Our Mission
To transform communities by inspiring and equipping future inventors, entrepreneurs, and visionaries.
Our Philosophy
Community Transformation
The Cade Museum was created to spark collaboration across diverse sectors of the community, cutting across political, social, and economic divides. We offer a unique opportunity for people and institutions of very different perspectives to work for the common good and to experience life together.
A Bridge to the Innovation Economy
Our teaching philosophy and Inventivity Framework is intended to serve as a bridge to the innovation economy for everyone, providing access to the very best of American Innovation culture, with a special emphasis for those who have not had access to it. We teach STEAM concepts through the lens of invention and help students of all ages develop the inventive skills, academic knowledge and mindset they will need to thrive in the future.
Rediscovering Our National Culture of Innovation
In a divided and polarized nation, Inventivity has the potential to connect every American to the most dynamic founding principle of our nation – our constitutional right to invent.
E Pluribus Unum: Out of Many- One
Unity is not forcing others to think like you – it is capturing the energy of different skill sets and concerns to solve actual problems in a creative way. Inventivity is centered on what unites us, not what divides us. Inventivity allows us to reclaim the very best of innovation culture from our founding in order to cast a vision for a positive future.
Our Vision
To spread an inventive mindset across the world.
Our guiding principles
We believe in creativity.
Our classes, programs, and exhibits are designed to engage visitors in “purposeful creativity,” the kind that leads to great inventions, new businesses, and ideas that change the world. Studies show that creativity is a better predictor of success and happiness in life than intelligence. The good news is that everyone has creative potential and creativity can be cultivated. As a scientist, poet, musician, and collector of violins and Studebakers, our namesake, Dr. James Robert Cade, the University of Florida physician who led the team that invented Gatorade in 1965, exemplified joyful creativity with a purpose.
We believe in inspiring future inventors and entrepreneurs.
Rather than teaching subjects in isolation, unconnected to daily life, we teach and inspire through hands-on experiences. Like the best museums, the Cade Museum offers impactful experiences through interactive learning, programs, and opportunities to grow into your creative potential. “Living Exhibits” bring together adults and schoolchildren to meet and learn from regional and national inventors, business owners, and creative problem solvers.
We believe in the power of great ideas.
We believe that great ideas happen when disciplines intersect in novel and exciting ways – Einstein, an accomplished violinist, said that the theory of relativity “came to [him] through musical intuition.” Even the best scientists need creative teams, and the most successful teams often include a mix of disciplines, such as theoretical scientists collaborating with practical engineers or creative designers.
We believe in creative transformation.
The Cade Museum embodies the creative transformation we seek to foster, transforming a forgotten downtown crossroads into a crown jewel of the community. The architectural design of our museum highlights these intersecting crossroads and invites visitors to connect their own experiences to the larger narrative of purposeful creativity. Occupying a prime position in downtown Gainesville’s Depot Park. Phase One of the Cade Museum was completed in the Fall of 2017 with an exceptional 21,000-square-foot design that invites the world to engage in our ideas, inventions, and innovations. During Phase Two, an additional 24,000 square feet will be added.