Editing Perkins Observatory (section)

==Rebirth and reinvention==

In the 1990s, Tom Burns, a member of the Columbus Astronomical Society and professor of English at the [[Ohio Wesleyan University]], became Director of Perkins Observatory. He greatly expanded the Observatory's public programs and visibility in the central Ohio area.

A collaborative and mutually beneficial relationship was also established with the Columbus Astronomical Society. (In exchange for monthly meeting space and observatory access the CAS provides volunteer assistance with the many [[public observatory|public]] programs.)

Major repairs to the observatory dome were undertaken, thanks to the profits made from the sale of eclipse viewing glasses for the 1994 [[solar eclipse]]. Unused office and storage space was converted into exhibit rooms, a children's play area and a small gift shop. In September 1999 the original {{convert|69|in|m|adj=on}} telescope mirror was retrieved from [[COSI Columbus|COSI]] (where it had been sitting in a closet for over a decade) and placed on display.

In 1998 the [[Ohio State University]] formally ended its relationship with [[Ohio Wesleyan University]] and Perkins Observatory. OSU withdrew from the 1935 agreement so it could apply its financial resources to purchasing time on the [[Large Binocular Telescope]] on [[Mount Graham]]. The {{convert|72|in|m|adj=on}} telescope was sold outright to [[Lowell Observatory]] by [[Ohio Wesleyan]]. (The proceeds of this sale went into the Perkins Observatory Endowment Fund.) Staff members who were technically Ohio State University employees started receiving their paychecks from [[OWU]].