At the Feb 26 Senate Committee of the Whole (COW) meeting,
Senator Lynne Pancrazi spoke in opposition to the bill (video available on www.az.gov). Her talking points were as follows:
The mineral collection was neglected and rain damaged when
AHS “inherited" it. The AHS categorized it, renumbered it, and is putting it on
display in Tempe.
Only the AHS has expertise in museum management and the care
of collections. The AZGS is not capable of managing a successful museum.
The bill will cause unnecessary cost.
The AHS is better equipped to raise private funds than the
AZGS is.
Obviously, Senator Pancrazi is not familiar with the facts presented on this blog for the past 5 years.
This is typical AHS spin, and hoplesly inaccurate. AHS did not "inherit" the state mineral collection--they had statutes than said they had to keep the Mining and Mineral Museum open. Instead they slammed the doors, locked kids out, and made off with the valuable state collection without one person on staff who was qualified to move it. Some months later they hired a Phd with no experience--museum management expertise? These self-appointed experts also didn't know the collection had paperwork on the minerals that made it unique for research, so they left it behind. AGS, fortunately, was aware and saved the paperwork and still has it. Let's get real-AHS only has experience in managing very small, and poorly attended museums. They have no experience in handling crowds of children. AGS will have the cooperation of the fired MMM staff who do know how. I'm sure these people and supporters would much rather be with AGS--they pass Sunset Reviews and audits and know far more about minerals than AHS could possibly hope to know. Former curators support getting the MMM back and away from AHS. Anyone who failed to raise money for even a 5 C's Museum and then planned a $15 million disaster in the middle of a recession should not claim to be more able to raise funds than AGS. They raise 85-90% of their funding--only 10 % from the state.
ReplyDeleteJust what did Woosley or Ponder say to Sen. Pancrazi that would make her try tp stop the bill?
DeleteIf you watch the proceedings of the COW you will notice that Sen. Pancrazi was reading (poorly at that) from her iphone. She obviously had been programed (literally) by someone at AHS who was not willing to defend themselves at the Senate hearing. The biggest travesty was her agreeing that closing MMM hurt the children and then immediately whines about AHS and how great they are. If she agrees that AHS closing the MMM was a tragedy, the rest of her input should have been about rectifying it by reopening it, which is what SB1200 is all about.
DeleteObviously AGS and the former staff and supporters of the highly rated and cost effective Mining and Mineral Museum is a winning combination. KEEP AHS OUT OF IT --if you want it to work! By renumbering the state minerals to be "theirs" means they've further complicated keeping the paperwork and minerals numerically together. AHS seems desperate to keep the minerals, even though the "gallery" is incomplete and in a museum with little traffic. The gem and mineral groups are not likely to flock to a AHS museum with a poor track record. Give it up and fix your agency!!
ReplyDeleteSen. Pancrazi can you list what funds Ann Woosley has raised for the AHS. Name what groups she has appeared in front of to appeal for funds and what is her success rate %.?
ReplyDeleteHow about vision for the Mineral Museum. Woosley has had four concepts for that building swirling around her head. All of them insipid and just plain stupid. No vision and no fund raising capability. Why would you want to have her continue.
How many historical lectures has DR. Woosley conducted in the community or the state? How many times has she left the building to attempt to raise funds? How many times has she left the building to appear on television or be interviewed for a newspaper article in all of the years she has been director? Sen. Pancrazi I challenge you...ask the question.
DeleteI watched the video of the COW and was amazed to finally hear why AHS slammed the doors on the kids and still doesn't care about them. AHS was intrusted with the care and managing of the top-rated MMM and closed it so they could collect their "inheritance" and try to make something of the Marley (Papago) which has a poor reputation. Being entrusted is not the same as inheriting. AHS violated the trust, killed the MMM, and kept the only thing they valued--the minerals. In real life that is considered illegal or criminal activity.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing; Sen. Pancrazi thinks that all is well because AHS opened a Gallery with the "inherited" minerals at Papago. That Museum never had good attendance and nothing appears to have changed. I went out to count cars in the parking lot this morning--beautiful morning to tour a museum--and there were only 12 up near the museum building. Given that AHS staff has offices there, most of the cars were staff-unless the staff didn't show up for work. There were 7 additional vehicles in the very lower part of the big parking lot. One was a big rig that moves motorcycles, and another a contractor's pickup. It's apparently used for non-museum purposes. Another person present at a recent MMM meeting did the same thing,looking for school buses, and found none, and only a few cars. This is more reason to pass SB1200.
ReplyDeleteThe AHS probably thought the same thing. "Gosh...if we open up a quick exhibit of some minerals maybe they will leave us alone?" Maybe Madison Barkley should have taken an exhibits drsign class in college?
DeleteJust post the attendance to the AHS museums that was in the AG Report. Those numbers are not a lie and they are shocking. Very few people go in. So what is Sen Pancrazi so impressed about.
ReplyDeleteFormer mineral museum volunteers report that the old building had leaks but there was not any water damage to the mineral collection. If there is now, it happened after the staff was locked out of the museum by the AHS and the collection was unattended.
ReplyDeleteThat's OK the same has happened at the AHS in Tucson.
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