Joe Clark Innovation Lab

Discover a place where curiosity takes flight


The Joe Clark Innovation Lab invites students, families, educators, and aviation enthusiasts to explore the world of aerospace through hands-on learning and creative discovery. As part of the National Aviation Hall of Fame, the Lab connects past innovation with future possibility.

From connecting to classrooms across the country to experiences inside the Lab, our impact continues to grow. Through standards-aligned STEM curriculum, we now reach 6,750 classrooms nationwide, inspiring young learners wherever they are.

Visit the Lab four days a week and experience an active learning environment that hosts over 200 educational programs and events each year—including field trips, summer camps, workshops, and student challenges. Can’t visit in person? Our expanded online aviation STEM activities make exploration possible anytime, anywhere.

Inside the Lab, you won’t just observe, you’ll experiment, collaborate, and imagine. The space also welcomes the community for meetings, celebrations, and special events.

Inspired by NAHF Enshrinee Joe Clark, whose innovative wingtip technology reshaped aviation efficiency and sustainability, the Lab challenges every visitor to ask, What’s next?

Come explore. Create. Innovate….The future of aerospace starts here!

You can learn more about the Joe Clark Innovation Lab by clicking this video

LAB EVENTS

SCIENCE SATURDAYS

Free science and aviation demonstrations for the public on the third Saturday of the month

SPECIAL EVENTS, CLASSES, GATHERINGS

  • Adult maker nights
  •  Aviation-themed classes for kids
  •  Aviation- and space-themed party packages
  • Work-team events and meetings

SUMMER CAMPS

Week-long aviation and space themed  camps for ages 6-15 click HERE for more information.

LAB LESSONS

On-site, standards-aligned K-12 curriculum

CATCHING THE WIND

Students learn about the forces of flight through a study of kites and how they fly.

FAST & EFFICIENT FLIGHT

Students learn about aerodynamics by building, testing, and refining paper aircraft.

SPACE EXPLORATION

Students learn about aerodynamics and propulsion by building and launching straw rockets—and then building a rocket retrieval mechanism.


 

Go Hands on!

Lab visitors can see and touch aviation equipment, like throttle quadrants, which control aircraft engine power, and a tachometer, which measures engine speed.

with generous support from

  • Aviation Partners
  • Bruce R. McCaw Family Foundation
  • Berry Family Foundation
  • Cirrus
  • Maggie Clark
  • The Estate of SB Joseph Clark
  • The Dayton Foundation
  • Gary Dunn, FRAeS
  • Garmin
  • Hartzell Propeller
  • Kettering Fund
  • Clay Lacy
  • Mid-Continental Instruments and Avionics
  • National Aviation Heritage Alliance
  • Oakwood Rotary
  • Ohio 529, CollegeAdvantage
  • Ohio Facilities Construction Commission