School of Arts and Sciences Centers 

The Copernican Planetarium and Observatory (Copernicus Hall) includes a full-function, optical planetarium which seats 108 people and is used for classes and programs for the community. The observatory, located on the roof of Copernicus Hall, is used for astronomical instruction for Physics/Earth Sciences classes. It also supports student research in astronomical photography and observation using a modern 16-inch Cassegrain reflector and other telescopes.

The Institute for Science Education, coordinated by the Department of Biology, offers summer courses for elementary, middle, junior high and high school science teachers. Hands-on activities that can be transferred to the classroom are emphasized. Topics have included the environment, the aquatic world, coastal ecology, science and the citizen, field biology and plants in the laboratory.

The Polish Studies Center (DiLoreto 208-23) was established to foster within both the Polish-American and the American communities an awareness of Poland’s culture, history and civilization. In 1997 Connecticut’s first, and New England’s second, Endowed Chair in Polish and Polish-American Studies was established at CCSU. The Center offers courses in Polish history, politics, culture and civilization, language and the Polish community in America. The Center’s other resources include the Polish Heritage Book Collection, the Connecticut Polish American Archive, the Annual Fiedorczyk Lecture in Polish American Studies, the Milewski Polish Studies lecture, the Golewski Evening of Polish Culture, educational materials for teachers, movies, exhibits, scholarship aid for Polish-American students and for students pursuing Polish Studies, and the Martin and Sophie Grzyb Prize for Excellence in Polish Studies.

The Weather Center (Copernicus 538) is a fully-functional weather forecasting facility, including a satellite downlink to the National Weather Service, computer data retrieval capability, color weather radar and satellite access.  It supports forecasting for the University community as well as faculty and student research in the atmospheric sciences.