To welcome students on the first week of school, the Centennial Museum and Chihuahua Desert Gardens hosted Centennial Chill Out Aug. 29.
The event offered free aguas frescas and popcorn, as well as arts and crafts activities such as poppy flower making and coloring. Additionally, students had the option to explore the current exhibitions.
Ashley Nava Monteros, the museum’s Education Outreach Coordinator, shared that this event was hosted to show students what the museum had to offer while showcasing a space for students to relax after a stressful first week.
“I believe that the museum is a resource for students when it comes to research or a space for them to come and de-stress, walk around, engage with each other,” said Monteros. “Just creating a space for students to talk to each other in a kind of low anxiety setting.”
There are three current exhibits at the Centennial Museum.
A Waddle Through Time celebrates ducks, their adaptability, and human efforts to protect and conserve them. The exhibit will be leaving the museum soon according to Monteros.
Punto de Partida shares the stories of immigrants and asylum-seekers along the U.S.-Mexico Border. This exhibit will be displayed until Dec. 14, 2024.
There is also Centennial Dinosaurs, which journeys back in time to highlight some of the lesser-known dinosaurs that once used to roam Texas and the Southwest.
UTEP linguistics student, Brisa Gonzales, shared how events like these are also networking opportunities.
“We do get to hang out with people, our friends, we meet new people,” said Gonzales. “We get to see a lot of the new things that the campus has to offer.”
Biomedical science student Mariana Gamboa encourages people to visit and learn about places on campus they did not know about before.
“I do hope they continue to make these kinds of events just because it encourages people to come visit the Centennial,” said Gamboa. “I saw this event and I was like, okay, I want to go. There’s an excuse to go now. So, it gives me an opportunity to explore the Centennial for the first time.”
Sophomore and music major Emmanuel Delgado shared how he thinks events like Centennial Chill Out are a great way to mark the start of a new year.
“It’s more than just an event, I would say it’s a beginning of a start to a new great year,” said Delgado. “It’s a really refreshing way to start off. It’s about discovering things that we may not have been aware of and being able to see what goes on right in front of your very eyes.”
Monteros shared that the museum plans to host more events, including an upcoming series called “Mindfulness at the Museum.” The first installment will be Thursday, Sep. 5, with a new installment every other Thursday at noon.
There will also be a new exhibition in mid-October which celebrates the 25th anniversary of the gardens.
The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and the gardens are open to visitors from dawn to dusk.
Ximena Cordero is staff reporter and may be reached at [email protected]
Editor’s note: The article was corrected to properly name the “Mindfulness at the Museum” exhibit.
