The Challenger Learning Center at Mt. Laurel

With the support of the Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the County College Board of Trustees, EIRC has received +1.5 acres on the Mt. Laurel campus of the Burlington County College. Lockheed Martin has donated $550,000 towards the Center.

Geographically, the Rt. 295 corridor will make the proposed Challenger Learning Center at Mt. Laurel easily accessible for schools and communities from Mercer County through Salem County and from Delaware through Eastern Pennsylvania. Challenger Learning Centers across the United States individually attract more than 10,000 students each year for missions to Mars, the Moon, rendezvous with a comet and exploring the Earth's atmosphere. http://www.challenger.org/. Many additional children and adults will participate inactivities each year through programs such as summer space camp and corporate team building missions. Utilizing space related content as the hook to capture the attention of students. They will then be exposed to the many additional programs that will bridge the gap between Science, Technology, and Humanities. Teaching teachers and students a variety of disciplines will create better prepared students to compete in the global economy.

Challenger Learning Centers offers related missions for space exploration with the intention to raise the expectations of science and mathematics skills of young people who will enter the future workforce. They provide students with opportunities to apply their learning to successfully problem solve and complete their mission. The mission teaches students to think critically and communicate effectively. This interdisciplinary approach aligns Center missions with the National Core Curriculum Standards. Programs consist of school class space missions (public, non-public, charter, and home school), family missions, corporate missions, group social missions, overnights, summer camp, youth groups, scout groups, state and local government agencies and non profit organizations. Students are naturally curious about space and missions immerse students in the excitement of space travel and the adventure it represents. The goal is to attract students before, during, and after they encounter the missions. Students and teachers can return and participate in multiple missions and easily transition into the Science and Technology Education Center for additional experiences.

Article from the Courier Post February 2005

http://www.eirc.org/content/challenger_center/CourierPostNewsClip.pdf