Stephanie Stump, a lifelong Tulsan and labor and employment attorney, is currently serving as Discovery Lab’s interim executive director and CEO, helping lead the search for the museum’s next leader. No stranger to the Discovery Lab, Stump is the former board president and a founding board member of the museum, and even served as president during the museum’s expansion, overseeing the successful openings of the Owen Park and Riverside locations. We caught up with Stump and got her thoughts on…
… the founding of Discovery Lab.
I like to think that Discovery Lab was community inspired, community driven and community built. It was a collaborative effort between parents, educators and community members who dreamed of creating a world-class science museum in Tulsa. Learning is not a one-size-fits-all process, and we wanted to be a place where every child, regardless of background, could explore, learn and play.
… how Discovery Lab has grown.
Discovery Lab was initially conceived as a museum without walls. We began by taking our small, traveling exhibits to local events and schools and asking everyone we interacted with how we could make an impact in the local educational landscape. We also engaged top consultants in the field to undertake studies on educational impact and learning philosophy, as well as created a master plan and business plan.
In 2012, we opened our first site in a former recreational center at Owen Park which the City of Tulsa let us rent for $1 per year. We renovated the building and built our own exhibits, which is where our famous tape tunnels (an elaborate structure made of packing tape) were born!
After seven years of learning and “making mistakes as fast as we could,” we opened our current 57,000-square-foot facility on Riverside, just south of the Gathering Place. We are currently in our third year of operations and have welcomed over 500,000 visitors so far. And we still have the tape tunnels, but the tape slide is much higher and faster, much to the kids’ delight.
… positive surprises in her interim CEO role.
Although I have been involved with Discovery Lab in several ways over the past 16 years, getting to know our amazing staff on a deeper level over the past couple of months has been the greatest gift to me. Everyone here believes in our mission and works tirelessly to inspire wonder and curiosity in each child, whether they come for a week-long camp, a field trip, or participate in one of our outreach programs. Our staff make our mission a reality.
… a day in the life.
Honestly, every day is so different, but we begin each day in our lobby with an all-staff meeting, which is a way for everyone to connect and know what is going on that day. After that, each day is an opportunity for me to dive in and learn about all the ways we are making an impact in our community. We are also using this period of transition to touch base with our donors and strategic partners to discuss our successes over the past year and as well as what the future holds for Discovery Lab. But my favorite part is sneaking away between meetings and working the entrance of the tape tunnels. Seeing the kids’ faces light up as they race into the tunnels is such a joy.
… Discovery Lab’s objective.
Our mission is to inspire children, connect families and build community through exploration, exhibits, programming and play. I think we accomplish this by creating experiences that are so unique and fun that children don’t realize they are learning, collaborating and discovering new things.
Through our outreach programming, we bring the fun right to kids through our over twenty community partners, such as Women in Recovery and Boys & Girls Clubs. One in five children in Oklahoma live below the poverty line and many don’t have adults in their lives who can take the time to just play with them. Through our partnerships with organizations that provide necessities for families, when our educators show up and “play” with them, we remind the kids and their adults that they deserve more than the basic necessities; they deserve to have fun and to experience joyful curiosity. No one does that better than Discovery Lab.
… Discovery Lab in 20 years.
At Discovery Lab, we fabricate our own exhibits that are unique to Tulsa and uniquely Tulsa. I hope that stays the same, as well as our core value of accessibility. We want to be a place where everyone who comes through our doors feels like they belong and can learn and play in a safe, positive environment. In 20 years, I hope the children who discover their love of STEAM today are now the top innovators, problem solvers and leaders in our community.
…goals.
I look forward to welcoming the next great leader of Discovery Lab. My goal during this period of transition is to keep Discovery Lab doing the great work it has been doing – inspiring the children of Oklahoma, one at a time!
