With free admission for two, the Culture Pass program available at the ASU Library continually gives students, faculty and staff the opportunity to learn and experience something new at destinations like the Phoenix Art Museum and the Deer Valley Rock Art Center.
The Culture Pass program was founded by Act One, a non-profit organization with the mission “to provide meaningful arts experiences that enhance the academic and creative potential of children and families in Arizona,” through programs like Field Trips For School Children and the Culture Pass.
With Culture Pass availability at about 43 public libraries throughout Maricopa County, seven in Pima County and the Sedona Public Library, ASU’s libraries on all four campuses joined in to provide this opportunity exclusively to students, faculty and staff.
At all locations, the program works on a first come, first serve basis. Participants with a library card, or an ASU ID card, can check out one pass per week and two per month, and each pass is valid for seven days until it expires and needs to be checked out again.
With a display at each library, participants can pick the destination of their choice from about 15 participating destinations. After they have picked a location, individuals simply check out the pass at the desk, just as they would a book.
According to the library manager at the downtown campus branch, Christina Peck, it goes hand-in-hand with ASU Library's mission to be a community space: free and open to everyone.
“We are a place where people gather to get info, to get resources,” Peck said. “It’s just kind of a way we can expand our mission.”
Peck said the program also allows participants to experience something new that they never would have thought to do, simply because the pass is available.
“It’s a way to make culture easier to get to, accessible,” Peck said. “The goal is to keep it up.”
Peck also said that ASU works to provide feedback and statistics back to Act One to continue to develop and improve upon the program and the destinations that choose to participate.
The most popular passes checked-out university wide are The Desert Botanical Garden, The Phoenix Art Museum, The Arizona Science Center and The Heard Museum.
“It’s just a great opportunity for people to take advantage of these great destinations,” said Dana Terrazas, director of marketing for The Desert Botanical Garden. “We’re excited to be a part of the program.”
Opportunities offered by the Culture Pass, Terrazas said, can lead some people to explore and learn more, leaving an impact on their lives as they provide meaningful art experiences to enhance academics and creativity.
For students at ASU, it can be a way to learn more about their community.
Out-of-state student and global health senior Chloe Warpinski, a student-worker for library services, said that the Culture Pass program has allowed her to learn more about the surrounding communities and their native histories.
Warpinski said that the program is a great way for students to take advantage of the opportunities within a school setting.
“I didn’t know where everything was, so using the Culture Pass gave me a little bit of direction into finding what great things the city has to offer,” Warpinski said. “The culture is incredibly rich here, so it’s really cool to see.”
Reach the reporter at tespana@asu.edu and follow @thaliaespana on Twitter.
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