Moon, Mars & Beyond Summative Evaluation Report

The Space Science Institute’s (SSI) National Center for Interactive Learning (NCIL) was awarded funding from NASA’s TEAM II Program to develop and implement Moon, Mars, and Beyond. The project partnered with seven public libraries to: (1) increase youth and adult patrons’ interest in and engagement with the NASA’s Moon/Mars program, its contributions to STEM disciplines, and related STEM careers; (2) build libraries’ capacity to deliver (and sustain) NASA-based STEM learning experiences for their communities; and (3) reach underserved and underrepresented library populations in their communities. Each library received professional development and other resources, and hosted a traveling exhibit for two months. Education Development Center (EDC) conducted the external evaluation of the project, focusing on whether and how the Moon, Mars, and Beyond project influenced patrons’ interest in the NASA/STEM topics presented in the exhibit and associated library programs; librarians’ ability to deliver programming and develop community partnerships to sustain such programming; and reached underserved library populations.