About Us

The Christa McAuliffe Center for Integrated Science Learning is an informal STEM education center located on the campus of Framingham State University (FSU), in the MetroWest region of Massachusetts. It was established in 1994 to honor the legacy of educator, NASA Teacher in Space, and FSU class of 1970 graduate Christa McAuliffe. Today it serves FSU and the MetroWest community as a hub for STEM education activity and outreach.

Our programming features interdisciplinary experiences in space science, work-based learning focused on clean energy and sustainability, and activities at the intersection of science, social science, and the arts. Our programs are designed in partnership with educators, scientists, artists, and media specialists and promote diversity and inclusion in STEM fields. Programs from our diverse portfolio serve K-12 audiences and undergraduate students, K-16 educators, community-based organizations, local employers and a growing community of lifelong learners.

Our staff is dedicated to fostering a community of lifelong learners by providing innovative, integrated STEM pedagogies, practices, and programs that are accessible to all audiences. We do this by engaging participants of all ages in innovative, fully immersive learning experiences.

The Challenger Learning Center (CLC) mission simulator was the McAuliffe Center’s first program, and is still just as popular today as it was when introduced in 1994. Through their roles as astronauts, engineers and mission controllers, approximately 8,000 students per year apply their classroom and workplace skills in this dynamic, real-world learning environment. Virtual programs allow the McAuliffe Center to extend its educational reach beyond the FSU campus, with resources that can be implemented in a school classroom, out-of-school setting, or at home.

The McAuliffe Center manages the FSU Planetarium, a 30’ digital theater and classroom that uses the power of immersive learning to increase understanding across a broad range of subject matter and learning levels. The McAuliffe Center engages its public audience through monthly public programs in the FSU Planetarium, special events and guest speaker programs, and the annual Science on State Street festival, which draws hundreds of community members to the FSU campus for family-friendly STEM engagement each spring.

Both undergraduate students and the McAuliffe Center benefit from our lively internship program, which allows students to develop workplace skills while contributing to its many programs and initiatives.

Through its leadership role in the MetroWest STEM Education Network (MSEN), the McAuliffe Center serves as an effective regional catalyst for collaborations among Framingham State University, regional businesses, workforce and economic development initiatives, K-16 institutions, and nonprofit organizations. MSEN is one of nine regional STEM networks funded by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Education to contribute to and promote the goals of the Massachusetts STEM Council.

The McAuliffe Center has been harnessing the collaboration with education and business partners to implement Perspectives of Earth – Team Mentorship and Internship (PETM). Established in 2019, PETM promotes high school students’ engagement in STEM disciplines and development of durable skills, by leveraging youth’s concerns for local environmental problems, while also fostering community participation in environmental mitigation and adaptation initiatives.