LEARN
For Educators
The Minnesota Discovery Center provides classrooms throughout the Iron Range with exceptional educational opportunities. Our programs meet all Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards. For more information, see the Educator Guide.
Field Trips
Book your school or company field trip to the Minnesota Discovery Center for a fun, educational experience! Your students or team members learn through hands-on exhibits and live demonstrations. For more information, check out our Field Trips Information FAQ.
Schedule a class field trip today by email or calling (218) 254-6001.
Field Trip Resource Guide
Please check out the Award Winning Museum of the Iron Range Educator Guide.
Guest Curator
Need a guest speaker for Iron Range history? Feel free to schedule a talk with our Curator, Allyse Freeman, on topics such as Iron Range immigration, labor history, or Prohibition. We offer opportunities for offsite in-the-classroom sessions or other speaking engagements for your organization. Contact the Curator at curator@mndiscoverycenter.com or 218-254-1238.
Guest Paleontologist
Our resident paleontologist or curator comes to your classroom. Students receive a hands-on lesson with actual fossils excavated from the Iron Range or mobile exhibit. For more information about this learning program, call 218-254-7959 or email john.westgaard@mndiscoverycenter.org.
Guest Archivist
Our resident Archivist hosts various public programs to help you learn about the Iron Range Research Center’s background, resources, and services. For more information, email archivist@minnesotadiscoverycenter.org.
Hill Annex Paleontology Project (HAPP)
The Hill Annex Paleontology Project (HAPP) is a research endeavor directed at the Cretaceous Period deposits of the Minnesota region. Beginning in 2014, the research focus has remained mainly on the Coleraine Formation conglomerates of the Mesabi Iron Range, but it also includes the entire region surrounding Minnesota. Primary work has been based out of Hill Annex State Park in Calumet, Minnesota. The formation’s stratigraphic placement is within the Cenomanian Age, in coastal depositional environments of the Western Interior Seaway (100 – 94 million years ago).
HAPP is a citizen science-initiated project started by volunteers from the Science Museum of Minnesota. It is now based at the Minnesota
Discovery Center in Chisholm, Minnesota, with new fossil material being curated there and a paleontologist staff person added in 2021. The project goals for research include expanding the existing scientific knowledge base, documenting known Coleraine Formation specimens in both public and private hands, and digitizing the project collection.
HAPP aims to grow and expand community engagement and public outreach efforts locally and regionally in conjunction with research energies. Public interactions have included schools of all ranges, community groups and clubs, public gatherings, and professional societies. We’ll share our history, challenges, and successes along the trail of our research.
Minnesota Media Arts School
The Minnesota Discovery Center’s Minnesota Media Arts School, in partnership with UMD Duluth and Zeitgeist Film, is an affordable option for the Northland’s diverse creative community, which includes filmmakers, graphic designers, multimedia artists, and theatrical artists, to learn, work, create, and connect. With teaching hubs in Chisholm and Duluth, we will significantly contribute to the regional film ecosystem.
We aim to empower, support, and educate Northland community members ages 16+ as active participants in shaping our culture and engaging diverse communities to rethink how we view film, art, and local storytelling. We provide access and a platform to work, learn, create, and experience filmmaking and media production in our community.
The Minnesota Media Arts School offers access to iMac computers with creative design and editing software, meeting rooms, multi-media studios, film/video equipment for on-site photo/video shoots and projects, digital tools, and more.
Donating Archives
In partial fulfillment of Minnesota Discovery Center’s mission, MDC maintains permanent historical collections—specifically, archives, artifacts, and library collections.
Before an item is acquired for our collections, it undergoes a rigorous review process. Guided by MDC’s collections policy, the curator and/or the archivist determine whether to accept a donation. Not all items are accepted: they may not fit MDC’s collections policy, may be redundant to other items in the collections, or may be too fragile or expensive to care for.
What Does MDC Collect?
We collect a wide variety of materials:
- Art
- Books
- Artifacts and objects
- Government records
- Film, video, and sound recordings
- Manuscripts
- Maps
- Music
- Oral histories
- Photographs
How Do I Donate An Item?
If you would like to donate an artifact or object, contact our curator: allyse@mndiscoverycenter.org or 218-254-1238
For all other donations, contact our archivist: archivist@mndiscoverycenter.org or 218-254-1229
Can I Send In Or Drop Off My Item(S) Immediately?
If you’d like to donate something, please make an appointment with MDC’s archivist or curator prior to your visit or before sending a package.
Please note: According to Minnesota Museum Property Act (MN State Statute 345.70-74), MDC has the right to dispose of any unsolicited materials delivered to it.
