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This week, Florida State University will bring together experts on artificial intelligence and machine learning to explore the role of agentic AI — a type of AI that performs tasks and adapts to change with little human intervention — across industries including medicine, finance, education and more.

The 2026 Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Expo, AIMLX26, is set for Friday, Feb. 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee, 200 S. Duval Street. The two-day event is presented by the FSU Interdisciplinary Data Science Master’s Degree Program.

On Friday, industry professionals and researchers from FSU’s Department of Computer Science, the FSU School of Information, OpenAI, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Florida and Premera Blue Cross will present on topics ranging from the engineering of AI systems to their applications.

“The theme of this year’s event is agentic AI with a focus on how intelligent, autonomous and collaborative AI systems are reshaping research, industry and society,” said Zhe He, director of the Institute for Successful Longevity at FSU and a professor in the School of Information. “The program will explore topics such as multi-agent systems, large language model–based agents, decentralized and agentic web architectures, AI for scientific discovery, and real-world deployments in domains like health care, finance and enterprise systems.”

He, who is also affiliated with the Department of Computer Science, Department of Statistics, and the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Social Medicine in the College of Medicine, will present the lecture “Developing a Multi-Agent AI System for Explaining Lab Results to Older Adults.” This work is supported by a recent grant from the National Institute on Aging’s Artificial Intelligence and Technology Collaboratories for Aging Research and aims to help older Americans better understand how to use AI and other emerging technologies to better manage and act upon their health data.

He’s presentation will include his team’s work on LabGenie, a patient-and-caregiver facing application that is designed to improve health outcomes for consumers.

“The system is designed to translate complex laboratory data into patient-friendly, actionable insights that support better engagement, shared decision making, and improved health literacy and outcomes,” He said.

This year’s keynote speaker, Sherwin Wu, is a member of technical staff at OpenAI and leads engineering for the OpenAI Platform. His keynote address on Friday, “Slowly, and Then All At Once: A survey of AI agents over the last three years and a glimpse into the next three years,” will discuss industry trends since ChatGPT’s launch in 2022 and the current and future landscape of AI capabilities.

On Saturday, the Challenger Learning Center will host the local K-12 community for additional FSU faculty lectures as well as a series of interactive activities — the first event of its kind in AIMLX series history. Activities include learning about robotics, color coding magnets, basic programming, car challenges, binary number bracelet crafts and more that allow learners of all ages to participate.

“We’re highlighting the connection between what goes on at FSU on the scientific level and day-to-day applications of AI tools,” said Gordon Erlebacher, IDS program director and a professor in the Department of Scientific Computing, who will present Saturday on the rapid evolution of AI tools and their impact on daily life. “AI tools have so many uses that students should learn about, and the community day allows participants to directly ask FSU faculty questions about AI while providing a point of contact for the future. We hope that hearing from local experts who use these tools will make AI approachable and relatable.”

For a full schedule of presentations, events, topics, presenter details and more, visit the FSU Data Science event website.

AIMLX26 is sponsored by Florida State University, the FSU College of Arts and Sciences, the FSU College of Communication and Information, the FSU School of Information, the FSU Department of Computer Science, the FSU Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics, the FSU Department of Scientific Computing, the FSU Department of Statistics, the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee and Ruvos.

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Renaissance-era artist Albrecht Dürer and “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” director Christopher McQuarrie both knew that if you want an outdoor image that captivates audiences, you need the right sky.

For Dürer, that meant fine lines to depict squalls, storms, lightning and other ephemeral atmospheric phenomena. For McQuarrie, that meant a background of cloudy skies to emphasize the action in a high-flying stunt scene.

In Dürer’s engravings, Hollywood films and so many other works of art, “the weather is part of the story,” said Stephanie Leitch, a professor in the Florida State University College of Fine Arts.

Leitch was joined by National Weather Service meteorologists, FSU students and faculty, local artists and other presenters at “It’s the Weather!,” an exploration of the inspiring world of weather hosted Feb. 7 at the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee. The event was part of the FSU Festival of the Creative Arts, a monthlong celebration of the voices, talents and creativity of FSU faculty and students.

Leitch’s presentation in the center’s Fogg Planetarium took viewers on a whirlwind tour through 500 years of representations of the weather.

After starting with icons of the winds from Renaissance etchings, she shared other examples throughout art history. In Giorgione’s painting “The Tempest,” the viewer’s eye might first be drawn to the human subjects in the foreground before noticing the storm behind them. In Caspar David Friedrich’s 1800s painting “The Monk by the Sea,” the religious figure is dwarfed by a turbulent sea and sky. Studio Ghibli’s 2013 film “The Wind Rises” uses soft clouds as a frequent backdrop to tell the story of an engineer developing a new fighter plane.

“The landscape and atmospheric effects inform what we think about the subject of the art,” Leitch said.

For local fiber artist Kate Taylor, weather was not just the inspiration behind her artwork — it was the subject itself.

Her quilt “Whether you like it or not: A weather report for 2022 from Dogtown, Florida,” represents a year of weather data in a cozy medium.

“We’ve always had a relationship with weather, but because we have air conditioning and heating now, we don’t connect to that need to understand weather as we used to,” she said.

“Whether you like it or not” is Taylor’s attempt to make a closer examination of the weather around her. For each day of the year, she quilted a small square documenting the conditions at her Gadsden County home. An arrow pointing up represented the high temperature, an arrow pointing down showed the low temperature, and the background reflected the sky that day.

Another work depicted average high and low temperatures in Tallahassee for each decade of her life, starting in the 1950s.

“With anything scientific, you have to keep good notes,” she said. “That’s also the way art works. I ran out of fabric that was pre-dyed before I completed the quilt. I had to go back to my notes and then to the dye pot to complete this.”

Tallahassee community member Zoila Curry brought her children, 4-year-old Sofy, 8-year-old Kosmo, and 10-year-old Aleena, to the center to learn about weather and practice making new artmaking methods.

“Art is big in our house,” Curry said. “This event was a cool way to show that you can tie art into anything, any aspect of life, even something like the weather.”

Her husband, former FSU triple jumper and Olympian Rafeeq Curry, designed the medals for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships that were recently held in Tallahassee. Drawings, sketches, jewelry and food are just some of the ways they practice creativity at home.

At the center, Sofy showed off a sparkly rainbow that she made at an activity station imitating the work of visual artist Robert Siedel. Other stations saw visitors creating pieces with pastels, weaving construction paper onto a visual representation of a day’s weather, or cutting paper to mimic snowflakes in homage to the scientist Wilson Bentley, who captured the first photographs of individual snowflakes.

Projects like these help students practice motor skills, observation, creativity and other skills, said Abbygail DeVore, a master’s student in the FSU art therapy program. For the FSU students volunteering, it was an opportunity to practice working with children on developmentally appropriate artwork.

The science behind the weather was also on display. Employees from the National Weather Service’s (NWS) Tallahassee office brought the tools of their trade, such as a temperature sensor and a weather balloon.

At ground level, a weather balloon is about six feet in diameter. After it is released into the atmosphere, it grows to about 30 feet in diameter because of changes in atmospheric pressure before it bursts. Even at just six feet wide, it was a striking prop in the Challenger Learning Center lobby, drawing visitors to the NWS booth for information about how meteorologists work and ways for Floridians to be safe in storms.

It doesn’t take a meteorologist to appreciate a sunset or marvel at the power of a storm. But some artistic principles from graphic design and communications are at work when sharing weather information with the public.

The Festival of the Creative Arts continues Tuesday, Feb. 10 with Arts-Health-Humanities Symposium VI from 12-2:30 p.m. at the Claude Pepper Center, 636 W. Call St.

Visit the Festival of the Creative Arts website for a full schedule of events.

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The wonders of weather will take center stage at the upcoming “It’s the Weather!” event, part of Florida State University’s Festival of the Creative Arts.

FSU art history, art education and music education faculty will partner with staff from the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee and the National Weather Service to deliver a fun, informative look at the weather and nature. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about the weather and nature in works of art while discovering scientific facts about our world.

“We’re happy to host ‘It’s the Weather!’ at the Challenger Learning Center as part of the Festival of the Creative Arts,” said Alan Hanstein, executive director of the center. “It’s a fun way to connect science and creativity, especially for younger audiences, while introducing the importance of understanding weather as a core part of STEM learning.”

The natural world has long been a source of inspiration for scientists and artists alike. In her presentation, Professor Stephanie Leitch will start with work from Renaissance Italy, such as Giorgione’s painting “The Tempest,” and take her audience forward more than 500 years to our era, when clouds punctuated a high-flying Tom Cruise stunt in “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning.”

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Forty years ago, the nation was watching as the space shuttle Challenger began its ascent on a cold Florida morning, headed for the stars.

Tragedy followed. Just 73 seconds after launch, O-ring seals in a rocket booster failed, causing a disaster that claimed the lives of the seven astronauts on board.

While the fatal accident profoundly altered the nation’s space program, it also sparked a powerful and enduring mission led by the astronauts’ families: to inspire young people through education, curiosity and exploration. That mission lives on today through Challenger Learning Centers across the country, including the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee.

As the nation approaches the 40th anniversary of the disaster, the Challenger Learning Center is launching its Legacy Campaign — a renewed commitment to remembrance, education, and the future of STEM learning.

“The Challenger Legacy Campaign is about honoring the crew not only through remembrance, but through action,” said Alan Hanstein, the center’s executive director. “By strengthening our programs, updating our mission simulators, and expanding access to hands-on STEM education, we’re ensuring future generations continue to see science as something they belong in.”

Honoring the space shuttle Challenger

For more than two decades, the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee has honored the crew’s legacy through action, inspiring curiosity, courage and a love of learning in young people. As the K–12 STEM outreach arm of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, the center has served more than one million students across North Florida, South Georgia and beyond, many of whom were encountering hands-on science and engineering for the first time.

The center will honor its namesake mission and the astronauts who took part on Wednesday, Jan. 28, with a commemorative service.

The free memorial, held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., will include a bell-ringing ceremony for each crew member, remarks from community leaders and reflections from representatives of the National Challenger Center. Throughout the exhibit hall, artifacts and visual stories will be displayed to highlight the lives, careers and legacies of the Challenger crew.

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(Updated 12:20 p.m. Jan. 28, 2026) 

Florida State University’s Office of Research will host the 2026 Festival of the Creative Arts, a campuswide event that highlights the voices, talents and creativity of FSU faculty and students in February and early March.

Departments from across campus will celebrate the innovation and creative excellence that results from combining various modes of expression and disciplines.

“Each year, the Festival of the Creative Arts celebrates interdisciplinary engagement across campus with events that include faculty and student participation,” said Iain Quinn, festival director and FSU’s Research Fellow in the arts and humanities. “In addition to ongoing research conversations that develop from one festival to another, there are also new collaborations and multiple first performances.”

Several events are offered for K-12 students and families, including “It’s the Weather!” at the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee on Saturday, Feb. 7. There will also be a premiere of a new performance work involving digital art and music.

“It’s an excellent opportunity to learn about the historic and contemporary connections between art and science with multiple hands-on activities,” Quinn said. “The festival is always a special opportunity for everyone to be inspired by the creative spirit that defines FSU.”

All events are free of charge, and no reservations are required. For more information, visit research.fsu.edu/fca.

The full list of events includes:

FRIDAY, FEB. 6

Poets at the Party
7:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre, Katherine W. Montgomery Hall

A special collaboration between dance, hospitality, music and poetry featuring multiple premieres across disciplines.

Participants: Darcie Ogando Almánzar, Jacob Andrews, Lilian Baker, Shea Boeker, Jacob Grice, Isabelle Hagley, Caroline Laganas, Raúl Parra, Natalie Eleanor Patterson, Camille Pepper, Christell Victoria Roach, Jan Schwalbe, Sophia Upshaw, Hugh Wilhelm, Kuan-Yu Yang and members of the FSU Trombone Choir. 

SATURDAY, FEB. 7

It’s the Weather!
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee

Come and learn about the weather and nature in works of art while discovering scientific facts about the world around us. This event features hands-on activities led by faculty from the departments of art history, art education and music education, as well as the first performance of a new interdisciplinary work with digital art and music. Great for K-12 students.

Participants: Angelina Ciardi, Eren Gümrükçüoğlu, Ann Harrington, Stephanie Leitch, Marlo Ransdell, Keith Roberson, Sara Scott Shields, the FSU Guitar Ensemble and the National Weather Service Tallahassee.

SUNDAY, FEB. 8

Storytime Under the Stars
6 – 7 p.m.
Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee

Experience an evening of nostalgia and wonder at the Fogg Planetarium, where classic stories come to life under a celestial canopy of stars. This event is specially designed for young children and their families.

Participant: Christine Hansen.

TUESDAY, FEB. 10

Arts-Health-Humanities Symposium VI
12 – 2:30 p.m.
Claude Pepper Center

This annual festival meeting of faculty and students — from design, medicine, music education, music therapy and musicology — continues conversations about current research and future interdisciplinary collaborations. Includes poster presentations by art therapy and music therapy.

Participants: Michael Bakan, Daejin Kim, Adriana Lizardi-Vázquez, Parintorn “Pim” Pankaew, James Riley, Tana Jean Welch and Racheal Yap.

THURSDAY, FEB. 12

Classics Symposium
5:30 – 7 p.m.
Beth Moor Lounge, Longmire Building

Join a celebration of Ancient Greek and Latin poetry featuring an evening of readings of ancient texts and creative performances by students and faculty.

Coordinator: Virginia Lewis.

MONDAY, FEB. 16

Nickel Boys
6 – 9 p.m.
Askew Student Life Center

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead, “Nickel Boys” chronicles the powerful friendship between two young African American men sentenced to Nickel Academy. Co-presented with the FSU Civil Rights Institute.

Participants: Ted T. Ellis, Keithen Mathis, Dennis Moore and Mark Schlakman.

TUESDAY, FEB. 17

The Art of Walking
12 – 1:15 p.m.
Bradley Reading Room, Strozier Library

Walking in the city is not only a form of physical exercise and transportation, but a social and cultural practice described as flânerie. The lecture will amble through some of the major French figures who wrote about the flâneur’s and flâneuse’s kaleidoscopic encounters with the sights and sounds of urban life. Co-presented with the Milton S. Carothers Faculty Lecture Series.

Participants: Aimée Boutin and Meaghan McSorley.

FRIDAY, FEB. 20

Lay of the Land
Symposium: 2 – 5:30 p.m.; Opening: 6 – 8 p.m.
Facility for Arts Research

“Lay of the Land” is a Department of Art faculty exhibition and symposium exploring the beauty, complexity and fragility of the landscapes we inhabit.

Participants: Department of Art Faculty.

SUNDAY, FEB. 22

Chamber Music of Frank Martin
4 – 5:30 p.m.
Longmire Recital Hall

A concert devoted to the music of the great Swiss composer Frank Martin (1890-1974), offering an exceptional opportunity to hear his distinctive voice across numerous contrasting ensembles.

Participants: Stijn De Cock, Geoffrey Deibel, Amy Dill, Suzanne Lommler, Mary Matthews, Dylan Principi, Pamela Ryan, Gregory Sauer, Natalie Sherer, Marcy Stonikas, Shannon Thomas and Valerie Trujillo.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 25

The Contemporary Film – Finding Your Family
6 – 9 p.m.
Askew Student Life Center

An evening of cinematic exploration with panel discussions about the many definitions of family. Screening of a collection of student shorts followed by a Q&A conversation with members of FSUFILM faculty.

FRIDAY-SATURDAY, FEB. 27-28

24-Hour Create-A-Thon
Feb. 27, 4 p.m. – 12 a.m.; Feb. 28, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Pitches, Performances, Awards: Feb. 28, 2 – 4 p.m.
Innovation Hub

FSU students from across campus work in interdisciplinary teams to develop new works that celebrate creativity as a foundation of innovation across the disciplines. Registration opens Jan. 26.

Coordinator: Ken Baldauf.

SUNDAY, MARCH 1

Interlocking Art: A Mixed Media Gala
6 – 9 p.m.
Student Union

Club Downunder and the Department of Student Engagement present an evening of student creativity across the arts, culminating in an annual fashion show.

Exhibitions

Water Ways: Indigenous Ecologies and Florida Heritage
Elizabeth A. Cecil (Curator)
Co-presented with the FSU Native American and Indigenous Studies Center.
Museum of Fine Arts

Akimbo: A Solo Exhibition by Zoë Charlton
An installation and animated film exploring themes of memory, place, and resilience in the Tallahassee Landscape.
Museum of Fine Arts

Lay of the Land
Department of Art Faculty
Facility for Arts Research

The Art of Healing – Ted T. Ellis
Robert Manning Strozier Library

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Florida State University’s Innovation Hub recently opened its doors and showcased student-led projects in science, technology and entrepreneurship at the Seminole Innovators Open House. 

The event featured live demos, exhibits and presentations, highlighting how students from different disciplines collaborate on real-world problem solving. 

“Students from across disciplines invested significant time and energy in learning and innovating through a wide range of projects over the past academic year,” said Ken Baldauf, founding director of the Innovation Hub. “Although we were disappointed to cancel our year-end showcase last April, this open house offers students closure, camaraderie and a chance to celebrate their achievements while ushering in a new year of innovation and opportunity.” 

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Florida State University’s International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) student team brought hands-on science to life for hundreds of local families at the third annual Tallahassee Biotechnology Expo last week, turning the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee into a showcase of biotech experiments, live demos and student-led research. 

The expo, which was held July 19, featured the iGEM team and other university presenters, who shared their work with children from kindergarten through eighth grade with hands-on activities related to biotechnology. 

Nearly 500 visitors attended the event, the largest turnout in the expo’s three years, with 14 exhibitors present from FSU and the greater Tallahassee area. 

“We’re proud to partner with FSU iGEM on an event that brings science to life for young students and families,” said Alan Hanstein, executive director of the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee. “The growth of the Biotechnology Expo shows what’s possible when passionate students lead the way in inspiring future innovators.”

FSU’s iGEM team organized the event as part of its responsibilities for the upcoming International Genetically Engineered Machine Grand Jamboree, which will take place Oct. 28-31 in Paris. The iGEM competition has been running annually since 2004 and is the premier student synthetic biology research competition. 

Teams must complete various tasks as part of the competition. The biotechnology expo helps the FSU team fulfill the “education” requirement for their work to educate the public about synthetic biology. 

Along with organizing the expo, FSU iGEM shared the group’s work in the Challenger Center’s IMAX Theater, where team members took visitors through their work to design and build innovative biological systems. 

The team earned a gold medal at the 2024 iGEM competition for their project to address a rare metabolic disorder called trimethylaminuria, which causes a strong body odor released through sweat, breath and urine. FSU iGEM created a monitoring device that could guide a patient’s treatment by monitoring the level of trimethylamine, the molecule that causes the odor, in the breath. 

That work was the continuation of a previous year’s project that earned a silver medal and continued within what is now the Florida Institute for Pediatric Rare Diseases, a program within the FSU Health initiative designed to bridge critical gaps in pediatric rare disease care through research and clinical work. 

“It’s so rewarding to connect with our community while sharing the significance of our research,” said Vicky Montalvo, associate team lead for the 2025 FSU iGEM Team. “It is not only an opportunity to foster connection between the public and academia, but it is especially rewarding because the research done in iGEM is inspired by present problems we see in our community.” 

“When teaching K-8 students about biotechnology at the expo, we all were pleasantly surprised at how many kids are already passionate about this field, and how bright and inspired the next generation of scientists is,” she said. “With this event, it really felt like we were paying it forward, seeing as many of the current members on 2025 FSU iGEM team were inspired by their predecessors to partake in the world of biotechnology.”

In addition to the iGEM presentation, attendees had a variety of exhibits to choose from. They could explore strawberry DNA extraction, learn how cell-to-cell communication works or build simple prosthetic hands using everyday materials. Other exhibits showed off shark jaws, shark tracking devices, deep sea coral and oyster shells or shared the basic principles behind fundamental fluid mechanics in a kid-friendly way. 

FSU’s Neuroscience Graduate Student Association (NGSA) brought devices that use electrodes to show nerves in action or to involuntarily move a participant’s muscles. 

“The association presented at the bioengineering expo since it began a few years ago, and it’s the perfect opportunity to connect with the Tallahassee community,” said NGSA President Ryan Ochoa. “We love the excitement and energy of children and parents. The best parts are getting to see everyone exposed to something new for the first time in their lives and the questions filled with curiosity that immediately follow. This year we met a family that traveled nine hours just to attend the event. That really puts into perspective just how meaningful our contributions are.” 

Organizers have plans to continue growing the expo in future years to inspire the next generation of STEM researchers and leaders. 

Visit the FSU iGEM website to learn more about this student group and their work. 

Visit the website for the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee, the K-12 outreach facility for the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, to learn more about upcoming educational programs.

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The Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee, the K-12 STEM outreach arm of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, proudly hosted two highly successful events as part of the Florida State University Festival of the Creative Arts (FCA) this past weekend. This marked the first collaboration between the Challenger Learning Center and the festival, bringing together faculty, students and staff across disciplines to deliver interactive, art-infused experiences focused on space, creativity and discovery.

On Saturday, Feb. 8, the Challenger Learning Center presented “Shakespeare and the Stars” — a unique fusion of literature, space science and the arts. Participants explored the connections between Shakespeare’s works and the cosmos through interactive art projects, music sessions and hands-on activities and demonstrations led by faculty, staff and students from English, Art Education, Music Education, the Challenger Learning Center and even the Flying High Circus. The event captivated K-12 students and families with its creative hands-on approach.

The excitement continued Sunday, Feb. 9, with “Storytime Under the Stars,” an enchanting evening designed for young children and families. Guests gathered under the celestial canopy of the Fogg Planetarium to enjoy classic stories in a magical setting. The special guest FCA Storybook Reader for the evening was Christine Hansen, program manager for the Askew Student Life Center, whose engaging storytelling brought the experience to life.

“This collaboration showcased the magic that happens when science, art and imagination come together,” said Alan Hanstein, executive director of the Challenger Learning Center. “Seeing young minds light up as they connected literature and creativity with the wonders of space is exactly why we do what we do. We’re proud to be part of the Festival of the Creative Arts and can’t wait to build on this success in the years ahead.”

Festival director and FSU Research Fellow in the Arts and Humanities, Iain Quinn, echoed the sentiment: “This is the first FCA collaboration with the Challenger Learning Center, and I’m thrilled it has been such a success. To see faculty and students from multiple colleges working next to each other and engaging with the public was wonderful. We greatly look forward to next year.”

Both events demonstrated the Challenger Learning Center’s ongoing commitment to providing innovative, interdisciplinary STEM/STEAM learning experiences to the Tallahassee community and beyond.

For more information about upcoming events at the Challenger Learning Center, visit www.challengertlh.com.

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Updated 11 a.m. Jan. 24, 2025

Florida State University’s Office of Research will host the Festival of the Creative Arts, a campuswide collaborative event highlighting the different voices, talents and creativity of FSU faculty and students throughout January and February.

Departments from across campus will celebrate the innovation and creative excellence that result from combining various modes of expression and subjects.

“The festival highlights many areas of interdisciplinary research across campus with faculty and students engaged in performances, symposia and talks,” said Professor of Organ, Iain Quinn, festival director and FSU’s Research Fellow in the arts and humanities. “Research is  the core of our scholarly work, and we look forward to sharing new discoveries, multiple premieres and superb performances, all while enjoying great conversations with the larger community.”

Several events are offered for K-12 students, including the popular “Sing with the Symphony” concert, in which the audience sings a new piece with an orchestra; FSU Math Fun Day; a sing-along screening of “The Wizard of Oz;” and events at the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee.

All events are free and open to the public.

For more information, visit research.fsu.edu/fca or view the flyer.

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When Norm Thagard left NASA in 1995 to join the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, he had one big question for his dean — What is my new mission?

Along with his role as a professor of electrical engineering, Thagard was the college’s director of college relations.

“I asked Dean C.J. “Marty” Chen, ‘What does a director of college relations do? What do you expect me to accomplish?’” said Thagard, an FSU alumnus. “He said he expected me to get kids turned on to engineering so we would one day see them as students coming into our college.”

Thagard’s solution: The Challenger Learning Centers, a network of science-education facilities around the country built to inspire students.

Almost three decades since that conversation, and 20 years since the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee opened, it’s been mission accomplished.

The center marked its 20th anniversary Saturday, and a crowd of longtime supporters visited the facility in downtown Tallahassee to celebrate its legacy and hear from some of the people who helped make it a reality.

The site is the K-12 outreach facility of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, the joint engineering college of Florida A&M University and Florida State University. It hosts thousands of students every year, who visit to see educational videos and demonstrations in the IMAX theater and planetarium, practice teamwork on a space mission simulator and more.

“Our mission has been to inspire students to get excited about math and science, but also exploration in general,” said Director Alan Hanstein. “Whether it’s the Challenger mission, the James Webb Space Telescope, blue whales, butterflies or anything else, we’re going to encourage them to go out and learn more about it. If you think about a middle school student 20 years ago —they’re in their career now. It’s really exciting to think that we’ve made that kind of impact.”

ORIGINS
Challenger Centers were born from tragedy. In 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart shortly after launch, killing the seven-person crew. The families of those astronauts started the Challenger Center for Space Science Education to honor their loved ones and carry on their endeavors. Today, there are Challenger Learning Centers across the U.S. as well as international centers, all a living memorial to the Challenger crew.

The Tallahassee center has the same vision — inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers who could help plan the space missions of the future.

“At that time, and it’s still true today, we didn’t have enough American kids going into STEAM subjects, and we don’t have enough going into aerospace/aviation specifically,” said Captain Winston Scott, an FSU alumnus and former NASA astronaut who served on the center’s first board. “The beauty of the learning center is that it is hands-on. Students actually simulate doing a space mission and doing experiments in space. We hope that captures the imagination. That’s what it’s all about.”

As the center’s early supporters shepherded the idea into reality, they turned to private donors and local, state and federal governments for help.

Former Florida Legislature member Marjorie Turnbull was an early proponent. She recalled a trip to a Challenger Center in Tennessee that illustrated for her the importance of the center’s immersive approach.

“The middle school students, who are not noted for their long attention span, had been told a group with two astronauts was coming,” she said. “We walked through, and not one child looked up. They were in the middle of a mission and were so absorbed. I remember thinking, we need to have this.”

MISSION
Today, the center serves about 50,000 students in a 68-county region in Florida, Georgia and Alabama, who visit to practice hands-on teamwork and problem solving.

The center has hosted an array of memorable moments and esteemed guests since opening. One recent example was a visit from NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. Nelson joined FSU President Richard McCullough and FAMU President Larry Robinson for a tour, where he talked to engineering students about their research, encouraged middle school students learning about space, and spoke to the public about his time as an astronaut and NASA’s goals for the future. Students had the unique opportunity to engage in discussions with Nelson, gaining insights into his experiences as an astronaut and the latest developments in space exploration.

Another highlight was a special screening of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” for elementary students from Leon County Schools. The movie’s hero used science and technology to solve problems and help her society — the work of an engineer.

“The Challenger Center is an integral part of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering,” said Suvranu De, dean of the joint college. “So many scientists and engineers started on their academic journeys because they were inspired as children. The center is helping to spark that inspiration and carry on the legacy of the Challenger crew, who dedicated their lives to pushing the boundaries of knowledge and discovery.”

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Singer-songwriter Elvis Costello, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, actor Mandy Patinkin and the Vienna Boys’ Choir are among the headliners for Florida State University’s Opening Nights 2023-2024 season.

Legendary singer-songwriters Mary Chapin Carpenter and Shawn Colvin kick off a lineup of heralded and emerging artists in dance, music, literature, comedy and the visual arts on Oct. 1.

Performances will be held in a variety of venues on and off FSU’s campus and feature collaborations with Challenger Learning Center, Colleges of Music and Fine Arts, as well as the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, Visit Tallahassee/Leon County, Word of South and LeMoyne Chain of Parks.

“The programs selected for this season demonstrate Opening Nights’ continued commitment to presenting the very best,” said Jennifer Wright, director of Opening Nights. “We have curated a season for arts enthusiasts of all ages as well as collaborating with on- and off-campus partners to present unique cultural experiences.”

The lineup features well-known names such as Elvis Costello & The Imposters (Jan. 10) and Neil deGrasse Tyson (Jan. 24), along with up-and-coming acts like Ranky Tanky (Oct. 5), a South Carolina-based quintet.

The Gipsy Kings will perform Oct. 20 at Adderley Amphitheatre in Cascades Park. The evening, in collaboration with Leon County’s Visit Tallahassee, will kick off with Tallahassee-based group the Maharajah Flamenco Trio.

This season will be filled with bluegrass and folk music. Groups Della Mae (Nov. 7), Damn Tall Buildings (March 21) and Rising Appalachia (April 27) will bring a blend of diverse Americana sounds.

In collaboration with FSU’s School of Dance, ON will present FSU alumni Adele Myers and Dancers on Oct. 12 and Complexions Contemporary Ballet on Feb 14.

Opening Nights includes a new family-oriented lineup in its Ruby Jr. Series. Shows include techno-fusion dance group iLuminate on March 2 and interactive show Dinosaur World Live! on April 6.

For jazz enthusiasts, there’s jazz and flamenco guitarist Jesse Cook (Jan. 11), Sing and Swing – A Jazz at Lincoln Center PRESENTS Production featuring Bria Skonberg and Benny Benack III (March 7), and Terence Blanchard featuring the E-Collective and Turtle Island Quartet (April 5).

Orchestra fans will enjoy Delirium Musicum (Jan. 18), a self-conducted contemporary chamber orchestra, and Pink Martini with China Forbes, a 12-piece group the members call a “little orchestra.”

On Oct. 26, western swing band Hot Club of Cowtown will debut as the first Opening Nights act to perform at Phipps Farm.

MacMaster & Leahy Celtic Family Christmas will be the featured holiday program Dec. 7 at Opperman Music Hall.

February, the month that Opening Nights’ forerunner –– the Seven Days of Opening Nights Festival — began, boasts numerous world-class arts and cultural experiences.

Sons of Serendip, a contemporary classical crossover group, will perform Feb. 1. On Feb. 7, relive the journey of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel with The Simon & Garfunkel Story.

PRISM, featuring various College of Music ensembles and the world-renowned Marching Chiefs, will be held Feb. 11. The Vienna Boys’ Choir, one of the oldest and most famous choirs in the world, will perform Feb. 12 as part of its 525^th anniversary tour.

In collaboration with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, Classical Mystery Tour: A Tribute to The Beatles will be held Feb. 17. A performance by blues musician Ruthie Foster on Feb. 29 will wrap up the month.

Fans of the theater will enjoy The Phony Awards, an interactive comedy improv show built on audience suggestions, at The Moon on Nov. 1.

On March 9, Tony award-winner Mandy Patinkin will present Being Alive with Adam Ben-David on Piano.

Representing visual arts, LeMoyne Chain of Parks Presenting Artist and FSU graduate Dean Mitchell (April 18) will discuss “Navigating the Art World: Building Success Against the Odds” at the Jim Moran Building in downtown Tallahassee.

Opening Nights will collaborate with the FSU English Department in presenting award-winning author Jesmyn Ward on March 18.

Indigo Girls, one of the most successful folk duos in history, will conclude the season May 1.

This season’s FSU venues include Ruby Diamond Concert Hall, Opperman Music Hall, Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre, FSU President’s House and the Jim Moran Building. Opening Nights will also host performances at Tallahassee Community College in the Fred Turner Auditorium, Goodwood Museum and Gardens, the Phipps Farm, The Moon, and the Adderley Amphitheater at Cascades Park.

Opening Nights will return to its pre-pandemic practices of having one on-sale window for the 2023-2024 season. Opening Nights sponsors and members may purchase tickets Aug. 1-24 in advance of general public ticket sales. Tickets will go on sale to the general public at 11 a.m. Aug. 28.

To order tickets and view the full season lineup, visit OpeningNights.fsu.edu.

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