With the start of the New Year, people tend to reminisce about the year that we left. Just think about how many lists for top music, biggest news stories and events that happened in the year 2011 that you have seen.
Instead of looking at the past year, I like to think about the year that we just entered and what is coming up. The year 2012 is going to be an exciting year for the Education Department and the Seneca Park Zoo. Here are some of the top things we are looking forward to in 2012:
- Thanks to a New York State grant, in 2012 the Education department will be getting a new office and a new facility to house our Education Animal Collection! We would like to thank all the people that worked hard to make this exciting development come true: Michelle Picardo, Chuck Levengood and everyone else in the Development & Finance Department – Rachel August, Sharon Peterson, Larry Sorel, Kristin Miles-Pavia and David Hamilton.
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Photo by Kelli O'Brien
Due to the high demand for our Summer ZooCamp program, in 2012 we will be expanding to three sessions running at the same time instead of the two sessions that we have run previously. This will give more children the chance to learn about the animals and the environment in a fun and interactive setting of our growing Zoo.
- Talking about growing, the biggest news of all, our A Step Into Africa
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Exhibit will be opening this year! The third and final phase of our project featuring a new dining facility, interactive educational opportunities and an 8,000-square-foot enclosure to showcase the return of lions back to your Zoo! A Step Into Africa will also include a Maasai village, archeological Dig Zone and a safari bus.
This is going to be an exciting year, so come down to the Zoo. You wouldn’t want to miss it! Happy 2012 everyone!
- Tim Fowler, Off-site Education Coordinator
