Jim Cinelli, founder of the Reading Science Center, is an Environmental Engineer and the president of Liberty Environmental, Inc., a consulting firm he co-founded in 2004. The company is headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania, where Jim was born and raised, and has branch offices in Lancaster, Philadelphia, Lebanon, NJ and New York City, NY.

 
In 2018, he conceived and founded the nonprofit Reading Science Center, a science museum that opened in downtown Reading in October 2020. Since the organization’s inception, Jim served as president of the Board for six years, and at the conclusion of his term was named Founder and President Emeritus in recognition of his leadership and vision. A past president and former board member of the Reading Chapter of the Pennsylvania Society of Professional Engineers, Jim worked with other volunteers to organize the Berks County MATHCOUNTS Competition for middle school students for several years.

Jim served as Chairman of the Board of the Reading Downtown Improvement District Authority, an organization whose mission was to make downtown Reading a safe, clean, and vibrant urban core. It was his commitment to STEM education for local students and vision for Reading’s downtown revitalization that led him to found Reading Science Center.

Jim is a licensed Professional Engineer in five states, a Licensed Professional Geologist in New York, and a Board-Certified Environmental Engineer. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University, a Master of Engineering degree in Environmental Engineering from Penn State University, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Saint Joseph’s University.