Quinn has progressed from a part -time educator to his current post as deputy director of membership, which consists in managing the museum membership program while engaging visitors on the ground.
“I manage our membership program, but I also do a lot of education, interacting with the guests, exciting them for nature and science,” said Quinn.
According to Blue Hen Alumna, scientific education resonates more with children when they have an interactive experience. The museum transports visitors to different ecosystems with practical exhibitions, insects and birds of birds playing on speakers and large-scale models of plants and animals.
The museum also offers a traveling exhibition, ensuring that customers always have a new and exciting experience each time they visit. Their current travel exhibition, open until May 11, explores the geological period of Permian.
“Our Monsters Permian: Life before the exhibition of dinosaurs (open until May 11) shows organizations that existed 300 million years ago, long before dinosaurs,” said Quinn. “We make guided tours for our members, crafts and activities and demonstrations of living animals.”
As assistant director of membership, not only Quinn educates and shares her passion for science, but she favors long -term relationships with frequent guests and members of the museum.
“We are a very friendly museum,” said Quinn. “It’s great to see familiar faces come back and build relationships with our members. It is really rewarding to present to people things that they did not know before and to watch them come back to the museum, eager to know more. ”
According to Halsey Spruance, former executive director of the Museum and the UD class in 1986, one of their missions is to draw attention to the nature and science that occurs locally while encouraging young Delawaurians to get involved.
“We want to underline what is happening in the sciences locally, including partnerships with institutions such as the University of Delaware,” said Sprance. “It is a question of showing young visitors of the career pathways in science and of emphasizing diversity.”
SPRUNCE explained that the newly renovated space includes a “research headquarters”, which highlights the current scientific research in Delaware. The projects taking place at Dupont, Conservancy nature and Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), UD, Delaware State and other universities are all presented.
The collaboration between the museum and the surrounding community played a crucial role in the training of Quinn’s career, but it also helps to inspire others who visit the museum and those who want to pursue a career in nature or science in the Delaware region.
“I loved my stay in UD,” said Quinn. “Even if I came from Pennsylvania, I stayed in Newark because of how much I liked to be here. The connections that I made through events like Ag Day opened doors that I did not even know.”
“Julia embodies everything we are looking for in team members here at the museum,” said Spruance. “Not only is she kind and engages with visitors and members, she has a solid experience in science and an excellent attitude. I am almost sure that she will manage this museum one day.”