Annual Report 2007 - Connecticut
Connecticut State Museum of Natural History
Newly remodeled and benefiting from a transformational private gift, the state's Museum of Natural History is entering a new era of educating Connecticut's residents about the natural world surrounding us.
The museum, which also houses the Connecticut Office of State Archaeology (OSA) and the Connecticut Archaeology Center, reaches more than 100,000 people annually through in-person visits to the Storrs facility and large-scale event outreach, as well as collections and exhibit loans. It re-opened in April following the first phase of extensive renovations, which tripled its size and were funded by member donations, as well as matching state funds through the 21st Century UConn program.
At the same time, a $1-million private gift made by Julia B. Budney will be used for educational programs and additional renovations. It also includes support for the Henry S. Budney Natural History Collection, more than 115 vertebrate mounts and assorted ethnographic items collected by Mrs. Budney's late husband and contributed by his estate.
"This is such an exciting time for us," says museum Director Leanne Kennedy Harty. "Mrs. Budney's gift allows us to celebrate this moment in time by launching the next phase of the museum's history."
The museum's work spans the entire state. Collaborations with UConn's schools and colleges range from providing hands-on instruction experiences for students in the Neag School of Education to archiving more than 600,000 anthropological items at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center. Faculty from disciplines as diverse as physics and library science provide workshops. Museum community outreach efforts focus on youth; a recent BioBlitz with the Neag School of Education and the UConn Center for Conservation and Biodiversity brought an intensive 24-hour natural history experiment to hundreds of Middletown students. Previous BioBlitzes were offered in Meriden, Norwich, New London, East Hartford and Stamford.
The museum's future is limited only by its imagination, and the connections between mankind and the rest of the natural world offer limitless educational possibilities.
"Our focus is on making connections between cultural and natural history through time, and helping people look closer at those fascinating relationships," Harty says. "Mrs. Budney's gift presents an opportunity to advance our mission and expand what we can provide, both on campus and across the entire state. This is what we're all about."
