USU College of Engineering is a new title sponsor at The Leonardo Museum
Utah State University is “Utah’s aerospace school,” according to Matthew Jensen, director of marketing and public relations in USU’s College of Engineering.
This is why Justin Anderson, director of marketing and events at The Leonardo museum, is excited to welcome USU’s college of engineering as their FLIGHT: The Next Leg exhibit’s title sponsor for the next three years.
FLIGHT is dedicated to aerospace study in the STEM and creativity museum. It was opened in 2016 and has had more than 500,000 visitors. Currently on display are full sized aircraft, flight simulators and interactive exhibits.
As title sponsor, FLIGHT will soon be home to many exhibits USU students have been working on. As of now, Jensen plans for one aerodynamics exhibit, a space exploration exhibit, an exhibit on satellite expeditions and two exhibits on a new sustainable aviation fuel.
Jensen said USU students and faculty have spent the last two or three years creating a sustainable fuel from algae.
Students in the College of Engineering have also been working to help the Brazilian Space Agency solve a problem with their GPS reliability. Jenson reveals the FLIGHT exhibit will also have a space dedicated to this work.
It will be a process to get all of USU’s contributions to the museum, but they plan to have a “Future of Flight” displayed on an entire wall of the exhibit.
“We were fortunate to find an organization that is as visionary and cutting edge as USU’s College of Engineering,” Anderson said. “It really felt like the perfect fit.”
“We’re a natural match,” Jensen said. “USU is the best option in Utah for flight, airplanes and space exploration study.”
Jensen hopes the partnership with The Leonardo will improve brand visibility and awareness.
As young people visit the FLIGHT exhibit, they will see that USU “is the best option for aerospace studies”, and it will “inspire the next generation of engineers,” Jensen said.
“We want The Leonardo to be a real cultural gathering place where big conversations can happen,” Anderson said.
USU’s “amazing leaders in engineering” and its “committed and loyal following” will serve the museum’s vision for its future.
USU faculty and ambassadors will be welcomed at the museum for educational lectures, special events and workshops due to a new Engineer in Residence program.
Nov. 4 will mark the first formal event with USU’s exhibits. The reception will be held between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Anderson hopes to come up with a system where all USU affiliated individuals will be able to enjoythe FLIGHT exhibit in addition to the entire museum all day.
As of now, Anderson said any visitor with a USU student ID is guaranteed free admission.
You can learn more about the USU College of Engineering at their website, engineering.usu.edu.
You can visit The Leonardo at 209 E 500 S in Salt Lake, and more information can be found on their website, theleonardo.org.