10 Years Curious & Creative - A Decazeum of Difference

October 23, 2025

October brings to conclusion our Decazeum (Decade of Amazeum) celebration, 10 months throughout 2025 celebrating 10 years of growth and impact in this phenomenal community. We’ve posted stories from founders, looked at photos from over 10 years of exploration, had some great family photo re-enactments of THEN & NOW in the museum, and laughed at the fun and learning we’ve had together along the way. We had a rip-roaring Birthday party in July, and released our re-imagined closing song with singer/songwriter Shannon Wurst. We made some messes at Mess Fest, and made even more purpose-built mess at Tinkerfest, including a car take-apart or two. We have enjoyed the ride - and we hope you have as well!

I moved here 13 years ago to join this incredible organization and community to build the Scott Family Amazeum on the grassy field at J and Museum Way. I find I’m often asked what has been the highlight of the experience. How can you pick just one? I’m so proud of:

  • Wild and thoughtful camps and workshops that have captivated the curiosity of so many of the kids in our region year after year.
  • Adult nights and UnGalas that prove you don’t have to be a kid to laugh, explore, and play.
  • Our rich work with thousands of teachers and educators in the area, diving deeply into STEM and tinkering as key learning lenses for exploring, understanding and shaping the world around us.
  • The wildly eclectic collection of makers, artists, scientists, engineers, architects, bread-makers, and others who have come to share their crafts, skills, and passions with all of us here.
  • The dedicated, heartstrong team that goes all-in to dream up experiences, programs, and exhibits that help set the stage for collaborative learning, to spark wonder and curiosity, and encourage ever-deeper exploration. They know and care for everyone who comes to visit. (And after 10 years, some of the team were once campers and kids who have grown up with the Amazeum and decided to join the team themselves!)

And most importantly, I’m proud of YOU. Each of you. Parents and caregivers, we know it’s not easy. It’s loud. It can be messy. It’s always changing. We invite you to join in on the learning and fun while here- to climb, crawl, laugh, and investigate with each other. We see you, joining your kids in the tornado exhibit to explore with them, or drying a soaking wet toddler who is ALL IN at Water Amazements, or keeping track of the whole group while each one wants to head down a different direction. Frank Oppenheimer, founder of the world-famous Exploratorium in San Francisco, famously stated, “No one ever flunked a museum.” Friends, that is so true. You all get an A+ from our faculty here! I’ll sign your report card myself.

For all of the amazing happenings of the past decade, however, I’m even more excited about the NEXT 10 years. We’ve collectively built an amazing engine during our first ten years, now we get to open up the throttle. The Hangout and Early Learning Advancement Center are now under construction and promise to grow our ability to bring the community together in deeper programming regularly, for adults and kids, and to increase our work with the youngest of our learners. The Backyard is next, a re-imagining of our outdoor space, carving out a learning landscape to get us comfortable exploring in the natural setting. We’re working with great colleagues to explore the landscape of learning around Northwest Arkansas, our friends at XNA to create a launchpad for learning on your next flying adventure, and our awesome neighbors to create the best campus for learning in the country. We can’t wait to share more details about all of this incredible collaborative work with you in the coming months.

What won’t change? That spirit of joy, curiosity, and creativity, and that collaborative spirit that says we can do it, if we do it together. The world is knowable, and is even more exciting the more you seek to explore, understand, and commit to wonder. Buckle up, friends, and let’s go for a pretty groovy ride.

Zing on.

- Sam

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