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Nine attractions and one affordable price create a wonderful summer full of fun and learning for qualifying low-income Indiana families in Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Terre Haute.
The Access Pass program helps those who receive state assistance visit select popular attractions at a greatly reduced rate of $2 per person per visit.
Participating member institutions include: Conner Prairie, Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Indiana Historical Society, Indiana State Museum, Indianapolis Museum of Art, NCAA Hall of Champions, Terre Haute Children’s Museum, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, and Wonderlab Museum in Bloomington. Families that meet the requirements listed below can visit the participating locations for just $2 per family member per visit, for up to two adults and dependent youth living in the household.
Qualifying Programs for Indiana Residents
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
- SNAP and Hoosier Works
- Hoosier Healthwise Insurance
Eligibility for Access Pass is if any individual in the immediate household is enrolled in any one of the state assistance programs listed above.
“The creation of the Access Pass is a wonderful way the museum and its partners reach thousands of Hoosier families throughout the state to ensure all children and families, regardless of income are able to learn and grow together,” said Dr. Jeffrey H. Patchen, president and CEO, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.
Required Documents
- Hoosier Healthwise or Hoosier Works Enrollment Recertification Letter, issued by the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration. A letter must be issued in the primary adult cardholder’s name and verify program enrollment for the current year.
- Verification of benefits may also be accessed from the Indiana Family Social Services Administration Benefits Portal, www.ifcem.com. Click on "Check Status / Print Proof of Your Eligibility".
- Indiana State-issued photo ID card—either a Driver’s License or State Identification card. The name on the photo ID must match an adult name on the recertification letter. Employee or student IDs and out-of-state IDs are not accepted.
To enroll in or renew an existing Access Pass, qualifying families can visit any of the participating venues listed below. Qualifying adults must be present with required documentation and completed Access Pass application when enrolling or utilizing benefits. Discounts will not be honored if required documentation verifying enrollment eligibility is not available. Download the policies to be sure you qualify.
Here’s what the member attractions are featuring this summer:
Conner Prairie
At Conner Prairie, you can climb to the top of a four-story treehouse nestled deep in the woods and take in some beautiful sights along the White River. Inside, you’ll find a knot-tying station, a reading room loaded with nature books, an investigation station and more. Back on the ground, you can dig into the sand and uncover artifacts to help make sense of the past; build something with your own hands using bamboo poles, wood blocks and fabric; create art with forest colors, textures and shapes; and, add to the forest sounds around you by playing musical instruments. New, additional activities will be available this June. The nearby Treetop Workshop offers unique making opportunities to make things by hand and provides Adventure Backpacks to take with you on our Nature Walk so you’ll have all the tools you need to take a closer look at birds and insects along the way.
The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art
Explore the enduring presence and contributions of dogs as companions, workers and heroes in Western and Native American cultures in Dogs: Faithful and True at the Eiteljorg Museum. Featuring art, photographs, objects and interactives, this is a heart-warming and insightful look at our canine friends. Dogs: Faithful and True includes exciting special family programming and activities throughout the run of the exhibit, complemented by workshops, discussions and activities highlighting pet adoptions, dog obedience and more. Full details at www.eiteljorg.com
Indiana Historical Society
Summer is the perfect time to visit the Indiana Historical Society, where guests can enjoy back-in-time experiences such as You Are There 1943: Italian POWs at Atterbury, which tells the story of how Italian prisoners of war found hope in captivity during their time in Indiana. With downtown parking that is validated with a visit to IHS, visitors can also spend time exploring downtown or walking along the historic Central Canal.
Indiana State Museum
This year, the Indiana State Museum is celebrating the Year of Science with dynamic exhibitions. Nature Unleashed: Inside Natural Disasters, open through May 29, explores the cause and effects of natural disasters. Ice Age Graveyards, open through Sept. 4, offers an exciting look at Indiana’s chilly past, presented in a cool new way. Science at Play, open July 22, 2017, through Jan. 15, 2018, is the first major museum exhibition to explore the many facets of miniature laboratories for children.
Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA)
It’s a celebration of the great outdoors this summer at the IMA! Mini Golf at the IMA is back with a brand new, artist-designed course. Putt past lions, along canyons and through the land of dinosaurs on this course inspired by the nature all around us. Inside the galleries, experience lifelike drawings of birds from around North America in Audubon: Drawn to Nature. On June 3, join us for Family Day: Camp Adventure and embark on a scavenger hunt, learn to fish, make a bird feeder and enjoy more family fun outdoors.
NCAA Hall of Champions
Bring your family to the NCAA Hall of Champions this summer for some friendly competition and a chance to win a prize pack worth up to $150. How? When you come to the Hall of Champions with one or more family member(s) ask for the scavenger hunt June 6 – July 29. Follow the instructions and complete the scavenger hunt together as a team. Turn the completed form into the front desk and you will automatically be entered into a weekly drawing for a prize pack worth up to $150 of official NCAA merchandise.
Terre Haute Children’s Museum
This summer, check out the Terre Haute Children's Museum's new FLEXHIBITS. Place a rocket on the launch pad and experience Sir Isaac Newton’s First Law of Motion first hand! Suspend light-weight spheres in mid-air while learning how something as heavy as a jumbo jet is able to fly as though it’s lighter than air! Connect a maze of circuits to make things spin, sound-off and light up -- without any external power! Use electromagnetism to launch an object! And, customize a car for speed, and experience Sir Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion while racing a friend to the finish line!
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis
It will be a STEM-strong summer (science, technology, engineering and math) at the world’s largest children’s museum with Beyond Spaceship Earth, Dinosphere, and Treasures of the Earth. Take a chance walking the virtual tightrope in Circus Starring YOU! and find out what’s trending (toys, games, art, music, dance, comic books, fashion, superheroes, and more) in our newest permanent exhibit, The Galleries for American Arts & Popular Culture opening June 17, 2017. Iconic objects will rotate including the original gold ticket from the Willy Wonka movie with Gene Wilder, clothes worn by famous musicians and actors in concert and on screen as well as a special interactive exhibit all about dancing through the ages.
Wonderlab Museum in Bloomington
Check out WonderLab’s NEW Coral Reef Aquarium! Watch this living exhibit grow and change as colorful fish, corals, giant clams and other sea creatures are added throughout the summer. Visit from noon to 4:00 pm on May 24, June 14 and July 14 to talk with marine aquarium experts and watch first-hand as they add creatures to the aquarium, and return after July 20 to observe the completed coral reef community in action.
High-resolution photos are available upon request by contacting each individual attraction.
