The Story Garden is one of the many beautiful aspects of Ross Park, which is a City of Binghamton Park. The City will make the ultimate decision about the use of that land, but the Discovery Center is committed to the continued support of the Story Garden at its existing location.

Roberson has sufficient space that it can allocate thousands of square feet to the Discovery Center. There would likely be an independent secure entrance with a shared admissions counter and gift shop, but the Discovery Center space would be separate from Roberson’s exhibits and dedicated to learning through hands-on play. Significant structural changes, including the removal of walls, would also be made throughout the first floor of Roberson to house many of the Discovery Center’s most popular exhibits as well as new exhibits developed for the new space. Changes would be made to the exterior of Roberson to better reflect the exciting children’s museum experience inside.

Roberson Mission: Roberson engages and educates people of all ages and backgrounds by providing regionally significant exhibitions and programs in art, history and science.

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The Discovery Center Mission: The Mission of The Discovery Center of the Southern Tier is to develop the intellectual, physical and emotional well-being of the children of the Southern Tier through participatory exhibits and programs.

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In addition to the cost savings associated with being under one roof, this new dynamic organization would likely be the type that many in our community and beyond, local and national foundations included, would be interested in supporting financially. Additionally, by being proactive in joining forces we would make a more compelling argument to corporate sponsors, based on an increased brand value and long term sustainability of their investment.

We know this is a sensitive topic, and want to give members of our community a chance to weigh in. We want to make sure those asking pertinent questions for us to answer to the best of our abilities. As we see the same question asked multiple times, we’ll make sure it gets added to our “Answers to your Questions” page. By limiting it to only those frequently asked, it will make the information more manageable for those visiting the page to get immediate answers.

Roberson and The Discovery Center are in the process of facilitated discussions to explore a potential affiliation. These museums share a common mission, but serve different age groups at separate locations.

The conversations are designed to examine how these loved museums can better serve the community and become more sustainable in the long-term.

It's no secret that this community is smaller than it once was and that many large and philanthropic organizations are no longer a part of the community. With this in mind, it makes sense for many of our community’s organizations to be thinking about their future and what this community may look like in 5, 10, or even 25 years. The focus is on finding a way to ensure sustainability for these community gems, so they are here for decades to come. Exploring this affiliation is strongly supported by many local foundations and the United Way as they see the nonprofit landscape changing quickly and the need to integrate and consolidate resources to preserve missions.

Link to timeline >

The Discovery Center: COVID-19 hit The Discovery Center hard, like it did many other nonprofits and small businesses. The Discovery Center had to lay off most of its staff early on, but federal funding helped keep it moving forward and summer camp revenue, plus a great community event (our virtual Read-a-thon) brought in much needed income. So, The Discovery Center’s financial position, while not great, is also not dire now. The Museum is open, it is running our preschool, pre-k, and full-day school age care, and is in much better shape than it was a couple of months ago, but that does not mean that if COVID returns it won’t find ourselves financially challenged again.

Roberson: COVID-19 pandemic has taken an economic toll on countless industries and Roberson is no exception. Because of decades of generous community support and careful fiscal management, Roberson is better positioned than most to weather the storm. However, it’s more important than ever for people to financially support the institutions they love.

Both museums have entered into a contract with New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON) to facilitate discussions. NYCON is the foremost expert on nonprofit governance in the state and has mediated more than 100 similar discussions. An outline designed by NYCON and approved by their staff attorney is being followed to ensure every area of business is covered for each organization. Some of these items include, but are not limited to: affiliation models, governance, financials, human resources, real estate, insurances, and strategic communication.

Absolutely! You are at the right place already. Simply click on Ask A Question and submit your question. We will batch all the commonly asked questions together and update our Answers to Your Questions page regularly.

No decision has been made about an affiliation. A volunteer Task Force comprising four trustees from Roberson and four from The Discovery Center have been working together with a team from the New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON). This Task Force is a deliberating and recommending body.

For a recommendation to the respective boards to be made, the Task Force members need to be in complete consensus and community input on that plan would be needed. That recommendation, with community input, would then be presented to both boards for a two-thirds vote to approve. If consolidation of services is to be recommended, it would require The Discovery Center to move to Roberson's downtown campus; that is the only way in which the vision of a multi-generational, sustainable, and accessible museum can become a reality. The decision about whether that should happen has not been made and won't be until a plan is presented to the community for comment.

The Discovery Center is not in danger of closing its doors in the next year, but has operated on and off with a deficit for several years before. Like many nonprofits, The Discovery Center has limited reserves and has been essentially operating without a safety net; these discussions aim to change that. An affiliation with Roberson could potentially offer greater long-term sustainability for both organizations with an eye to protecting both community assets.

Both The Discovery Center and Roberson have received grant funding from both local and state funders to support on-going operations. All granting agencies have different application dates and many of them will have fall grant cycles. Each organization will be submitting applications this fall for funding. Most area funders, however, generally prefer to support projects rather than on-going operations because they feel that organizations should be self-sustaining.

The Story Garden, a gift to the community by the Junior League, is in wonderful shape and anyone who has been lucky enough to visit it this summer can attest to that. Not only is it beautiful, it is an absolutely magical place. Both The Discovery Center staff and volunteers spend countless months maintaining it so that thousands of children with their families have the opportunity to enjoy. In moving forward with affiliation discussions, preservation of the Story Garden as an interactive children’s garden is vital to both organizations.

The Discovery Center’s wonderful museum team is constantly in the process of ensuring that the Museum is in wonderful shape. Numerous upgrades have been made to ensure that it offers families a clean, safe, and fun experience. Two new exhibits recently opened, and the feedback from visitors regularly attests how well maintained the facility is.

Providing our community with a multi-generational museum that is both sustainable, centrally located, and accessible is the focus of these affiliation talks. Over the last several years, both The Discovery Center and Roberson have had to cut back on programming that is not revenue generating. By reducing overhead costs through an affiliation, programming that is not cost-effective, but benefits our community, can be reintroduced.

Boards of both The Discovery Center and Roberson are tasked with ensuring the financial viability of each organization. As such, both organizations are operating with budgets that assume independent operations for the foreseeable future. At the same time, the Task Force is in the process of developing a business plan that will include financial projections for one-time capital expenditures as well as on-going operational costs. This is an essential component of the on-going due diligence process that is currently taking place.

The best way to stay informed is to review the information on this site and submit any questions that have not yet been answered. The boards of both The Discovery Center and Roberson have heard lots of wonderful feedback from the community since affiliation talks have begun. It is clear that both organizations are beloved and that so many in the community want to see them thrive---either together or separately, whichever will ensure that they are a part of our community for years to come. However, there has also been misinformation circulated largely through social media that has unfortunately raised unwarranted concerns. Now that we are past the “could we?” point, we’re looking to you to help us determine “should we?”