The Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals

The Rice Museum is pleased to feature a special educational display created by Isabella “Izzy” Mozingo, a junior member of the Tualatin Valley Gem Club Juniors program. Izzy created the display to earn the American Federation of Mineral Societies Juniors Showmanship badge, which recognizes young people who develop and share their own public educational exhibits.

Thanks to the hard work of two local Boy Scouts, the Rice Museum now has a restored trail and new picnic tables that will enhance visits for schools, camps, and families for years to come. Both scouts chose the museum as the site for their Eagle Scout Service Projects, investing dozens of hours to improve our grounds and visitor experience.

The Rice Museum was delighted to host a special private gathering to welcome co-founder Sharleen Harvey back to Oregon full time.

The Board of Directors of the Rice NW Museum of Rocks and Minerals has elected Jan Morrison as its new Board President, ushering in a new chapter of leadership for one of the Pacific Northwest’s most distinctive cultural institutions.

Cottonwood middle school students spent a week at the Museum exploring the hidden mineral connections inside everyday cellphones. Through hands-on activities—including phone dissections and creating their own mini-displays—students uncovered the global journey of the materials that power modern technology.

A group of students ranging from 4th to 8th grade recently demonstrated 3D scanning technology at the Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals, showing how emerging tools can be used to measure and preserve fragile artifacts without physical contact.

Thanks to a TREE Grant from the Tualatin Soil and Water Conservation District (TSWCD), the Museum has teamed up with Ash Creek Forest Management to restore and reimagine part of the museum’s natural landscape.

The showcase centers on calcite, with a variety of forms of this mineral displayed on the middle and bottom shelves. Each form has a chemical formula of CaCO₃ but exhibits different sizes, colors, and crystal habits (patterns). Interpretive signs, some pictured above, explain the reasons for such diversity.