The San Antonio DoSeum Creating Unique and Unforgettable Experiences for Families

By Richard Kissel, PhD, Chief Program Officer, Interviewed by Monica Jones, COO, BCMS

“Explorius Infinitum”

Done with the intention of examining something in order to find out more. Commonly observed at The DoSeum.

The DoSeum opened its doors to the San Antonio community on June 6, 2015. Serving families with children ages birth through 11, our mission is to grow curious minds, connect families, and transform communities through joyful learning and discovery. The DoSeum offers 70,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibits, as well as a broad portfolio of programming and events during the year—all rooted in science, technology, engineering and math (“STEM”), as well as the arts and early literacy.

Prior to its current location on Broadway, the museum was located on Houston Street as The San Antonio Children’s Museum, and the evolution of the museum to Broadway permitted more space for exhibits and programming. In 2022, we welcomed more than 330,000 members and guests, over 10,000 students on field trips, and we designed and led professional-development programs for more than 250 local teachers. As we continue beyond the COVID pandemic, these numbers continue to increase.

How does the DoSeum help with Children’s Health?

The DoSeum is a leisure-based social venue that offers families and friends the opportunity to spend time with one another, and a place where they can explore their curiosities while learning together. Our goal with any exhibit or program development is to design to not only STEM concepts, but to also incorporate social and emotional frameworks. We consider concepts of self-awareness, social-awareness, self- management, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making, for example. The DoSeum is a welcoming and safe place for all of San Antonio’s families, a place where they truly feel a sense of belonging and a freedom to follow their curiosity and wonder. “Explorius Infinitum!” The DoSeum helps families create special memories for parents and children alike.

Our programs are also designed to accommodate learners of all types, such as our sensory-friendly Beyond Limits program.

Tell us about the Teacher CPE Programs

In addition to serving families via the physical museum itself, we are honored to also work with local and regional educators. We offer a range of professional development opportunities for fellow educators, focusing on maker-centered learning, visual thinking strategies, inquiry-based instruction, the nature of science, and the engineering design process. These frameworks are rooted in problem-based learning and the process of science—asking questions, making observations, and presenting potential solutions based on the information collected. It is our hope that these concepts of reasoning will help our young learners be prepared for future challenges and opportunities.

Tell us about the Family Workshops.

The DoSeum’ s Family Workshops represent a new part of our program portfolio. We wanted a program that was designed to have families working together as a single unit. We limit each session to 10 to 12 families, with up to five members per family, and then help lead them through an activity that will either be extraordinarily memorable or provide a great item to take home. For example, in the shark dissec- tion program families receive a three-foot-long dogfish shark to dissect—a truly memorable experience for those families. We have also created stained glass panels and led workshops on Halloween makeup. These programs are held in the spring and fall seasons, typically on the last Sunday of each month.

Do you offer any special pricing or discounts for our community in San Antonio?

We understand that admission to any museum can be one barrier for local families, and we are proud to offer many discounts for the community, all of which can be found on our website. For example, we were the first museum in San Antonio to participate in the Museums for All program, which offers significantly reduced admission for any family presenting a SNAP or WIC Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card and matching ID. We also offer group pricing, as well as discounts for Educators, Seniors, and members of the Military, all of which can be found on our website. We are currently looking forward to working with the Bexar County Medical Society to have a “Doctors Day” for BCMS family members!

What are the upcoming events for this year?

As we continue to refine and expand our programming, we are excited to be introducing “Night at The DoSeum.” This program invites families to spend an evening of play within our galleries, followed by sleeping in the museum and a nice continental breakfast before departure. We’ll have STEM stations set-up throughout the museum during the evening, as well, to create unique and memorable experiences for families in San Antonio. The first public overnight is scheduled for March 24-25, and registration is live on our website. We also can separately host individual Scout groups for an overnight program.

The DoSeum’s very popular camp program is also returning for 2023. Registration for our Spring Break and Summer camps is already open. You can visit our website to register and learn more information.

Further, we are very excited to have our Special Events office return, following a temporary hiatus as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our special events office manages our Birthday Party programs and private event rentals.

On behalf of the DoSeum’s staff and myself we would like to thank you for your service to our community. We realize how important it is to spend family time together and we invite you to visit the DoSeum. To find more information about DoSeum’s Programs and Services visit: www.thedoseum.org

Photographs copyrights The DoSeum.

Dr. Richard Kissel is the Chief Program Officer at The DoSeum, where he oversees guest experience, educational programming, and special events for San Antonio's only museum dedicated to early learners. He also serves as an instructor and course developer for the online Museum Studies graduate program at Johns Hopkins University. Richard also served as the Director of Public Programs at Yale's Peabody Museum, Director of Teacher Programs at the Paleontological Research Institution and Science Program Specialist at The Field Museum. He is a featured scientist online at NOVA's scienceNOW, serves as a scientific consultant for NOVA/BBC programming, and was a featured speaker at the 2016 TEDx Yale conference.