Sciencenter Discovery Museum

Sciencenter Discovery Museum, operating as Sciencenter, is a Ithaca, New York–based tax-exempt nonprofit organization that designs and delivers hands-on STEM education programming, traveling museum exhibitions, and professional development for museum practitioners as a federal grant recipient (66% prime awards, 34% sub-awards across recent activity). The organization does not hold federal contracts or seats on contract vehicles; all federal engagement is grant-funded work through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and related agencies.

Sciencenter's core capability footprint centers on exhibition design and development, interactive STEM learning experiences for youth and families, and field-wide capacity building for museum and library educators. Representative prime grant work includes a $999,539 three-year award from IMLS under the 21st Century Museum Professional Program (CFDA 45.032) beginning October 2025, supporting professional learning communities for 30 museum-community partner pairs in early childhood STEM engagement; a $1,037,288 Museums for America grant (CFDA 45.301, September 2026) to design a traveling birds-themed exhibition with hands-on activities and evaluation; and a $501,818 Museums for America award (September 2024) to co-create STEM activity kits with regional libraries and expand equitable access to STEM learning in rural communities. Earlier prime work included a $998,433 NASA cooperative agreement for the "Explore Science: Destination Moon" project featuring mobile apps and hands-on space exploration activities. Sciencenter acts as a subrecipient on Cornell University–managed NASA Space Grant subawards (multiple awards, 2023–2025) delivering community science nights and outreach to elementary-aged students in rural Tompkins County, and on a National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering award with Cornell's Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering to develop a traveling biomedical engineering exhibition for small to mid-sized museums nationally.

Customer concentration is narrow and agency-driven by grant program structure. NASA (through its Shared Services Center) anchors 15 awards with $2.3 million in combined potential value; IMLS accounts for 8 awards; the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science for 6; and NSF and NOAA for the remainder. Award activity declined sharply from eight awards in 2024 to two in 2026, suggesting a recompete cliff: five awards (combined potential value $50 thousand) complete within the next twenty-four months. Sciencenter's grant footprint carries no set-aside designations and competes on program merit rather than small-business set-asides. Recent obligated dollars ($15.5 million cumulative) significantly exceed the combined potential value ($2.3 million), indicating grants that have been renewed or extended beyond their original ceiling values. The organization's federal role is narrowly defined to educational exhibition development, community outreach, and field-wide capacity building for the museum and library sectors; it does not operate as a prime contractor or IT services vendor.