Endeavour Elementary School

About the project

Endeavour Elementary School, named for the NASA space shuttle Endeavour, serves the young children of personnel stationed at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey.  SFD has created a set of permanent displays in the school’s open atrium that inspire wonder and curiosity.  They promote a willingness to meet challenges, and the advantages of working as a team. 

 Artifacts from the shuttle program, most notably Endeavour’s 40-foot diameter drag chute, help illustrate the awesome achievement of launching and safely landing a space shuttle.  Some of Endeavour’s pioneering scientific accomplishments are presented in the form of simplified STEM hands-on activities.  Activities include identifying components of a space shuttle, matching responsibilities with NASA team members, viewing microscopic organisms used in space experiments and calculating the quantities of objects a shuttle’s cargo bay is capable of holding.  A scale model of 18th century English explorer Captain James Cook’s ship HMS Endeavour allows children to compare the scale, challenges, and similarities of historic exploration and scientific advancement with those of today. 

 The centerpiece of the exhibits is Endeavour’s 40-foot drag chute.  SFD created an innovative armature to form the chute and suspended it from the atrium’s ceiling.  Video clips of the Endeavour’s take-off and landing are projected onto the chute to animate the atrium and to help children and visitors appreciate the shuttle’s breathtaking scale and power.  The atrium exhibits provide children and their families with a sense of pride as they pass by or interact with them daily.

 

CLIENT

North Hanover Township School District

PROJECT LOCATION

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

SERVICES PROVIDED

  • Planning

  • All phases of exhibition design

  • General contracting of exhibit fabrication & installation

PROJECT PARTNERS

  • Content Development:
    Van Buren & Associates

  • Fabrication:
    Exhibitology
    SBI

  • AV Production:
    Glass Entertainment Group

  • AV Systems:
    RAW Media Teknologies