In addition, MOSI unveiled an expanded Center for STEAM Learning, with 30,000 square feet of new classroom and lab space at a Jan. 27 ceremony. The additions will help cement the 64-year-old museum\u2019s status as a hub for science, technology, engineering and math (STEAM) education.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not just a place where you come on a field trip or come with your family, look around and play with stuff and then leave,\u201d said CEO John Graydon Smith. \u201cThe best work that we do is hands-on, educator-led programming.\u201d<\/p>\n
In true MOSI fashion, educators used chemical reactions to transform a sign bearing the former moniker into its \u201cname of the future\u201d at the science-powered ceremony. The institution has expanded and reconfigured its footprint at 4801 Fowler Ave., near the University of South Florida, following its emergence from an economic downturn.<\/p>\n
The changes align with the institution\u2019s commitment to preparing Tampa Bay students for next-gen careers. MOSI\u2019s evolution also reflects its proximity to the nascent Uptown Innovation District.<\/p>\n
Significant investments have recently transformed the area, and the beloved yet once-stale museum wants to ensure it has a seat on the rocket ship. \u201cBeyond understanding innovation, MOSI is here to help harness it,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re here to inspire the thinkers of tomorrow with learning outside the classroom, and we\u2019re here to be a crucial partner in making sure the jobs of the future will be coming to Tampa Bay.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The Museum of Science & Innovation\u2019s immersive Saunders Planetarium and Digital Dome Theater, the nation\u2019s second-largest, opened in April 2025.<\/p>\n
MOSI began as the Museum of Science and Natural History in 1962. The institution became the Museum of Science and Industry in 1982.<\/p>\n
What was formerly the Southeast\u2019s largest science center occupied 74 acres and boasted a once state-of-the-art IMAX theater. Both fell on hard times; over 80% of the exhibits closed in 2017 as a cost-cutting measure.<\/p>\n
Smith, known for<\/a> revitalizing similar facilities, became president and CEO in 2022. He replaced the dormant IMAX theater with the nation\u2019s second-largest immersive digital dome (one in New York is three feet bigger), which opened in April 2025.<\/a><\/p>\n Smith said Tuesday that the new moniker captures MOSI\u2019s newfound energy and trajectory in a \u201crapidly changing world.\u201d He said the institution will help students throughout the region \u201cmake sense of what\u2019s happening now and what\u2019s coming next.\u201d<\/p>\n