THINK JACOBSON & ROTH DESIGNED MERVYN'S MOVING MISSION TO ROLL INTO ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN CALIFORNIA'S CENTRAL VALLEY

October 18, 2001

Traveling interactive exhibition on history and art of California Missions to offer free school tours statewide beginning in Fresno this month

FRESNO, CA - Mervyn's and the Fresno Metropolitan Museum announced today the inaugural tour of Mervyn's Moving Mission, an innovative interactive mobile exhibition allowing nearly 7,000 fourth-grade students the opportunity to learn first-hand about the history, art and culture of the California Missions. The statewide tour of Mervyn's Moving Mission, which is housed within a customized 72-foot big rig truck designed by LA based exhibit developers Think Jacobson & Roth, was launched today at Slater Elementary School in Fresno, California, and will continue through schools in seven counties within the San Joaquin Valley.

The "exhibition-on-wheels" provides elementary school students with an engaging educational resource that will bring the missions to life and will advance awareness of the importance of the missions, while instilling an understanding of the need to protect and preserve them. This unique learning experience was developed to meet and support the California state learning standards for fourth-grade curriculum.

"We are fortunate to have such an innovative learning tool begin its statewide tour here in Fresno," says Superintendent of the Fresno School District Peter Mehas. "The reception by teachers and principals alike has been overwhelming. This program will reach students in school districts who might not have the access to a mission and will allow them to take a 'virtual field trip' into the past."

The colorful and dynamically designed Mervyn's Moving Mission will present murals, photographs, displays of original artifacts borrowed from California missions as well as authentic reproductions of mission-related objects. Students will receive a lesson in conservation of a mission sculpture as it goes through various stages of restoration and they will try their hands at basketweaving and building a chair from the mission period. They will also learn about the lives of the Spanish settlers and Native Americans during that period.

A team of English and Spanish speaking educators from the Fresno Metropolitan Museum will travel with Mervyn's Moving Mission and introduce fourth-graders and their teachers to the sights, sounds, textures and activities of mission life. Teachers will be provided with resource packets in advance to help prepare students for their tours. Inside Mervyn's Moving Mission, students will receive an introduction to the missions through a timeline and a map of California highlighting the locations of all 21 missions from San Diego Alcala to San Francisco Solano. As students move through the truck, they will learn about various aspects of the missions including art and conservation; home and shelter; and food and family.

"I am delighted at this novel idea of a Moving Mission. This will make available to the students of Fresno an experience they might not otherwise receive," said Brother Guire Cleary, S.S.F, Curator, Mission San Francisco de Asis (Mission Dolores).

Mervyn's Moving Mission is largely booked in Fresno schools into May, 2002, and appointments are available on a limited basis by calling the Fresno Metropolitan Museum at (559) 441-1444, extension 213.

About Think Jacobson & Roth
Think Jacobson & Roth worked with Mervyn's to conceptualize the content of the Mervyn's Moving Mission and saw the project through the subsequent design and fabrication phases. Think designed the project and its components to meet California state history, visual arts and English language arts learning standards for fourth grade students. Think oversaw the design of all exhibit components, graphics, and hands-on activities, and liased with the exhibit fabricator during construction. Think also developed a teacher's packet to be distributed to teachers in advance of their tour of Mervyn's Moving Mission. Additionally, Think collaborated with the Fresno Metropolitan Museum on identifying and securing object loans and reproductions for inclusion in Mervyn's Moving Mission.

About the Fresno Metropolitan Museum
As an institution of culture and learning, the Fresno Metropolitan Museum's primary focus is to spark curiosity, stimulate thinking and foster life-long learning. The Museum presently serves more than 180,000 annual visitors, 100,000 of them students, with daily programs and lectures, films, musical performances, exhibitions, family activities, a year-round camp and care facility for youngsters, as well as a new traveling exhibition created to serve schools within the entire Central Valley--the Mervyns' Moving Mission, developed in partnership with, and sponsored by Mervyn's.

About Mervyn's
Mervyn's, headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, is a promotional, casual, neighborhood department store operating 265 stores in 14 states. Known for its extensive selection of national and owned-brand fashions and housewares at exceptional prices, Mervyn's is a family favorite shopping destination. With a focus on improving the lives of children and families, Mervyn's, together with parent company Target Corporation, annually contributes more than $1.5 million a week through grants and special programs to communities where the company does business.

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