The Iowa Children's Museum

What The Iowa Children's Museum does

The Iowa Children's Museum (ICM) is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1995 and headquartered in Coralville, Iowa, where it operates a 28,000-square-foot interactive museum inside Coral Ridge Mall at 1451 Coral Ridge Avenue. The museum offers hands-on exhibits including Take Flight, City Grocery, City Orchard, Coral Cove, Lights Out!, and the Art Studio, alongside educational programs such as Summer Camps, Tech Trek, Kinder Club, Toddler Takeover, and curriculum-aligned field trips mapped to Iowa CORE Standards. It is open Tuesday-Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM, with member-exclusive hours Wednesday-Saturday from 9-10 AM.

ICM generates revenue through a diversified mix of earned and contributed streams: per-person admission ($12 adults/children, $10 seniors, free under 1), annual memberships ($159 Family, $209 Family Plus, $159 Grandparent), field trip fees ($5-$6 per child), seasonal camps ($50 spring break / $200 summer week), gift shop sales at the on-site Think Tank, birthday party bookings, digital gift cards, and donations plus corporate sponsorships via recurring events like the Celebrate Play Gala. Customer segments include families with children (primary), schools and childcare centers (preschool-6th grade), underserved families qualifying through Museums for All, and active-duty military families via Blue Star Museum.

The museum extends its physical footprint through outreach programs — ICM2Go delivers free play programming to local parks, and Storytime STEM brings Bee-Bot robotics to rural first-grade classrooms under Bayer Foundation funding — and participates in the Association of Children's Museums Reciprocal Network (200+ museums nationwide). Core institutional sponsors include Collins Aerospace (STEM Family Free Night), GreenState Credit Union (Moneyworks Financial Literacy and Sensory Friendly Night), and Bayer Foundation. Technology infrastructure is conventional (WordPress site, ticketing platform, social channels); no proprietary AI, software products, or data assets are part of the operating model.

Name

The Iowa Children's Museum

Legal name

The Iowa Children's Museum

Website

https://theicm.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Iowa Children's Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit children's museum in Coralville, Iowa operating 28,000 square feet of interactive exhibits, camps, and Iowa CORE-aligned field trips for families, schools, and underserved communities across Eastern Iowa since 1995.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Museum

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s Museums (THAJADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museum, Zoo & Attraction Gift Shops (CRALAJAG), Kids & Family Learning Workshops (Family Crafts, Junior Maker Classes) (THAJAKAO)

Keywords

• Children's museum exhibits
• Interactive learning experiences
• Educational field trips
• Youth enrichment programs
• Museum memberships

Headquarters

HQ city

Coralville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Admission Fees: Visitors pay admission to enter the museum exhibits. Children and adults are charged $12 per person, with infants under 1 free and seniors (60+) at $10.
2. Memberships: Annual memberships provide unlimited visits for 12 months. Family Membership is $159, Family Plus is $209, and Grandparent Membership is $159.
3. Field Trip Fees: Schools and organized groups pay $5 per child for 90-minute field trips or $6 per child for 2-hour scavenger hunt options. Teachers and chaperones receive free admission.
4. Camp Programs: Spring Break Camps charge $50 for 3 hours of special playtime. Summer Camps are priced at $200 for five days of camp.
5. Gift Shop Sales: The Think Tank Gift Shop sells toys and educational items at the museum location.
6. Donations and Sponsorships: The museum relies on donations, corporate sponsorships, and gala events as a nonprofit organization.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Iowa Children's Museum operates a 28,000-square-foot interactive children's museum inside Coral Ridge Mall in Coralville, Iowa, where children and families engage with permanent hands-on exhibits (Take Flight, City Grocery, Notion of Motion, City Orchard, Coral Cove, Lights Out!, Art Studio, Courtyard of Curiosity, Blue Room). It sells admissions, annual memberships, school field trips aligned with Iowa CORE Standards, day camps, birthday party hosting, and an on-site Think Tank Gift Shop, while extending its reach through free community outreach such as ICM2Go park programming, Storytime STEM, STEM Family Free Night, and Sensory Friendly Night.

Product overview

The Iowa Children's Museum is a physical children's museum offering a unified, hands-on learning experience centered around 'the Power of Play.' The museum's core offerings include interactive exhibits (such as Take Flight, City Grocery, Art Studio, and Blue Room), educational programs (Summer Camps, Tech Trek, Kinder Club), and field trip experiences. Additional offerings include membership programs, birthday party bookings, and the Think Tank Gift Shop. The museum also extends its reach through outreach programs like ICM2Go, Storytime STEM, and free community events (STEM Family Free Night, Sensory Friendly Night). Together, these products create a comprehensive ecosystem for children's experiential learning and family engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Interactive Exhibits Approximately 28,000 square feet of permanent hands-on exhibits including Take Flight, City Grocery, Notion of Motion, City Orchard, Coral Cove, Lights Out!, Art Studio, Courtyard of Curiosity, and Blue Room that introduce children to real-world concepts through play.
• Summer Camps Day camps during school breaks including Nature Explorers, Engineering Explorers, Art Explorers, and Little Dreamers Kinder Camp for children in Kindergarten through 4th grade, priced at $200 for a five-day session.
• Field Trips School and group visits with self-guided and scavenger hunt options (Museum-wide, Moneyworks Financial Literacy, Kindertales Storytelling, STEM Investigation) aligned with Iowa CORE Standards; $5 per child for a 90-minute visit, $6 per child for the 2-hour option.
• Tech Trek Elementary-age technology-focused enrichment program offered as a recurring series.
• Kinder Club Early childhood program designed for young learners.
• Membership Annual memberships providing 12 months of unlimited visits with Family ($159), Family Plus ($209), and Grandparent ($159) tiers, including early camp access, discounts on camps/birthday parties/facility rentals and gift shop, and ACM reciprocal network 50%-off access at 200+ children's museums.
• ICM2Go Free outreach program bringing play activities to local parks and community spaces such as North Ridge Park to remove transportation barriers.
• Think Tank Gift Shop On-site gift shop located in Coral Ridge Mall selling educational toys and unique items.
• Birthday Parties Party booking services for celebrations held at the museum.
• Storytime STEM Free outreach program for first-grade students combining storytelling and hands-on STEM activities using Bee-Bot programmable robots, brought directly to rural schools with Bayer Foundation support.
• STEM Family Free Night Monthly free admission event with STEM activities sponsored by Collins Aerospace, held on the last Friday of each month.
• Sensory Friendly Night Monthly sensory-inclusive events with free admission for families with members experiencing sensory sensitivities or autism, held on the last Sunday of each month and sponsored by GreenState Credit Union.
• Toddler Takeover Special playtimes designed for children five and younger focusing on developmental schemas and hands-on exploration.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Collins AerospacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary sponsor of STEM Family Free Night - a monthly free admission event with STEM activities held on the last Friday of each month.
• GreenState Credit UnioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupports the Moneyworks Financial Literacy Scavenger Hunt and sponsors Sensory Friendly Night events on the last Sunday of each month.
• Bayer FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides funding for the Storytime STEM outreach program, which brings free computer science and literacy activities using Bee-Bot robots to first-grade students in rural schools.
• NASA / Iowa Space Grant ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with for Stellar Saturday space-themed celebration events featuring hands-on NASA-related activities.
• Coralville Public LibraryminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartners with ICM2Go events, bringing the Book Bike to outdoor park programming for combined literacy and play experiences.
• Iowa City Bike LibraryminorGTM or Marketing PartnerParticipates in museum events, teaching children about bicycle parts through hands-on exploration activities.
• Association of Children's MuseumscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipates in the ACM Reciprocal Network, allowing members to receive 50% off admission at over 200 participating children's museums nationwide.
• 4Cs: Community Coordinated Child CareminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications to qualifying families.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson CountyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• ChildServeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• HACAP Head Start ProgramsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• Iowa City School DistrictminorGTM or Marketing PartnerStudent and Family Advocates distribute ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• Neighborhood Centers of Johnson CountyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• United Action for YouthminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications.
• YPN (Young Parents Network)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial service partner distributing ICM for Everyone free membership applications to young families.
• Museums for AllcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational initiative providing reduced admission ($5) to families with SNAP, WIC, Hawki, or Child Medicaid benefits at participating museums.
• Blue Star MuseumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational program offering free admission to active-duty military personnel and their families between Armed Forces Day and Labor Day.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Marbles Kids Museum: Nonprofit children's museum in Raleigh, NC combining interactive exhibits with IMAX and special programs. Same general category and family/educator audience as ICM, with a broader entertainment footprint.
• Strong National Museum of Play: Rochester, NY-based play-focused children's museum with exhibits, memberships, and educational programming. Targets an overlapping family audience with substantially larger scale and a national brand.
• Please Touch Museum: Historic Philadelphia-based children's museum with hands-on exhibits, memberships, and family programming. Operates with a much larger facility but shares ICM's nonprofit exhibit-and-program business model.
• Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose: California-based nonprofit children's museum with exhibits, camps, and member programs. Similar programmatic DNA to ICM though operating in a larger metro with a bigger operating budget.
• Minnesota Children's Museum: Larger Twin Cities-based children's museum with similar exhibit-plus-program model and ACM reciprocal membership. Same regional Midwest positioning but meaningfully larger visitor base and budget.

Direct peers

• Children's Museum of South Dakota: Mid-sized nonprofit children's museum in rural South Dakota operating with a single facility, exhibits, memberships, and outreach programs — a near-analog in scale and rural/small-metro market dynamics to ICM.
• Madison Children's Museum: Single-site, regional children's museum in Madison, WI of comparable footprint and program mix (interactive exhibits, member-based access, school field trips, community outreach). Same nonprofit model and scale-tier as ICM.
• Kidzu Children's Museum: Nonprofit children's museum in Chapel Hill, NC with exhibits, memberships, camps, and outreach — a closely comparable small-footprint, mission-driven peer to ICM.
• Omaha Children's Museum: Nonprofit children's museum in Omaha, NE serving a similar Midwestern metro catchment with hands-on exhibits, memberships, camps, and school programs. Closely comparable scale and operational model to ICM.

Others

• Iowa City Downtown District (Iowa City Public Library / Coralville recreation programs): Local complementary providers of free family programming in ICM's Eastern Iowa catchment — they compete for family mindshare on activities and partner with ICM (e.g., Coralville Public Library bringing the Book Bike to ICM2Go).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCw2EUQm4cq3RdIriXc8kpeA
• Facebookfacebook.com/fbtheiowachildrensmuseum
• Instagraminstagram.com/iachildrensmuseum
• TikToktiktok.com/@iachildrensmuseum
• Xx.com/IAChildrensMus

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Iowa Children's Museum