OTHER DUTIES AS ASSIGNED: OPENING RESEARCH PATHWAYS FOR NON-CURATORIAL STAFF

The Western Science Center, a natural history museum in Hemet, CA, has a total of fourteen staff members - only one of whom, the Curator, is paid full-time to conduct scientific research. However, four staff members from the museum, in disciplines spanning from education to marketing, are currently conducting research projects based on Western Science Center collections and programs. Current projects being conducted by non-curatorial Western Science Center staff include research on Pacific mastodons, Miocene horses, and international education programming. New exhibits, outreach activities, and public programming are all a result of this more flexible approach to research, as well as the increased research output associated with the institution as a whole. As the field of paleontology continues to diversify and grow, the historic idea of research as something conducted exclusively by research staff will need to change. Opening opportunities for non-curatorial staff to participate in the scientific process benefits not only the employees, students, and volunteers who are allowed to conduct research, but it benefits the institution as well.