Topeka, Kansas, March 19, 2026 – The Kansas Children’s Discovery Center announced the museum set a single-day attendance record today, March 19, 2026, with a total of 1,553 visitors. The previous single-day attendance record of 1,432 visitors was set on March 20, 2025.

A number of factors contributed to the large numbers of visitors. The Discovery Center hosts extended hours on Thursday nights and is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. The museum is currently hosting the nationally traveling Take Care with Peanuts: The Exhibit through May 10, which has been a major attraction for regional spring break visitors. In addition, March 19 was a free admission night after 5 p.m. with admission sponsored by Advisors Excel. The museum offers free nights monthly on the third Thursday of each month, sponsored by generous local businesses.

Visitors were able to experience the record-breaking attendance in an expanded museum. The Discovery Center opened a 16,000 square foot addition November 7, 2025, more than doubling the size of the facility. The expansion included three large gallery spaces, three learning lab classrooms, a makerspace, a cafe serving on-site meals, an exhibit construction workshop, and other spaces designed to better serve growing numbers of families. The expansion was necessitated by multiple years of record-breaking attendance.

The nonprofit children’s museum opened in 2011, and in the past 14 years has grown significantly, gaining prominence as a regional tourist attraction and community anchor for families. Access Discovery Programs, like monthly free nights, which ensure museum access for all children, now account for nearly 50,000 annual admissions. Since opening in 2011, the museum has hosted more than 1 million visitors from all 50 states and 23 countries. President/CEO Dené Mosier has led the museum since 2015.