Even for those who are familiar with the beloved Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, it is easy to be confused by the large and newly expanded array of government bodies, private groups and individuals.
Here is an attempt to list who has authority over, and is controlling, our Museum:
Pacific Grove Voters Primary Responsibility
Abdicated almost all control to the brand new, penniless, (and misleadingly named) non-profit “Pacific Grove Museum Foundation” with a 15 year contract, that the Council quickly extended to 30 years and giving the group $180,000 every year.
Public Management Meetings: Almost every 1rst and 3rd Wednesday
Public Records: Yes.
Website: yes.
Pacific Grove City Museum Board, Created by City, required by City Charter.
Katie Siegler,Tama Olver,John Pearse, Blake Matheson. Rebecca Barrymore.
Retired: Esther Trosow, Sue Renz, Larry Telles, Judy Wills, David Shonman, Sharon Blaziek, Geva Arcanin
Public Management Meetings: 2nd Wed. of Each Month, 3:30pm (It may have been changed to 5:00 p.m. Hard to tell, since the city is slow at updating its webpages.)
Public Records: Yes.
Website: yes.
Pacific Grove City Administration (Staff)
City Manager: Tom Frutchey
Retired: Jim Colangelo & Charlene Wiseman
Pacific Grove City Museum Staff (City Employees)
Retired: Vern Yadon, Paul Finnegan, Steve Bailey
Mark Walker hired as Interim Museum Curator in 2008 while employed at Hopkins Marine Station.
Lori Mannel hired as Museum Manager (transition team member & former Hewlett Packard employee). On June 17, 2009, Mannel, Walker, and 2 other Pacific Grove City Museum staff members receive pink slips. They are all re-hired by the Museum Foundation. Walker is fired in 2010 by Foundation executive director Lori Mannel, replaced by Paul Vandevere.
Public Records: Yes.
Website: yes.
Pacific Grove City Museum Association. Created by City in 1966
The Museum Association no longer exists. It was dissolved in 2009, and the Museum Foundation received all its assets, possibly as much as $400,000. (The Friends of the Monarchs had dissolved in 2008, and the Association received their small assets, which apparently also went to the Foundation.)
Pat Rutowski resigns as President in 2008, replaced by Frank Penner (who is now on the Museum Foundation board).
Public Management Meetings: None since 2008 (Almost certainly an Open Meeting Act violation)Public was prohibited from attending their meetings. Held retreat at Monterey Bay Aquarium offices.
Public Records: By law Yes, even though they claimed their records are secret. The Board formally adopted a rule in Nov 2008 declaring that books and records of the Association are not public documents and will not be made available to the public.
Website: None, taken over by the Foundation
American Association of Museums (AAM) – Accredits Museums
Refused to accredit Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History in 2011, after the Museum Foundation had been trying since 2009.
Public Management Meetings: Yes.
Public Records: Yes, generally.
Website: yes.
Pacific Grove Museum Foundation
Created by Jason Burnett in 2008
Pacific Grove Museum Foundation Board meetings are closed to all but their directors and staff.
Demanded $180,000 / year from City to operate Museum, City agreed.Began with three different people named as President: Jason Burnett, George “Judd” Perry (now listed as the secretary), and Chris Hasegawa.
Hank Armstrong, retired Aquarium Communications Director is now on the Museum Foundation board)
Chris Hasegawa as Dean of Extended Education and International Programs at California State University Monterey Bay was Lori Mannel’s boss at CSUMB when she worked for the OLLI programPublic Management Meetings: No.
While the “Foundation” offers memberships, there is no voting for board members and/or board officers by the membership. There has been no community meeting since last year, despite the promise that there would be 2 each year)
Public Records: No.
Website: Not specific to the Foundation. However they took over the City Museum Association website.Note: “Foundation” is a misleading name because it is Not a Foundation. It is a non-profit; a 501(c)3.
David & Lucille Packard Foundation, manages David Packard money
Gave $230,000 grant, but later demanded $185,000 be returned.
Jason Burnett = Boardmember (David Packard’s Grandson)
Monterey Bay Aquarium, Funded by Packard Foundation
Julie Packard – Executive Director (daughter of David Packard)
Jim Hekkers, Managing Director
Public Management Meetings: None.
Informal “Scientists Friends” group
David Greenfield, David Powell, Margaret Bradbury, Robert Lea, John Pearse, Joseph Wible, Steve Palumbi, and George Matsumoto
Public Management Meetings: None.
Public Records: No.
Website: None.
Informal “Transition Team”
Geva Arcanin, Museum Board; Jim Covel, MBA executive; Dave Greenfield, Association Board; Lori Mannel, PG citizen; John Pearse, Museum Board; Judd Perry, Association Board; Katie Siegler, PG citizen NOAA employee; Bob Snyder, Interim manager; and Charlene Wiseman, Deputy City Manager) was formed. They met weekly.
Public Management Meetings: None.
Public Records: No.
Website: None.
Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University
Next door neighbor of Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Considers itself the mother institution to the MB Aquarium because so many of the original Aquarium staff received their education at Hopkins.
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