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 DNA Learning Center
The DNALC received its 100,000th
visitor in 1996. While this would be a yearly or even
quarterly statistic for a large science center, the
numbers alone do not tell the whole story. Half of
all visitors, overwhelmingly precollege students from
the New York metropolitan area, participated in a
two-to-three hour laboratory experience. Visitation
has tripled since opening in 1988--to 22,720
students, teachers, and families in 1996. Also over
this period, the lab clientele has shifted from
almost entirely high school students to more than
half middle school students. Lab field trips were
increased by 30% in 1996 by adding more afternoon
sessions for middle school students. However, with
double or triple booking virtually every school day
between October 1 and June 15, the Bio2000 Laboratory
has reached saturation. The DNALC's educational reach
was further expanded with the opening of its own
World Wide Web site (http://darwin.cshl.org). By
year's end the site was receiving more than 10,000
"virtual" visitors per month, including
representatives from more than 50 countries.
In September, the DNALC celebrated
the opening of the McClintock Exhibit, a tribute to
the late Barbara McClintock and the Nobel
Prize-winning work that she did during five decades
at Cold Spring Harbor. The display consists of a
recreation of Barbara's laboratory bench and includes
original equipment, books and personal effects that
had been archived since Barbara's death in 1992. It
also includes a biography, her awards, and a video
tape of Barbara's acceptance speech at the Nobel
Ceremony in Stockholm in 1983.
The enthusiasm for DNALC programs
was matched by the exceptionally strong support of
Long Island businesses represented on the Corporate
Advisory Board. This body, chaired by John Leahy of
Chase Manhattan Bank, raised $147,000 in support of
the DNALC's programs for local students. This
contribution equaled 17% of 1996 operating costs.
Looking toward the DNALC's 10th anniversary in 1997,
we will have to consider ways to insure that it
maintains its position as the world's leader in gene
education. This will include enlarging the DNALC
facility, expanding genetic information available at
its WWW site, and convincing the state government to
accept some responsibility in providing annual
support for this unique New York resource.
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