Celebrating the Season of Giving: NHMU Gives Back to Utah

By Olivia Barney

The current holiday season, paired with anticipation of the new year, provides opportunities for reflection, growth, and gratitude. We have had a busy year at the Natural History Museum of Utah, not just hosting guests at the Museum itself but connecting with Utah residents by hosting a range of programs and events in their communities. These outreach initiatives—designed to inspire wonder in the natural world—extend far beyond Salt Lake City, ensuring every community, school, and family in Utah have the opportunity to participate with NHMU. 

We are the state’s museum of natural history, which gives us the unique responsibility and honor to make our research, programs, and historical treasures accessible statewide. This includes onsite events, offsite programming, and online exploration tools hosted with a variety of incredible statewide partners, like Zions Bank and various school districts. 

These relationships are essential to the mission and values of NHMU and we offer our partners thanks for helping drive our success this year. So, as 2024 comes to a close, we’re looking back on some of the connections we’ve made with Utah residents this year. 

Traveling Treasures 

For more than 20 years, the Natural History Museum of Utah and Zions Bank have partnered together on Traveling Treasures, an ongoing outreach program designed to bring wonders of the Museum’s collections into Utah’s communities near and far. Every year, a team of educators, exhibit designers, bank personnel, and museum volunteers create a new traveling exhibit which explores an intriguing aspect of the natural history of our state, region, or planet. In 2024, we focused on Defense Experts — illuminating the many defense mechanisms that exist within the natural world. We visited 11 communities across Utah and hosted four Community Science Nights along the way!

Educator Workshops 

Educators across Utah work tirelessly to teach and support their students, and their work doesn’t end when the final school bell rings. Utah educators are required to keep their licenses current and encouraged to continue their professional development by attending workshops and conferences.  

The Natural History Museum of Utah offers a variety of professional development opportunities to engage in science and engineering practices, working side-by-side with scientists to develop STEM teaching skills. These workshops are free for Utah public and charter school educators and can be counted toward relicensure hours or USBE credit. These programs are supported by funding from the Utah State Legislature and in collaboration with the Utah State Board of Education. 

NHMU partners with other community organizations in creating workshops that elevate the voices and efforts of Utah’s diverse community members. Some of these past partners include Artes de México en Utah, Emerald Project, and Khmera Dance Troupe. 

Museum on the Move 

Each year, Museum on the Move visits hundreds of 4th grade classrooms across Utah. As part of the iSEE Collective, with generous funding from the State of Utah, we visit Utah Public Schools for free and bring engaging, core-aligned science experiences with real museum fossils, artifacts, and specimens. Every public school in Utah is visited on a three-year rotation, which ensures that NHMU connects with every community across the state. In 2024, we brought NHMU’s fossils and artifacts to 24,000 of Utah’s students. 

Explorer Corps 

Explorer Corps is a statewide road trip adventure brought to you by the Natural History Museum of Utah. It offers 29 destinations — one in every county of Utah — that provide opportunities to learn more about our state's amazing natural and cultural history. It’s like a passport for Utah’s rarely seen wonders! 

Explorer Corps is designed to encourage residents and tourists alike to step outside and explore all that Utah has to offer. Each of Utah’s counties chose a marker representing the historical, cultural, or natural history of that area. In addition to finding fast facts about the area, you will also get recommendations for more sights to see in the surrounding community.  

You can participate through the Explorer Corps app or by downloading a printable Explorer Corps passport. 

Museums For All 

The Natural History Museum of Utah is a proud participant of Museums for All, a national access program that seeks to make museums, zoos, and aquariums accessible to individuals and families of all socioeconomic backgrounds. The cost of museum admission can be a barrier to low-income families that prevents them from engaging with these cultural and educational institutions, and Museums for All can help. 

Those receiving food assistance (SNAP benefits) can receive free or reduced admission to NHMU and other institutions across the country, by simply presenting their SNAP EBT (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Electronic Benefit Transfer) card upon arrival. 

Youth Teaching Youth 

Youth Teaching Youth is a science outreach and enrichment program that teaches students from Glendale Middle School how to teach science while helping them achieve their personal and academic goals. As high school interns, Glendale graduates continue to learn and teach science while developing college and career goals. 

Science enrichment takes place in the form of day and overnight field trips to sites such as the Fish Springs National Wildlife Reserve and Capitol Reef National Park. In addition to the geology, botany, and anthropology they learn, YTY students forge friendships that remain with them even after they graduate from high school. 

This year, NHMU celebrated 30 years of the Youth Teaching Youth program! Check out this commemorative video to learn more about the impressive longevity of the YTY program. 

Thank You, Utah 

The relationships we build are essential to the mission and values of the Natural History Museum of Utah. We are thankful for the collaboration and connections we’ve made with the individuals and organizations within Utah’s many communities. As we look to 2025, we are eager to continue building these relationships and expand our educational and research efforts. 

Happy holidays to our NHMU family — we’re looking forward to a new year of connections and collaboration with you! And wherever you are, we hope you can pay the Museum a visit soon!