Play the name game at Explorit

Arco has its basketball arena (for now), AT&T has its ballpark, the Jonssons have their science exhibit gallery.

The Jonssons?

Mark Jonsson of Davis and his family, through the Kenneth Jonsson Family Foundation, pledged a $250,000 leadership gift to Explorit Science Center’s capital campaign. The gift gave them the chance to name one of the two major exhibit galleries in Explorit’s new building at 2801 Second St. in Davis. As a result, a sign at the entrance to the first-floor gallery welcomes visitors to the Jonsson Family Gallery.

“We are pleased to showcase our generous contributors in this way and hope their support inspires others to do the same,” says Allison Cagley, Explorit’s development director.

Explorit’s other major gallery, which will be on the second floor and has not yet opened to the public, is already spoken for by the Gumerlock Family Foundation.

The Frank H. & Eva B. Buck Foundation and the Rumsey Community Fund each have donated $75,000, which provides them with opportunities to name areas that also will open in future phases.

Plenty of opportunities remain, though. For a cool $1 million, you can name the building itself. For half that amount, you can attach your name to the patio area, to be known as Grand Plaza. Gifts with naming opportunities start at $25,000, and multi-year pledges are welcome.

Nice as it is to see one’s name highlighted, the best part of a gift to Explorit is knowing that you’ve helped meet a critical need in the community, says Cagley.

“Our country is facing a crisis in science education,” she says. “In recent years, school science has taken a back-seat to other educational priorities. But the demand for science-literate workers is skyrocketing, and people of all ages are faced with complex choices that require a basic understanding of the science in our lives.

“Explorit is uniquely positioned in this region to address this challenge,” Cagley says. “It has a strong history, through the exhibit hall and our outreach programs, of encouraging open-ended exploration in a way that helps people make connections with science in our daily lives.”

Mark Jonsson agrees. In a statement on Explorit’s Web site, he says, “We strongly believe that our future depends on how well we educate our children. The Explorit expansion will give thousands of children and their families an exciting place where they can come and experience a hands-on learning environment.”

“Our gift to Explorit represents my family’s deep commitment to engage as many children as possible in exploring the wonderful world of science."

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Explorit Science Center is open at its new site, 2801 Second St., Davis. Through Dec. 10, you can visit the exhibition “Holes: An Opening Into the Sciences.” Public hours are Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday from 2 to 4:30 p.m. For more information: www.explorit.org or (530) 756-0191.