE HAVE SOME PEOPLE WHO KNOW NOTHING ABOUT STEM AND WE HAVE SOME WE KNOW A LOT. A HUB FOR THE CURIOUS. I’M REALLY EXCITED FOR IT TO OPEN UP. YOU KNOW, IT’S A REALLY GOOD ADDITION TO OMAHA PROVIDING LIMITLESS POTENTIAL MAKING INTO THE CURRICULUM. WHO KNOWS? IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT THEY ACTUALLY START ADDING TO SOME OF THESE SCHOOLS WHILE ENRICHING OUR SENSE OF COMMUNITY. WE’RE IN AN AMAZING WORLD FILLED WITH BEAUTY AND CURIOSITY, AND IT’S NOT SOMETHING WE’RE SERVING UP. IT’S SOMETHING WE’RE MAKING TOGETHER. AND THE MORE YOU EXPLORE, THE MORE QUESTIONS TO DISCOVER AS WELL. THANKS TO JACK KEENAN FOR THAT REPORT. JOINING US NOW FOR A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE LUMINARY IS CEO SYLVIA RAKER. SO MUCH. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE TODAY. MY PLEASURE. FIRST OFF, HAVING ME, I YOU BET. I WANT TO ASK, WHAT’S THE PRICE TAG OF THE LUMINARY OM? I READ SOMEWHERE AROUND 100 MIL. IT’S I THINK IT WAS 101 MIL AND WE ACTUALLY RAISED A BIT MORE THAN THAT. OH, GOOD. AND. AND I’LL WAIT FOR YOUR NEXT QUESTION. BUT IT WAS A HERITAGE PROJECT HERE IN OMAHA, AND ALL THE MONEY WAS RAISED PRIVATELY. THAT’S WHAT I WAS GOING TO ASK YOU. SO DOES ANY PUBLIC DOLLARS ON THE TABLE FOR THIS? ANY TAX DOLLARS? NO, NO. PUBLIC DOLLARS ARE TAX DOLLARS, ALTHOUGH WE ARE CITY LAND. RIGHT? RIGHT. LET’S TALK SOME PROGRAMING. THE IDEA IS THAT THE LUMINARY WILL SPARK A NEW WAY OF LEARNING FOR PEOPLE, RIGHT. SO THEY MAY NOT RESPOND TO TRADITIONAL WAYS OF LEARNING. TELL ME HOW HOW DOES THAT WORK? SO WE ACTUALLY ALL LEARN DIFFERENTLY, RIGHT? SO PERSON TO PERSON, BUT ALSO DEPENDING ON WHERE WE ARE AND WHAT OUR MOOD IS. AND SO PEOPLE THINK SCHOOL IS THE ONLY PLACE WE LEARN AND WE DO LEARN IN SCHOOL, BUT WE ALSO LEARN JUST BEING OUT IN THE WORLD. WE LEARN READING. AND IT TURNS OUT SCHOOL ISN’T ALWAYS THE BEST PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO LEARN CERTAIN KINDS OF CONCEPTS. SO WE KNOW MATH, SCIENCE, ENGINEERING. THERE ARE LARGE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE WHO STRUGGLE WITH THOSE SUBJECTS IN SCHOOL. AND AND I THINK THERE ARE MANY WONDERFUL TEACHERS WORKING AWAY AT THAT. BUT THERE ARE SOME LIMITATIONS. SO ONE OF OUR GOALS IS TO BE A RESOURCE, A SUPPLEMENT FOR EDUCATORS AND FOR ALL KINDS OF LEARNERS, INCLUDING THE NEURODIVERSE, INCLUDING PEOPLE FROM BACKGROUNDS WHO MAY BE REALLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN STEM RELATED FIELDS OR JUST IN MUSEUMS IN GENERAL, AND BE A PLACE WHERE YOU’RE ACTUALLY COMING TO PLAY AND DISCOVER. AND IN DOING SO, YOU’RE LEARNING. BUT YOU MAY NOT REALIZE IT AND YOU’RE NOT NECESSARILY EXPLICITLY COMING FOR THAT. IT’S GOING TO BE A WHOLE LOT OF FUN AND AND ALSO A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN YOU CAN SOCIALIZE. SO PART OF THAT IS LEARNING SOCIALLY AS WELL. IT’S SNEAKY, SNEAKY EDUCATING IS IT IS A LITTLE SNEAKY. I LOVE IT. I USED TO DO THAT WITH MY KIDS AS WELL. YOU KNOW, DON’T LET THEM KNOW. THEY’RE LEARNING, BUT TEACH THEM THE NEURODIVERSE, YOU KNOW, EXPLAIN HOW THAT HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM. WELL, OUR EXPERIENCES, FIRST OF ALL, ARE THEIR INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCES, AND THEY’RE MOSTLY REAL NATURAL PHENOMENA. SO IT’S TAKING A PIECE OF NATURE. IT’S FRAMING IT UP IN A WAY WHERE YOU CAN ASK AND ANSWER YOUR OWN QUESTIONS AND THAT SOUNDS KIND OF HEADY. IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING LIKE A BEAM OF LIGHT THAT YOU CAN MANIPULATE AND YOU CAN NOTICE THESE DIFFERENT PHENOMENA, SOME OF WHICH MIGHT BE REALLY BEAUTIFUL OR JUST SURPRISING AND AND THEN YOU CAN YOU CAN SORT OF FOLLOW YOUR OWN QUESTIONS INTO THE INVESTIGATION OF THAT. AND IT’S IT TURNS OUT TO HAVE THAT KIND OF APPROACH TO LEARNING THE LEARNER CENTRIC PEDAGOGY. IT’S DESIGNED IN A WAY, WHETHER YOU’RE NINE YEARS OLD OR 90 YEARS OLD, WHETHER YOU’RE SOMEBODY WHO THINKS YOU HATE SCIENCE. AND WE KIND OF ESPECIALLY LOVE THOSE PEOPLE, RIGHT? OR YOUR OR YOU’RE A NOBEL LAUREATE. THERE ARE POINTS OF ACCESS FOR YOU AND THERE ARE NO THERE’S NO ONE ANSWER. IT’S AN OPEN ENDED EXPERIENCE, RIGHT? YOU ACTUALLY CAME HERE FROM SAN FRANCISCO. THERE’S A VERY FAMOUS EXPLORATORIUM THERE, SIMILAR ARE THERE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN WHAT THE LUMINARY WAS GOING TO BE LIKE TO THE EXPLORATORY HIM OR THEIR DIFFERENCES? THEY’RE BOTH THE EXPLORATORIUM IS IS AND I DID COME FROM THE EXPERT FORM AFTER 11 YEARS THERE AND IT’S WIDELY CONSIDERED TO BE THE BEST OR ONE OF THE VERY BEST INFORMAL SCIENCE LEARNING INSTITUTIONS IN THE WORLD. AND SO THE FOLKS AT THE EXPLORATORIUM, MYSELF INCLUDED, UNTIL A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, I’VE WORKED NOT ONLY IN SAN FRANCISCO BUT AROUND THE WORLD TO KIND OF WORK WITH COMMUNITIES, DEVELOP PROGRAMS, DESIGN EXHIBITS, AND MAKE THIS KIND OF LEARNING ACCESSIBLE TO ALL SORTS OF PEOPLE, AND TO CONTINUE LEARNING HOW TO DO IT BETTER IN THE PROCESS. SO THE EXPLORATORIUM HAS BEEN DESIGNED, DEVELOPED, PLANNED, PROGRAMED AND AND REALLY HAND IT OFF VERY RECENTLY HERE IN OMAHA. BUT ALL OF THAT EARLY DESIGN WORK AND DEVELOPMENT WORK WAS DONE BY THE EXPLORATORIUM, AND WE HAVE AN ONGOING RELATIONSHIP. SO EXPLORE TIME ALSO WORKED DILIGENTLY TO CONNECT WITH THE COMMUNITY HERE. WE HAVE A WONDERFUL COMMUNITY ADVISORY GROUP THAT FORMED TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO THAT GETS PEOPLE EVERYWHERE FROM ALL PARTS OF OMAHA, RURAL IOWA, REALLY A DIVERSE GROUP OF FOLKS WHO’VE BEEN HEAVILY ENGAGED AND AND AND THEY’VE THE EXPLORATORIUM, PLUS THOSE FOLKS LOCALLY, PLUS ABOUT 200 OTHER LOCAL PEOPLE WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED CONTENT OR PERSPECTIVE HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT. SO IT’S HEAVILY CONNECTED TO THE EXPO TIME, BUT IT’S ALSO UNIQUELY OF THIS PLACE AND THIS MOMENT. YOU TALKED WITH JACK KEANE AND AND BOTH HE AND I HAVE BEEN WONDERING, YOU KNOW, IF YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE CAN COME AND LEARN WHAT DO THEY KNOW THEY’RE LEARNING NOW, BUT THEY’RE LEARNING WHAT IS WHAT DOES THIS MEAN DOWN THE ROAD AND WHAT’S THE DREAM? WHAT’S THE GOAL TO HAVE FOR THE COMMUNITY? A COUPLE OF THINGS. ONE, FOR THE INDIVIDUAL LEARNER, IT’S AS MUCH ABOUT UNLOCKING A SENSE OF AGENCY, THE SENSE THAT YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE WORLD. YOU CAN EXPLORE THE WORLD AND IT’S REALLY ABOUT CREATING A DISPOSITION FOR BEING AN ENGAGED CITIZEN, FOR BEING FOR FEELING LIKE YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO EXPLORE AND UNDERSTAND AS A COMMUNITY. IT’S ABOUT IT’S REALLY ABOUT CONNECTING AND ENGAGING THE WHOLE COMMUNITY AND THAT’S A CHALLENGE. MUSEUMS, IF YOU LOOK LOCALLY, NATIONALLY, THEY’RE DISPROPORTIONATELY SEE CERTAIN KINDS OF FOLKS WHO ARE COMING INTO MUSEUMS, RIGHT? THEY TEND TO BE AFFLUENT, RELATIVELY AFFLUENT, RELATIVELY EDUCATED AND MOSTLY WHITE, RIGHT? SO THE FOLKS WHO HAD THE VISION TO CREATE THIS PLACE AND CONTRIBUTED ALL THOSE DOLLARS. RIGHT. UNDERSTAND THAT WORKFORCE IS IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE LIMITING ONE OF THE BIG CONSTRAINTS FOR GROWTH AND PROSPERITY IN THIS REGION AND MANY OTHERS. AND THE IDEA THAT DIVERSE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT IS NOT ONLY A WAY TO TO ADDRESS THAT FROM A PURE WORKFORCE, BUT TO ALSO BUILD A STRONGER TEAM BY INCORPORATING ALL PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY IS IS REALLY BEHIND THIS. AND OUR HYPOTHESIS IS THAT IT’S WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. SOUNDS LIKE JOB TRAINING, RIGHT? LIKE I’M GOING TO GO LEARN THE SKILL, BUT IT’S REALLY ABOUT IDENTITY AND, AND PEOPLE WILL TALK ABOUT PRICE OR BUT IT’S REALLY ABOUT DO I FEEL LIKE I BELONG HERE? IS THIS PLACE FOR ME? IS THERE ANYONE IN MY FAMILY THAT EVER HAD WENT TO A PLACE LIKE THIS AND ENJOYED IT? OR I DO SEE ANYONE HERE THAT LOOKS LIKE ME. IS THE CONTENT RELEVANT? SO I THINK THE LUMINARY HAS AN AMAZING OPPORTUNITY IN THIS WONDERFUL, DIVERSE PLACE. THE GREATER OMAHA METRO TO ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY AND AND BE A PLACE THAT’S RELEVANT AND ENGAGING FOR ALL. IT’S PRETTY EXCITING. I’M LOOKIN