– Marcella K. McCluskey<\/p>\n
The writer is a student in Comm 240 News Reporting.<\/p>\n
Fort Hays State University\u2019s Sternberg Museum of Natural History is celebrating its 15th year\u00a0under the dome on Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. offering the same admission and membership rates charged at its opening, as part of the celebration, the museum will also show off some of the animals that have been under the dome for those 15\u00a0years.<\/p>\n
The Sternberg Museum has been a part of FHSU since 1902, shortly after the school was\u00a0established, although it was not always known as the \u201cSternberg\u201d Museum.\u00a0In 1915, George F. Sternberg was appointed by FHSU to help develop the museum as it moved\u00a0to McCartney Hall. Sternberg was a famous fossil collector, and many of the fossils on display at the\u00a0museum today were found by him or his family. Sternberg died in 1969, and the Sternberg Geosciences\u00a0Club petitioned to have part of the museum named after him.<\/p>\n
Over the years the constant growth of the collections caused a continuing need for more space. In 1991, an\u00a0acquisition of a new building for the museum caused the Museum of the High Plains and the Sternberg\u00a0Memorial Museum to merge and become the Sternberg Museum of Natural History.\u00a0In 1999, after numerous renovations to the new building, the museum moved off-campus to its\u00a0current home at 3000 Sternberg Dr.<\/p>\n
This move is the reason for Saturday’s festivities.\u00a0Brad Penka, manager of visitor services, was on the museum staff before the big move.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have been with the museum for 16 years. I can remember actually working as a student and\u00a0being stuck in the bottom of the dorms, the basement of Custer Hall,\u201d Penka said. \u201cSpace is a benefit; I can tell you that. The\u00a0other place was horribly overcrowded, and collections were spread all over campus. Also, visibility is a\u00a0benefit. Finding the museum on campus was very difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
Penka is offering admission rates and membership rates at the cost they were in 1999. That\u00a0means students can purchase a year membership pass for $15. The membership grants free admission\u00a0to the museum as well as admission to special \u201cMembers Only\u201d events throughout the year. There will\u00a0also be other deals going on in the Excavations Gift Shop to celebrate.<\/p>\n
Reese Barrick, museum director, has been with the museum for four and a half years. He said\u00a0several special events are planned during the anniversary celebration.<\/p>\n
\u201cFifteen-year-old animals will be\u00a0out with Thea (Haugen, the museum\u2019s Discovery Room manager),” Barrick said.<\/p>\n
Haugen takes care of the living animals at the museum. Haugen said, \u201cThe animals that will be out are the Common King Snake, Shh; the Great Plains Rat Snake, Buddy; and the Yellow Mud Turtle, Cutie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those three animals have been part of the museum for 15 years or longer. The human \u201canimals\u201d who have been on staff at the museum for that time period or longer include Penka; Haugen; Curtis Schmidt, collections manager; and Greg Walters, exhibit director.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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