Emily Barnes

Great Explorations Children's Museum

Great Explorations Children's Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has been serving the children and families of the Tampa Bay area since 1987. Designed for children 10 and under, the 24,000 square foot museum is filled with exhibits and activities to stimulate learning through creativity, play and exploration. The museum is a learning playground where children can make a discovery, make a mess, and even make a new friend. Great Explorations also offers a national award-winning preschool, field trips, camps, birthday parties, corporate rentals, and educational outreach activities. In 2014, Great Explorations achieved accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the highest recognition for a museum, becoming the first mid-sized children's museum in the country and the only children's museum in Florida to be honored. AAM accreditation signifies excellence in the museum community and the process to achieve accreditation is a rigorous one and includes examination of all aspects of a museum's operations from public programs and community engagement to finances and governance. Great Explorations was co-founded in 1986 by the Junior League of St. Petersburg and Hands-On! Inc. In 2003, the museum relocated to its new 24,000 square foot facility located next to the historic Sunken Gardens on 4th Street in St. Petersburg.