New program offers discount admission to San Bernardino County Museum

A new program at the San Bernardino County Museum is helping open the doors to learning for families of all income levels in the Inland Empire.

The museum recently announced the start of Museum for All, a signature access program of the Association of Children’s Museums and the Institute of Museums and Library Services. The museum’s participation is made possible by the San Bernardino County Museum Association and U.S. Bank.

As part of the program, families with up to nine people in a group can enter the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands, the Victor Valley Museum in Apple Valley, and the county’s historic sites for an admission price of only $1. To qualify, an EBT card from any state must be shown. The card cannot be used as admission payment.

“It can be family, it can be friends or it can even be to celebrate a birthday,” said Jennifer Reynolds, the museum’s media specialist. “We’re pleased that we’ve been able to keep our admission prices relatively low, but now with this program, we can offer everyone — entire families — an opportunity to experience the museum.”

And opening the doors to all family members is what Museum Director Melissa Russo is hoping the program can facilitate.

“By removing this financial barrier, we have an opportunity to provide a high quality museum experience to all children and families in our county – research shows that this exposure can help children’s social and academic development,” Russo said in the news release.

“But we also want to open the learning experience to all,” she said in an earlier interview. “We want parents to be involved.”

More than 150 other museums across the nation are offering qualified families visits to museums for a minimal fee, in hopes “to inspire new skills and interests, ignite creativity and enrich social connections,” the news release states.

The Museum for All program through the San Bernardino County Museum system runs through June, 30 2018.

For a list of the participating locations and historic sites, visit www.sbcounty.gov/museum.

The San Bernardino County Museum is at 2024 N. Orange Tree Lane in Redlands. To learn more about the program call 909-307-2669.