City, AMSE Foundation have community meeting on museum Thursday

The City of Oak Ridge and the American Museum of Science and Energy Foundation are sponsoring a community meeting on Thursday that will include discussions of ways to strengthen the museum as a community and regional asset and destination attraction.

The meeting will also include an information session on current museum operations and the role of the AMSE Foundation. New AMSE Director David Moore will be at the meeting.

The meeting is scheduled from 6-8 p.m. Thursday at the museum, which is at 300 South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge. Registration and light refreshments will be available beginning at 5:30 p.m., a press release said.

In a press release, Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said it’s the right time to get the community involved in a dialogue about the museum.

“AMSE is part of the cultural foundation for our community; and with a new director and the possibility of a Manhattan Project National Historic Park designation, the potential for AMSE to become a larger hub for activities and tourism is promising,” Watson said. “The museum’s future, however, is also dependent on how to mitigate federal budgetary constraints and shifting concepts of science museums. I encourage the public to come out and get involved in the discussion about this important institution.”

“The AMSE Foundation was chartered in September 1996 to support the cultural, educational and scientific programs of the museum,” according to Foundation President Wayne Stevenson. “As a 501(c)(3) corporation, the foundation’s tax-exempt status provides an added benefit to help support a variety of AMSE events and programs. I look forward to hearing ideas about how the Foundation might play a more prominent role in AMSE’s future.”

Foundation membership is open to any individual who applies for the appropriate AMSE membership category. The museum, opened in 1949 and owned by the U.S. Department of Energy, showcases the history of the Manhattan Project and the current scientific, energy, and national security missions carried out by DOE facilities in Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge National Laboratory currently manages the museum for DOE and contributes, along with other major DOE contractors in Oak Ridge, to the museum’s operating costs. For more information visit www.amse.org or www.oakridgetn.gov.