Pros
Department Head autonomy, oversaw large living animal collections (Herpetology, Ichthyology & Invertebrate Zoology), oversaw 13 staff and dozens of volunteers, train others to interface with and handle venomous reptiles, taught college-level classes.
Cons
Although it was agreed that either an Assistant Curator was needed or Ichthyology needed its own Curator, I was mandated to oversee both the huge terrestrial and aquatics programs with no assistance. In addition, around a million gallons of fresh county well water per year are utilized to make salt water for pay-to-play oceanic exhibits and the Warden Aquarium, then the waste saltwater is drained into the desert, ruining Sonoran Desert vegetation. In short, this is a conservation-based organization, but these are not conservation-based practices within chronic drought conditions. This constitutes a failure of the institution's mission statement.