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The Northern Virginia Science Center Foundation's mission is to inspire a love of learning STEM by providing unique opportunities to explore and create. The Foundation operates the Children’s Science Center Lab at Fair Oaks Mall in Fairfax, VA, an interactive lab where children and families explore STEM through fun and engaging hands-on activities. Additional content is delivered through community programs at schools and libraries across Northern Virginia. In partnership with the Science Museum of Virginia, the vision is well underway with Launch the Future, a campaign to build the Northern Virginia Science Center. With both public and private support, this project fulfills the long- held vision for a world-class, interactive science center in the region.

Our mission is to nurture generations of passionate learners, critical thinkers and active citizens through Design, Make, Play — an approach to learning that encourages hands-on experimentation, critical thinking, and iterative problem-solving. Through Design, Make, Play, NYSCI aspires to create a distinctive set of resources that have a measurable and scalable impact on how people learn. The museum anchors and inspires all the work we do, fostering public engagement in STEM, and supporting our youth development program, education offerings and research. We have developed innovative products to extend this learning far beyond our walls, and our extensive network of partnerships deepens and broadens our impact, locally and around the world.