Discovery Lab Hopes Land Donation, Funds Lead To New Home

The George Kaiser Family Foundation announced a pledge of land worth $10 million toward the construction of a new home for Tulsa's Discovery Lab in The Gathering Place.

Thursday, it was pretty quiet at Discovery Lab’s current home at Owen Park, but don't be fooled, Executive Director Ray Vandiver is really excited about the future.

"Depending on the final layout we'll have distinctive halls with various themes and educational objectives," he said.

It can be a place with space for quiet time, as well as room for something noisy, all at the same time.

Discovery Lab has been wildly successful since it opened in May of 2013, but they could use more room, which is why they are so excited about the donation, and a hoped for match from Vision Renewal Funds.

That would give them a new home on the south end of the Gathering Place.

Thursday, crews worked on the installation of a new exhibit, which opens Friday. It's called Gross-ology, the impolite science of the human body.

Impolite in that you have to be conversant in the lingo - snot, barf, burps and belches, and toots.

It's a fun way to teach kids and the rest of us how our bodies do what they do.

Vandiver said, "So the educational message is about human physiology and how our bodies work, so it is educational in content."

And lots of fun.

The Discovery Lab folks are hoping the land donation and a match from Vision 2025 renewal funds will make possible a state-of-the-art children's discovery and science center that can both produce interactive exhibits, and bring them here for Tulsa area kids to learn from and enjoy.

Discovery Lab must now go back to the City Council to make a more extensive presentation to support their request for a Vision renewal grant.

The Gross-ology exhibit opens Friday and runs through March.