Idaho Falls Zoo breaks ground on new education center

A new education center is coming to the Idaho Falls Zoo. The previous education center was in a small room. With thousands of visitors each year, the zoo needed more room.

“The need is desperate,” said David Pennock, executive director for the Idaho Falls Zoo. “The educational opportunity at the Idaho Falls Zoo is huge and we don’t have a facility to support it at all. Thousands of children every year and no real facilities to support their education. So today, things changed dramatically for the Idaho Falls Zoo.”

The new center will be a place for kids and adults to learn from classes and discussions. It will also be a space for events.

“The center is built to be flexible for every kind of formal and informal education,” Pennock said. “So it’s divided into three big classrooms, but those classrooms can be opened up into larger or closed into smaller spaces. So the idea is to have every possible opportunity to educate in every possible way.”

The center is named after William Maeck, an Idaho Falls philanthropist who passed away in February. His contributions, along with the Tautphaus Park Zoological Society, are what make the new center possible.

“What they have done, their commitment to zoo education,” said Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper. “And, in the case of the Maeck’s, education in general, whether it’s arts education or community college education, it’s remarkable. And we’re very fortunate to have that kind of philanthropy alive and well in our community.”

The education center will be a place for everyone in the community.

“It is a center that’s built by the community that’s really for the community,” Pennock said. “It will be a community center for generations to come.”

The William J. Maeck Education Center will be open next year.