Subaru Provides Vehicles to the Academy of Natural Sciences’ Outreach Program

PHILADELPHIA, PA, August 1, 2013 /3BL Media/ - The live raptors, skunks and snakes that visit classrooms in the tri-state area through the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University will have a comfortable new means of transport, thanks to the generous support from Subaru. And so will their teacher-naturalists chaperones.

Subaru of America, which is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., recently donated the use of two shiny new Subaru Outbacks for the museum’s popular Academy on the Go outreach program. The program brings the excitement of a museum visit—complete with specimens, live animals and expert naturalists—to more than 200 classrooms, fairs and festivals in the region, serving more than 26,000 children and adults. The cars will be easily identifiable by their colorful graphics depicting birds, bugs and dinosaurs.

“We are thrilled to have these much needed vehicles to bring our special museum experience to audiences outside of the city,” said Jacquie Genovesi, the Academy’s director of education.

”The Academy is a premier organization that shares our love of science and nature,” said Sandy Capell, community services manager for Subaru. “Subaru is thrilled to be able to support their efforts to increase children’s interest in science and wildlife.”

While thousands of schoolchildren and their teachers take field trips to the Academy, many enjoy the convenience of having the museum come to them.  Through Academy on the Go, students and other audiences get a chance to see up close the Academy’s squawking hawks, curling snakes, creeping tarantulas, and other live creatures. These animals are Academy ambassadors to help people learn about the environment, conservation, habitat loss and other issues. They are either injured and can’t survive in the wild or they came to the museum as unwanted pets.  

The outreach lessons, tied to state and national standards for science education, also feature a variety of specimens. The Academy’s scientific collections hold more than 18 million plant and animal specimens, and the teaching collection provides an introduction to the various disciplines studied by Academy scientists, including paleontology, ornithology and botany. For more information, visit http://www.ansp.org/education/academy-on-the-go.

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