On Tuesday, May 27, the Fantastic Future Me Tour sponsored by NEST, Nebraska’s 529 College Savings Plans, will open at Millard Branch, 13214 Westwood Ln. The exhibit will be located in the children’s area and accessible during open hours through August 31.

The Fantastic Future Me Tour features an interactive exhibit where children envision themselves in future roles by creating personalized, one-of-a-kind avatars.

As a part of the Fantastic Future Me tour, NEST is offering incentives for families to begin saving for college. The first 50 families to open new accounts using a Millard Branch-specific promo code, will each receive a $25 bonus in their accounts; and be entered into a drawing to win , the owner of one new account opened will win a $1,000 NEST scholarship. Details and information on opening accounts can be found at NEST529Direct.com/futureme. Click on Maximize Your Savings and Drawings and Scholarships.

Prior to its appearance at Millard Branch, the tour made stops at Elkhorn Valley Museum in Norfolk, Kearney Area Children’s Museum, Lincoln Children’s Museum, Children’s Museum of Central Nebraska in Hastings and North Platte Area Children’s Museum where it was met with much success, including more than 70,000 visitors. Omaha Public Library’s Millard Branch will be the first library to host the exhibit.

”Omaha Public Library (OPL) is proud to be a partner in this project to help children explore their opportunities in life. The library offers a variety of experiences and resources to help make educational goals a reality,” said OPL executive director Gary Wasdin.

“NEST is committed to encouraging parents and children to dream of the future," said Deborah Goodkin, managing director, First National Bank of Omaha, program manager for NEST. "The Fantastic Future Me Tour furthers that commitment by providing families across the state of Nebraska with information and incentives to get a jump start on saving for college. Recent studies have shown that children are six times more likely to attend college if they have a savings account in their name. Children saving money in banks and parents saving in NEST 529 plans help children and parents together begin to achieve those dreams.”

“At NEST, we talk about the importance of children dreaming for their futures and parents and grandparents saving for those dreams. The theme fits perfectly with this traveling exhibit as children begin to explore career possibilities through Fantastic Future Me. How these children envision their futures is up to them, but the adults in their lives have a very important role to play in how the children get there,” said Nebraska State Treasurer Don Stenberg.

To use the Fantastic Future Me exhibit, children take a photo of their face using a large touch screen and camera, then drag and drop elements representing different careers and grown-up roles onto their own "Future Me." Children can mix and match their personal interests and future aspirations to create a one-of-a-kind future self. Careers and roles range from artist to programmer, scientist to teacher, pilot and even President of the United States.

Future Me avatars can be shared by email, Facebook and Twitter. When the email arrives in the user’s inbox, it includes the one-of-a-kind Future Me avatar along with messages about dreaming for the future and saving for those dreams.

Fantastic Future Me was created by Omaha Children’s Museum and inspired by the organization’s work with Dr. Shane Lopez, Gallup Senior Scientist and an architect of the Gallup Student Poll. Gallup’s research shows that excitement about the future and thinking about oneself in a positive future role creates hope. More hopeful people go to school more often, get better grades and even live longer than people who are not hopeful. Thinking about what you want to be when you grow up is one way that children can get excited thinking about their future and understanding the steps necessary to get there. Future Me helps children do all of this while having fun.

Fantastic Future Me was created by Omaha Children’s Museum and inspired by the organization’s work with Dr. Shane Lopez, Gallup Senior Scientist and an architect of the Gallup Student Poll. Gallup’s research shows that excitement about the future and thinking about oneself in a positive future role creates hope. More hopeful people go to school more often, get better grades and even live longer than people who are not hopeful. Thinking about what you want to be when you grow up is one way that children can get excited thinking about their future and understanding the steps necessary to get there. Future Me helps children do all of this while having fun.

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