Welcome to Building Sustainable Museums, a site dedicated to providing information surrounding the state of two of our beloved local museums. Recent affiliation talks between The Discovery Center of the Southern Tier and the Roberson Museum and Science Center have prompted some questions from the Binghamton community. And that’s great!
We created this page to make sure everyone had a place to ask questions, receive answers, and find more information in one dedicated space.
Current Status
The Discovery Center of the Southern Tier and Roberson Museum and Science Center have announced their joint task force is putting an indefinite hold on their affiliation discussions. The two museums have been in talks for several months about the potential of working more closely together which would include the relocation of the Discovery Center to Roberson’s campus on Front Street in Binghamton.
Due to the amount of uncertainty surrounding COVID including its likely duration well into 2021, both organizations have agreed to pause their discussion until a point when attendance figures, school programs and financial projections can be analyzed with more confidence. The museums will continue to serve their mission and offer important programming separately.
Roberson and the Discovery Center wish to extend heartfelt thanks to the thousands of community members who expressed their support of these conversations; to the New York Council of Nonprofits for their guidance; and to the Conrad and Virginia Klee Foundation, the Community Foundation for South Central New York, the Stewart W. and Willma C. Hoyt Foundation, and the United Way of Broome County for financially supporting the exploration.
About
Building Sustainable Museums was created with the mission of offering opportunities for community engagement.
The Discovery Center of the Southern Tier and the Roberson Museum and Science Center will be answering submissions from the public about the process and providing updates on the status of the conversations.
We are here to serve the community, and both organizations are working to build sustainable community centers. Both Roberson and The Discovery Center share missions of education, which is why we want to enable you to request and receive all the information relating to conversations surrounding the future of museums in Binghamton, NY.