With $819,200 in state support secured by the Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation, the Children’s Museum begins a new chapter of curiosity, creativity, and community.
For more than a century, the Detroit Children’s Museum has been a place where curiosity, imagination, and learning thrive. Opened in 1917, it was one of the first four museums in the country dedicated to children’s education and today remains one of the five largest children’s museums in the U.S., with more than six million artifacts in its collection. Generations of Detroiters grew up walking through its doors, sparking lifelong passions for science, history, and the arts.
Now, after years of limited access, the Museum is ready to reopen. The Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation (DPSCD Foundation) is proud to share that we have secured $819,200 in state funding from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) to support this long-awaited return. In addition, Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), which owns and operates the Museum, has made additional investments to fund critical repairs needed to reopen the facility and sustain its operations.
“This is a historic moment for Detroit,” said Kerrie Mitchell, President & CEO of the DPSCD Foundation.
This fall, DPSCD students will be the first to step inside during an exclusive preview period in October and November. Their feedback will help shape exhibits and programming, ensuring the Museum reflects the voices of the young people it serves. The full public reopening is planned for December 2026 during Detroit’s beloved Noel Night celebration.
“The Children’s Museum holds a special place in the hearts of most Detroiters who were able to visit when they were young students in Detroit Public Schools. With the reopening of the Children’s Museum, District students will once again be able to create new memories in the planetarium, viewing the bright display cases of unique local and global artifacts, and interactive learning experiences,” said Alycia Meriweather, Deputy Superintendent, DPSCD.
The Museum’s story is one of resilience. Nearly closed during the District’s financial crisis in 2009, day-to-day management was transferred to the then–Detroit Science Center, where it operated at limited capacity until 2020, when the pandemic forced its closure. Since then, the Museum has continued to serve as a lending resource for educators, supporting nearly 64,000 student learning contacts in the 2023–24 school year through kits and STEM materials loaned across more than 60 schools.
With new investments in place, the Detroit Children’s Museum will once again take its place alongside the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Michigan Science Center, and others as a cornerstone of Detroit’s cultural and educational landscape.
The Detroit Children’s Museum is coming back—and with continued support from our community, it will remain a place where every child can discover, imagine, and grow.
