atherine Fudurich, left, and Dr. Linda Organ For the 11th year in a row, the directors of the Thousand Oaksbased Discovery Center for Science and Technology were chosen to be presenters at an international conference of museums and science centers.

The Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) held its annual conference Oct. 15 through 18 in Virginia.

Included in the organization's more than 500 members are worldfamous museums, science centers, nature centers, aquariums, planetariums, zoos, botanical etariums, zoos, botanical gardens and space theaters from around the world.

The annual conference is an opportunity for members to learn about the successful programs and strategies used by other members.

ASTC organizers likely have to choose from among hundreds of proposals which ones to spotlight during the four-day event. The Discovery Center's award-winning team-Dr. Linda Organ, director of education, and Catherine Fudurich, director of the Science Theatre-has been chosen for the last 11 years.

They've become so successful at it that they've even been asked to teach would-be presenters how to put on an effective presentation. Last year their session was voted an ASTC conference favorite.

The Discovery Center is well-known in museum circles but not so much in its own backyard, Organ said.

She wants the word out that they're in need of volunteers for family science night. The program, which often is held in neighborhood schools, is designed to fuel children's natural curiosity and provide families the opportunity to work on experiments together. Volunteers will help by answering questions and showing how to use the equipment, but it's the families who will perform the experiments.

"We will train the volunteers," Organ said. "They don't have to know any science at all."

Science is important to the community because the area has a large biotechnology industry that gets many of its workers from overseas, she said. Sparking children's interest in science early on could lead to a career in that field and fill those jobs with American workers. Besides, organized activities for children often don't give them the chance to get their hands dirty discovering things, Organ said.

"All of life is science, whether it's a ballpoint pen or the paper you're using. . . . We really focus on science in the everyday . . . and it opens up possibilities for kids of what they'd like to do. The more you get ex

posed (to it), the more you realize there are opportunities for you in life."

Fudurich said when girls reach a certain age, they often become disinterested in science. However, nurturing an interest now can open up a wealth of science and math careers for them later on. The center also sponsors a teen volunteer program.

Science isn't just about test tubes but power tools as well, something that can be empowering for girls, Organ said.

"There's a place for everyone at the Discovery Center," she said.

But there hasn't always been a place for the center. Organ and Fudurich operated for several years out of an office donated by Rockwell International Science Center in Thousand Oaks, but lost the room earlier this year when the company needed it for a laboratory. A new office was opened recently at 5655 Lindero Canyon Road, Ste. 422, in the city of Westlake Village.

But the museum part of the Discovery Center has always operated without walls. The two directors recently formed a committee, which met last week, to consider possible sites for a 70,000-square-foot facility that would include interactive exhibits, workshops, a training center for educators and a science park. Among the sites they'll consider is The Lakes retail center, located next to the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.

A recruitment meeting for family science night volunteers is scheduled from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Sat., Nov. 5 at the Goebel Senior Center, 1385 E. Janss Road in Thousand Oaks. For information call (818) 879-2022.

The Discovery Center will launch its Science Theatre series on Wed., Nov. 9 with "The Notion of Motion" at the Civic Arts Plaza Scherr Forum. For tickets, call (805) 372-5889 or (805) 495-1549.

For a list of upcoming performances, visit the center's website at www.discoverycntr.org/.