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Company NewsGaslight Media partners with Mackinac Historic Parks to build. Made possible by a Verizon Communications GrantNovember 21, 2005 
Gaslight Media is proud to announce that it has partnered with the Mackinac Historic Parks to create the "Mackinac for Kids" Web site. John VanWyke of the the Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, presented Mackinac State Historic Parks Director Phil Porter with a grant to develop educational Web site materials for students. The grant was made as part of the Verizon Connects program, which seeks to partner with the nonprofit community to expand their capacity through the use of technology. The new educational material is currently in development, and will join a selection of resources in the education section of Mackinac State Historic Parks Web site that includes lesson plans, activities, and a knowledge base and virtual tour of the Straits of Mackinac region called Virtual Mackinac. Virtual Mackinac, also financed by a grant from Verizon, has registered over 60,000 hits since going online in March of 2004. All the material included in the new educational pages will correlate with, and support, the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) and Michigan Curriculum Framework Standards. "Mackinac for Kids" will be exciting to children and help their teachers illustrate the history of Michigan and the Great Lakes. Homework Help will connect to information about specific sites within the Mackinac State Historic Parks that students can use for school reports or to become familiar with the parks before they come for a visit. Other sections will deal with activities to help teach and understand all of MSHP's sites in an entertaining and educating way. Multiple level quizzes, educational games and a section where users participate in a historic medical experiment that happened on Mackinac Island are examples of the activities planned for this section. Mackinac State Historic Parks (MSHP) is one of the most respected park, museum and travel organizations in the nation. The Straits of Mackinac area is proud to be Michigan's premier tourist destination. Visitors to Mackinac State Historic Parks come each year from all 50 states and more than 60 foreign countries, but the greatest number of MSHP visitors reside in Southeast Michigan. Their museums, including Historic Mill Creek, Fort Mackinac, and Fort Michilimackinac, welcome 400,000 visitors during their five-month season. Over 800,000 visitors come to Mackinac Island, which is a part of the park system, annually to tour the island and enjoy their scenic attractions. Their mission is to protect, preserve and present Mackinac's rich historic and natural resources to provide outstanding educational and recreational experiences for the public. MSHP presents historic and environmental programs through live interpretations, classroom visits, demonstrations, guided tours, exhibits, Web sites, curriculum material, publications and more. MSHP's award-winning educational outreach program completed its seventeenth year this April, and is still the only museum education program in Michigan to reach all areas of the state. |
