- This event has passed.
John Bartley Science Museum Grand Opening
10/10/2017 @ 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
The ribbon-cutting ceremony for Muskegon Community College’s John Bartley Science Musuem is set for Tuesday, Oct. 10, from 4-7 p.m. in Room 141 on the main campus. The celebration includes a free Carr-Fles Planetarium show, Science Center tours, and science demonstrations inside the Center.
Free and open to the public, the museum honors the legacy of former MCC instructor Dr. John Bartley and offers visitors a new and unique hands-on facility conveniently directly across from MCC’s popular planetarium.
The musuem engages children and adults alike in science education that’s fun and interesting. Visitors will be fascinated by the tactile scientific investigation stations, which continue Professor Bartley’s legacy and strong commitment to scientific outreach. The facility includes museum-quality displays of fossils, another of Bartley’s great passions in life. The late MCC instructor was a scientific researcher in the world of bryozoans, which are aquatic invertebrate animals sometimes called “moss animals.”
The museum also houses two MCC student-created exhibits – one is a shadow wall and a display on light and the other demonstrates kinetic energy by use of ball bearings and a ramp.
From 1989 to 2011, Bartley taught geology at MCC. Highly revered for his teaching style by his MCC geology and math students, he earned their affectionate nickname of “The Big Kahuna.” Bartley was equally beloved by MCC’s faculty and staff for his kind and gentle manner, for being a founding member of the “Human Potential Committee,” and for his omnipresent Hawaiian shirts lovingly made for him by his wife, Jackie.
An active faculty member, he served on many committees and for several years was the Math and Physical Sciences Department chair. Bartley’s love for science included the Science Olympiad. For many years, he volunteered as the president of the Michigan Science Olympiad.
Unfortunately, just a few months shy of his retirement in 2011, John was diagnosed with multiple myeloma and succumbed to the disease shortly thereafter.
For more information about the John Bartley Science Museum, contact museum coordinators Toby Moleski at (231) 777-0293 or toby.moleski@muskegoncc.edu or Amber Kumpf at (231) 777-0463 or amber.kumpf@muskegoncc.edu.