While some people visit the Orlando Science Center (OSC) to peer into night skies through Central Florida’s largest telescope, others choose to view a film on Bengal tigers, on an eight-story screen that surrounds the audience.

Whatever your preference, this four-story, 200,000-square foot facility filled with science-related adventures, offers a variety of activities where visitors will be awed and amused for hours.

The Orlando Science Center has come a long way from its establishment in 1955 when it was called the Central Florida Museum. In the beginning, the museum focused on anthropology with artifact collections associated with Florida and the Caribbean Basin. In 1984, as part of an expansion and change of philosophy, it was renamed the Orlando Science Center. The new venue celebrated its grand opening in February 1997. It is six times larger than the original facility.

The Orlando Science Center not only serves as the community’s center of activity for mysteries of the earth and space, it also provides a unique locale for myregion.org’s final series of community workshops, which are taking place this week. Elected leaders, executives and concerned citizens from seven counties have been gathering at OSC for this four-day workshop series, which is the last opportunity for public participation and discussion about the myregion.org initiative.

“We wanted a location that had appeal as well as one that reflected the region with a central location and easy access,” explained Shelley Lauten, project director for myregion.org. “The Science Center is so unusual and has so many remarkable exhibits that it provided a learning experience as well as a way for the community to participate in planning the future. Best of all, it is fun and energizing.”

The workshops proved to be a huge success with nearly 1,000 participants from Central Florida’s seven counties. For more information about this project, visit www.myregion.org. You may contact Shelley Lauten at 407-835-2444 or toll free at 1-800-900-5315. For more information about the Orlando Science Center call 407-514-2000.