Allegheny Challenger Center

News and Social Media

The Challenger Learning Center at Indiana, Pennsylvania has teamed up with the Indiana Area School District to provide computer assisted STEM education in the classroom. In the Dirt Decoders mission, students learn about weather, erosion, bones and the extinct Giant Ground Sloth as they deal with rescuing one of their fellow field scientists while discovering part of North America's history. They get to actually experience a baby ground sloth (Megalonyx - six feet tall) while also building a model raft and writing a report on their discoveries.

What will the facility look like? Check it out!

Allegheny Challenger Center hosts Congressman GT Thompson.

Allegheny Challenger holds Board of Directors Meeting February 13th, 2019.

Allegheny Challenger Launches New Web Site into the Future. 

Our Center

The Challenger Learning Center will be located in Indiana County, Pennsylvania and situated with the Indiana County Technology Center.  The Center is a newly organized Pennsylvania non profit organization, licensed by the national Challenger Foundation in Washington D.C.  The Center will serve twenty two counties in western and central Pennsylvania – from east Pittsburgh to Altoona, from Somerset north to Elk County.

There are over 40 Challenger Learning Centers world-wide, and this will be the first one in Pennsylvania. Challenger, a NASA affiliated foundation, was established in 1986 to honor those astronauts who died aboard the tragically aborted space mission in January of that same year.

Our Mission

Engage students and teachers in dynamic, hands-on exploration and discovery opportunities that strengthen knowledge in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), inspire students to pursue careers in these fields, and provide an outlet to learn and apply important life skills.

Our History

In the aftermath of the Challenger accident, the crew’s families came together, firmly committed to the belief that they must carry on the spirit of their loved ones by continuing the Challenger crew’s educational mission. Their efforts resulted in the creation of Challenger Center for Space Science Education.

Challenger Center and its global network of Challenger Learning Centers use space-themed simulated learning and role-playing strategies to help students bring their classroom studies to life and cultivate skills needed for future success, such as problem solving, critical thinking, communication and teamwork.

See a map of Centers around the GLOBE or around the UNITED STATES.

A not-for-profit 501(c)(3) education organization, Challenger Center reaches hundreds of thousands of students, and tens of thousands of teachers every year.

Our Loyal Crew

Thank-you to Bill and Candice Spadafora for their generous contribution!