Gov. McAuliffe proclaims Oct. 4-11 "Virginia Science Week"

In anticipation of Saturday's opening of the first ever Virginia Science Festival in Blacksburg, Gov. Terry McAuliffe has proclaimed the festival week of Oct. 4-11 to be "Virginia Science Week."

In his proclamation, Gov. McAuliffe applauds festival organizers Science Museum of Western Virginia and Virginia Tech, noting "the Virginia Science Festival is an opportunity to celebrate the important role of STEAM [science, technology, engineering, art and math] education, and its critical role in supporting a New Virginia Economy."

Download the full proclamation here. 

Virginia Tech will host the festival's opening ceremony Saturday at 9:45 a.m. at the Moss Arts Center, featuring Virginia Tech President Timothy Sands, Science Museum of Western Virginia executive director Jim Rollings, and Stephen Jurcyzk, director of NASA Langley Research Center, which will be a major exhibitor in both Blacksburg on Saturday and at the Roanoke festival day on Oct. 11.

In addition to the governor's proclamation, the Virginia Tourism Corporation approved "Virginia is for Science Lovers" and awarded the Science Museum of Western Virginia a $25,000 grant to help promote the festival throughout Virginia and neighboring states.

A full listing of events can be found at www.VirginiaScienceFestival.org.  

U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine serve as the festival honorary chairmen. In 2013, the Science Museum of Western Virginia was one of only 12 recipients nationwide chosen by the Cambridge, Mass.-based Science Festival Alliance (SFA) to receive a grant to help bring the festival to life. SFA provides funding via the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

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Contact

Michael Hemphill, Director of Development & Marketing

Science Museum of Western Virginia

mhemphill@smwv.org | 540.342.5718