Vision + Mission

Inspiring creative thinking, future inventors and early entrepreneurs, so that communities flourish

The vision of the Cade Museum is to foster creativity in individuals in order to empower groups of individuals to transform their communities one life at a time. 

The mission of the museum is “to inspire creativity, future inventors, and early entrepreneurs.”  Our founders, Robert and Mary Cade, believed carrying out this mission was an excellent way to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

In pursuit of this mission, we will promote the following values espoused by our founders:

  • Every person has creative potential.
  • Individuals working together create more value than individuals working alone.
  • Inventors and entrepreneurs create solutions and wealth that allow a community to flourish.

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    The Need

    The Cade Museum is a hands-on solution to some very real problems.  American Creativity Quotient (CQ) scores have been steadily and significantly declining since 1990*, coupled with falling academic performance and interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).  We propose to help change that by highlighting the link between creative thought and breakthrough ideas, essentially "reverse engineering" inventions in order to teach STEM and the art of creative thinking.  In the first phase of our $25-million project, we will focus on three areas:

    • The Interactive Brain - Partnering with world-class neuroscientists at the McKnight Brain Institute at the University of Florida, we will show where the mental spark of creativity lives and how it works. 
    • The Gatorade Experience -  The exciting story of how four research doctors and a winning football team created an entire industry will highlight the critical mix of knowledge, entrepreneurship, serendipity, and a lot of chutzpah.
    • Highlights of American Invention -  We'll show how important inventions and intellectual property protection were to our Founding Fathers, and how this core idea added - in the words of Abraham Lincoln - the "fuel of interest to the fire of genius."  Their foresight helped make America the most innovative nation on earth. 

    These ideas will be transformed not only into physical exhibits, but also into digital curriculum so that they can be shared with the nation and the world.  We already have begun to inspire future inventors and entrepreneurs through the annual Cade Museum Prize, a $50,000 award given to a project that demonstrates originality and its potential to have a large impact.  The Prize was awarded in 2010 and 2011, and 2012.

    It's no accident that the Cade Museum is located in Gainesville, within minutes of Innovation Square and the University of Florida.  Gainesville is quickly becoming a community known for its commitment to innovation in every form.  Science+technology, arts+culture - all have found a home and a place to thrive here.

    The Cade Museum will occupy a prime position in downtown Gainesville's Depot Park.   The Park is a city project to re-purpose previously unusable land and reflects the Museum's commitment to new technologies and construction.  Phase 1 of the project - expected to be completed by late 2015 - will see the construction of a 21,000 square foot facility on a 2-acre site and cost appoximately $9 million.   During Phase II an additional 24,000 square feet will be added for a finished project of 45,000 square feet.  

    *"The Creativity Crisis," P Bronson and A. Merryman, Newsweek, 7/10/10