Public Programs

Newsroom of the Smithsonian

Media resources for our public programs. See our Event Calendar for all of our public programs.

A group of people sitting in rows of chairs smile and converse with each other.

Educators are invited to attend the Smithsonian’s free National Education Summit 2025, hosted by the Office of the Under Secretary for Education July 15–17. (Photo by Norwood Photography)

Smithsonian Holds Education Summit To Prepare Educators for the Nation’s 250th Anniversary
Free Three-Day Summit Features Over 40 Sessions in Art, Culture, History and Science
05.01.2025
Public Programs Education News
A group of visitors sit at tables making crafts in a gallery hall.

Visitors at an IlluminAsia event in 2024.

Celebrate Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2025 at the Smithsonian
04.24.2025
Public Programs
A girl in a light grey sweatshirt looks into large camera on tripod in outdoor sculpture garden.
Ghetto Film School
Emerging Media Makers - Ghetto Film School

Students of Ghetto Film School shoot a movie on a 16mm film camera.

Download (560.47 KB)
Square logo with rainbow colored border and blocky, black text in the center.
Smithsonian Presents 2025 Annual Folklife Festival July 2–7
Festival Returns to Location on the Mall From Seventh to 12th Streets
04.24.2025
Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Public Programs
A young person wearing jeans and short sleeve shirt crouches next to end of red Impala.
Photo by Andri Tambunan, courtesy of SAVA
Streetwise – Lowrider, SAVA
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A young girl stands in front mic playing the violin.
Fiona Stowell
Music Apprenticeship - Sugar in the Pan

Fiona Stowell, pictured here at age six but now in her teens, will perform with the band Sugar in the Pan.

Download (280.99 KB)
Photo of a red colored moon.
Image from a Celestron™ Nexstar 6SE telescope
STARS - Lunar Eclipse

This picture of a lunar eclipse was taken through a Celestron™ Nexstar 6SE telescope.

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An older man kneels next to a telescope and young girl looking at the sun.

Smithsonian STARS— Scientists Taking Astronomy to Rural Schools— aims to bridge gaps in access to hands-on STEM learning opportunities for children in rural and tribal nation schools by providing a donated telescope, ongoing teacher training and support, and curricula and lesson plans to inspire kids and foster their curiosity. Image courtesy of Celestron™.

Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Launches Nationwide Astronomy Program for Rural Schools
Smithsonian Aims To Provide a Telescope and Astronomy Lessons to Every Rural School in America
04.23.2025
Astrophysical Observatory Public Programs
Photo of the sun in black white, with a partial eclipse creating a half-circle black shadow on top part of sun.
Image from a Celestron™ Nexstar 6SE telescope
STARS - Solar Eclipse

This image of a solar eclipse was taken through a Celestron™ Nexstar 6SE telescope using a camera mount and special solar filter.

Download (35.97 KB)
Graphic with a blue background, yellow text and stylized front of a temple with three columns.
Smithsonian Associates Announces 2025 Dates for “Smithsonian Sleepovers”
Six Overnight Adventures Await Children at the Natural Museum of Natural History
04.23.2025
Smithsonian Associates Public Programs
Exterior of a building with red brick and iron design features, with a curved road leading up to it.
Anacostia Community Museum Announces Spring and Summer Programs
04.07.2025
Anacostia Community Museum Public Programs
Close-up of two green leafy plants in a garden box.
Smithsonian Celebrates Earth Day With Free Programming Throughout the Month of April
Highlights Include a Hands-On Gardening Workshop, a Film Screening, Talks and Tours
03.31.2025
Public Programs
Graphic with stylized design of women in purple and silver.
“Power of Giving” Symposium Explores Role of Women’s Philanthropy in Shaping the Nation
Adrienne Arsht, Jacki Zehner, Tuti B. Scott, Jaime Gloshay, Kathleen D. McCarthy and Kabria Baumgartner Among the Featured Thought Leaders
03.12.2025
American History Museum Public Programs
Digital graphic with purple background and cropped images of women.
National Museum of African American History and Culture Celebrates Women’s History Month Honoring Black Women
02.27.2025
African American Museum Public Programs
A table, viewed close up, that has been set with a vase of flowers, a blue-and-gold spouted jar, and candles

Credit: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution.

National Museum of Asian Art Announces Its 2025 Nowruz Family Festival
02.19.2025
Asian Art Museum Public Programs
Nick Cave Artist Smithsonian Craft Show
Smithsonian Craft Show Opens April 24
Juried Fine Craft Show Celebrates Visionaries
02.18.2025
Public Programs
Three men and a woman stand on a stage playing large drums in a museum atrium.

Photo by Norwood Photography

Smithsonian American Art Museum Presents In-Person and Virtual Programs as Part of the 2025 National Cherry Blossom Festival
02.14.2025
American Art Museum Public Programs
A pair of women in long black dress and headcoverings walk on reflective beach

A scene from Taumanu. Photo courtesy of The Sweetshop Entertainment Ltd.

Smithsonian Celebrates 10 Years of the Mother Tongue Film Festival
Festival Is on the National Mall Feb. 20–Feb. 23; Virtual Portion Will Be Presented Feb. 24–March 1
02.03.2025
Public Programs
Smithsonian Castle
Smithsonian Women’s Committee Announces 2025 Grants
01.31.2025
Public Programs
Black and white fuzzy panda bear climbs on outside tree structure.

Male giant panda Bao Li in his habitat at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute Oct. 24, 2024. Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

Two New Giant Pandas Debut at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
Celebration Continues With “District of Panda Party” and Release of Limited-Edition Giant Panda M&M’S
01.24.2025
National Zoo & SCBI Exhibitions Public Programs
Graphic with a woman's headshot next to the front cover a book with gem-toned gradients.

Tricia Hersey, a New York Times best-selling author and founder of The Nap Ministry. Credit: the Trisha Hersey website.

National Museum of African American History and Culture Celebrates Black History Month
01.22.2025
African American Museum Public Programs
Graphic of a young child wearing a hat and holding binoculars with name of program typed below.
Smithsonian Associates Hosts Smithsonian Summer Camp
01.13.2025
Smithsonian Associates Public Programs
Black and white furry panda bear walks on grass, looking around the side of a tree trunk
Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.
Giant Panda Debut - Qing Bao

Female giant panda Qing Bao in her habitat at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute Oct. 23, 2024.

Download (17.16 MB)
hite and black furry panda bear leans over wood beam in outdoor enclosure.
Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.
Giant Panda Debut - Bao Li

Male giant panda Bao Li in his habitat at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute Oct. 24, 2024.

Download (32.52 MB)

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