The Air Zoo Aerospace and Science Center has been awarded an $819,200 grant from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity’s (MI-LEO) 2025 Community Museum Empowerment Grant program. With this funding the museum will launch Making Space in Michigan, a bold multi-year initiative featuring aerospace career-focused exhibits, programs, and interpretation designed to fuel Michigan’s future workforce.
Located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the Air Zoo is a one-of-a-kind, Smithsonian-affiliated aerospace and science center, boasting a renowned collection of over 100 rare and historically significant air and space artifacts, as well as flight simulators, hands-on exhibits, and a restoration program that specializes in WWII planes rescued from the bottom of Lake Michigan. On a mission to ignite curiosity, celebrate innovation, and connect history and science through past, present, and future dreams of flight, the Air Zoo is among the top seven MI-LEO awarded institutions across the state chosen for their ability to inspire and empower communities.
Making Space in Michigan will allow the Air Zoo to deliver a groundbreaking suite of aerospace programming, teacher resources, and career development opportunities. This will include new school and educator programs designed to spark curiosity and build critical career skills, permanent exhibits and immersive interactives, and mobile community-based experiences that take aerospace learning beyond the museum’s walls. Through this work, the Air Zoo and its partners are focused on closing curriculum gaps, supporting teachers, and igniting a passion for high-demand careers in aerospace, robotics, and beyond. The Air Zoo has already begun work on this extraordinary initiative with programming support from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and the Tyler-Little Family Foundation, with a goal of completion sometime in 2029.
Troy Thrash, President and CEO at The Air Zoo stated that “The investments made by the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity and the Tyler-Little Family Foundation have created an opportunity for us to support our community in an exciting new way. The Air Zoo has been a regional champion of STEAM education and workforce development for a decade now. This new program will create opportunities for us to grow Michigan’s already strong aerospace industry for decades to come.”
Congratulations to our partners at the Air Zoo! We greatly look forward to following your progress on this work in the coming years. All the best as you continue to create such incredible opportunities for your community.
