Introducing Education, Technology, and an Unforgettable View

Auditorium and website funded through $3.2 million in gifts by Foundation donors

The Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center auditorium is open! The new 150-seat addition combines state-of-the-art technology with a picture window that frames the Teton Range to create Jackson’s most scenic venue for lectures and films. Complementing the educational components in the visitor center, the facility’s offerings include a National Park Service film and lecture series as well as music and community-sponsored presentations.

In addition, http://www.discovergrandteton.org/ will launch this summer and provide trip planning and educational information that includes wildlife, geology, park history, and Junior Ranger programs. Videos, webcams, games, and electronic field trips will be featured as well to advance the park’s overall interpretive scheme and connect with a tech-savvy audience. Future plans include interactive e-hikes and mobile apps.

For upcoming auditorium events, visit www.nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/special.htm. 

Renowned Scientist to Speak at Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center Auditorium

Grand Teton National Park Foundation board member, Dr. Robert Smith, will share his experiences and geologic discoveries in the greater Yellowstone-Teton region as part of Grand Teton National Park’s Speaker Series 2011.

Jackson, Wyoming – June 23, 2011 Grand Teton National Park Foundation Board Member Dr. Robert B. Smith, an award-winning research professor and emeritus professor of geophysics and geology at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, will deliver a retrospective of his distinguished career in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem on June 30, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. A Living, Breathing, Shaking Career will be held in the new auditorium at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose, Wyoming. The lecture is part of a larger series that will run from June 27 to August 30 and will feature nine talks that center on a variety of topics. The public is invited to attend; seating is available for the first 150 people to arrive. Dr. Smith has conducted research in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks for more than fifty years and is the co-author of Windows Into the Earth—The Geologic Story of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. His research has predominantly focused on earthquakes and volcanoes and the role giant forces from these natural features have played in shaping northwestern Wyoming and the western U.S.

“Bob has been a tremendous asset to our organization,” Foundation President Leslie Mattson said. “Not only does he help us understand up-to-the minute information about an active park that is constantly changing, he has been invaluable to park managers and the greater region when it comes to interpreting the area’s geologic events so decision makers can respond effectively.”

Beginning in the early 1970s Dr. Smith initiated his studies of earthquakes and ground motions of Jackson Hole, later conducting seismic surveys of Jackson Lake and age dating of the Teton fault. These investigations led to an understanding of the Teton fault and its role in geologic evolution and earthquake hazards of the region. In addition, he founded the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, which monitors volcanic and earthquake unrest in the Yellowstone National Park region, the site of the largest and most diverse collection of natural thermal features in the world. His contributions also include launching the University of Utah’s Seismograph Stations, a research, educational, and public service group that operates a regional and urban seismic network of more than 200 stations that serve Utah, eastern Idaho, and western Wyoming. Dr. Smith has been a visiting professor at Columbia University, Cambridge University, and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich.

To learn more about Dr. Robert B. Smith’s teaching and research, visit http://www.uusatrg.utah.edu/RBSMITH/public_html/rbs-home.index.html.

To learn more about Grand Teton National Park Foundation, visit http://www.gtnpf.org/ or follow the organization’s daily updates at www.twitter.com/GrandTetonFdn and www.facebook/gtnpf.

To learn more about Grand Teton National Park, visit http://www.nps.gov/grte/index.htm or follow the park’s updates at http://twitter.com/#!/grandtetonnps and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Grand-Teton-National-Park-Official-Page/130250293656242. For details about Speaker Series 2011, contact the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center at 307-739-3399.

About Dr. Robert B. Smith
Professor Robert B. Smith has had a distinguished career as a university professor, a research geophysicist, an ardent supporter of and contributor to understanding the causes and effects of earthquakes and volcanoes, and an articulate national and international witness to the hazards and risks posed by these active geologic processes. In addition to his many honors and awards from academic and professional societies, he received a US Department of Interior Career Research Award in 2006; the NPS Award for Contributions to the Geologic Understanding of Yellowstone in 2008; and he received the NPS Intermountain Director’s Award for Natural Resources Research in 2009 for his research and for communicating his knowledge of the geology of Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. Bob lives in Moose, Wyoming, and Salt Lake City, Utah.

About Grand Teton National Park Foundation
Grand Teton National Park Foundation provides private financial support for special projects that enhance and protect Grand Teton National Park's treasured resources. Since 1997, the organization has raised more than $20 million for education-based capital projects, work-and-learn programs that connect youth to nature, and wildlife research and protection. By funding initiatives that go beyond what the National Park Service could accomplish on its own, Foundation friends solve park challenges and create a solid future for Grand Teton.

About Grand Teton National Park
Located in northwestern Wyoming, Grand Teton National Park preserves a spectacular landscape rich with majestic mountains, pristine lakes and extraordinary wildlife. The park's world-renowned scenery attracts nearly four million visitors per year, and offers an array of recreational activities for all ages and all abilities. Grand Teton National Park (310,000 acres) lies at the heart of the Greater Yellowstone Area: a 22-million-acre ecosystem that includes immeasurable natural resources and priceless historic and cultural treasures.

GRAND TETON VISITOR CENTER AUDITORIUM BREAKS GROUND

Grand Teton National Park Foundation, the primary fundraising partner for Grand Teton National Park, brought Mary Gibson Scott, NPS acting regional director, key park staff, and Foundation board members together for a groundbreaking ceremony on June 17 to mark the official start of construction for the auditorium addition.  The 3,600-square-foot, 154-seat auditorium will complete the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center and is scheduled to open in spring 2011. 

The high-tech addition, designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson and built by Raass Brothers, Inc., and R&O Construction, will expand upon existing visitor center exhibits and host a regularly scheduled documentary film produced by Discovery Communications, Inc. that features the  park’s natural resources and its history as well as notable conservationists who played a role in the park’s creation.  A wall of windows, hidden behind a theatrical curtain and a retractable screen, will reveal the Teton Range at the completion of the film.  State-of-the-art systems and the unique backdrop will make the space ideal for hosting lectures or special events and conferences. 

“We wouldn’t be standing here today without the help of many generous donors,” Foundation President Leslie Mattson said.  “The construction crew has defined the boundaries of the auditorium and now I have context.  I’m beginning to really grasp what it will feel like to sit here and appreciate the same view the audience will see.”  The Foundation is funding the structure in its entirety through donor gifts, and the three-year fundraising campaign is coming to a close. 

“The auditorium addition will provide a welcome arena in which to showcase special presentations that educate, inspire, and awe our park visitors,” Acting Regional Director Mary Gibson Scott said. “We’re anxious to realize the original vision for the Discovery Center, and we appreciate the significant fundraising efforts of the Foundation in getting us to this milestone.”

Along with the visitor center and the upcoming auditorium, the Foundation funds the Youth Conservation Program, a teen trail rehabilitation crew, and the Children in Nature Multicultural Engagement Program, an experiential pilot program that introduces local Latino youth to park-centered outdoor education and Grand Teton’s recreation.  Foundation donors also support wildlife research and metal bear-resistant food storage lockers that are installed in park campsites and picnic areas.  Planning for a major trail restoration campaign is underway and will address degradation and erosion issues on some of the park’s most popular trails.

“This auditorium is going to be a tremendous addition in the park and a unique venue for the greater community, too,” Mattson said.  “We hope to offer a wide range of wilderness programming.  The lectures, films, and videos that will be showcased here will be one more way to connect people to Grand Teton and America’s irreplaceable landscapes.”