Morehead Planetarium and Science Center is planning an event to embrace the goal of creating a more inclusive environment at both the Morehead Planetarium and at UNC. The Autism Awareness Evening, which is designed for children with autism spectrum disorder, their families and any support staff, will take place on April 12 from approximately 5:30 to 8 p.m.
The event will consist of the playing of the "Earth, Moon and Sun" show in the GSK Fulldome Theater, a show on the science stage and oobleck sensory engagement.
The playing of the traditional Morehead theater show will be altered to create a more comfortable and inclusive environment for its guests. The sound will be lowered to accommodate the children and prevent any trauma that could be caused by the loud noises, and the lighting will be adjusted so it is not entirely dark. These modifications will be done in hopes of making the planetarium a more accessible space.
The guests will be split into two groups: one watching the show in the Fulldome theater and one doing a sensory activity. Then, the groups will switch. There will also be a designated area for coloring and a cool down area for the children.
Senior Nicole Moore is a programming intern at the Morehead Planetarium that has been involved with performing research on how to best make the planetarium an inclusive place for children with autism. She has reached out to other museums and organizations, such as the Museum of Life and Science in Durham and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh, to become familiar with how other establishments cater their operations to an audience with specific needs.
“We are also partnering with UNC TEACCH, one of UNC’s autism-based organizations, and we are also partnering with the Autism Society of North Carolina — the Chapel Hill chapter — which is the student organization,” Moore said.
Moore said that Morehead has never done anything like this before, but in the surrounding area, the Museum of Life and Science and the Museum of Natural Sciences have both held one or two sensory shows or events a year. Morehead Planetarium decided that it wanted to follow along that program and make its space more inclusive and accessible to all audiences.
“The autism-spectrum audience can’t always go out to non-traditional educational settings and environments because there is a lot of sensory overwhelming factors that can be a bit much for them, so they don’t always feel safe going out to these types of environments," Moore said. "But when there are events catered toward them, where the research has been done, people have been reached and there have been training within the staff to make them better equipped to work with this specific audience, it just makes it a better space for them."
Whit McMillan, the science programs manager at the planetarium, has also been involved with the planning of the Autism Awareness Evening.
