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Idaho Museum of Natural History requests operating support to sustain mobile museum outreach
Summary
The Idaho Museum of Natural History in Pocatello secured a three‑year private grant to buy a mobile museum van and is seeking modest state operating funds to sustain outreach once grant term ends; director Leif Tapanilla described programming and measurement challenges to the committee.
Kevin Campbell, Legislative Services Office analyst, presented the Idaho Museum of Natural History’s FY2026 budget request; Director Leif Tapanilla described a recently awarded private grant and the museum’s plan for a mobile outreach program.
Tapanilla said the museum obtained a three‑year, $180,000 grant from a private foundation to purchase a van and fund two years of part‑time educator support for outreach focused on rural areas. He described the request in FY2026 as a partial state operating subsidy intended to make the program sustainable when private grant funding expires.
"The goal of that is ... in the first year to purchase a van... and then in the subsequent two years we will have part‑time salary for an individual to go travel around," Tapanilla said. He told the committee the mobile museum is expected to travel about 6,000 miles annually and visit schools and libraries statewide with a focus on rural counties.
Senator Cook and others asked what the modest operating increase would cover; Tapanilla said the grant buys the van but not all ongoing material and operational costs, which the museum hopes state funds will help cover once foundation funding ends. Senator Goode asked about performance metrics; Tapanilla acknowledged quantitative measures such as visit counts are easy to track (attendance, miles traveled) but said quality and educational impact are harder to quantify and will be tracked through stories and program assessments as well as standard counts.
No votes were taken on the museum’s request during the hearing.
