Meet Our Museum Staff
Hannah Hausman
Executive Director
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
Bubbles! They are beautiful, fantastical and make my son smile.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
I love so many, but if I had to pick I'd say: Lyle, Lyle Crocodile
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Red Rover!
Fun Fact:
I auditioned for Ringling Brothers Clown College when I was 18.
Leona Hillary
Director of Education
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
The garden and our Seeds & Sprouts program because we are able to grow food, eat, play, get dirty, and learn about nature!
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"Where the Wild Things Are" - by Maurice Sendak
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
I enjoyed playing dress-up in any way! I wore tutus and hats and would put on fashion shows! Playing real estate and climbing on the jungle gym were also my favorite things to do!
Fun Fact:
I am an artist too! I paint, draw, and build sculptures from trash. Making things at the Museum is great because it’s always more fun with friends!
Hector Solis
Facilities Manager
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
The pepper and chile beds in the planting area
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
I never read.
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
"Black Ops" on Xbox 360
Fun Fact:
I like to dance cumbia and rancheras!
Asis Gonzalez
Museum Educator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
Cornelius and his feedings! Because Cornelius is a fun danger noodle!
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"Magic School Bus" (Any)
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Hide and Seek
Norma Flores
Floor Manager/Fun Facilitator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
I love our earthworks, there is a lot to play with.There’s a music plaza, an adobe playhouse, a sand pit, and the horno where sometimes we cook veggies from our garden. You can also see lizards,butterflies, birds, and the beautiful flowers.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"The Five Chinese Brothers" by Claire Huchet Bishop
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Mancala
Fun Fact:
I like to watch and draw anime, one of my favorite shows is Avatar the last air bender!
Howard Theron Hommer
Fun Facilitator, Manager on Duty
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
I enjoy the "People on the Go" exhibit because it encourages the imagination of travel!
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"Where the Sidewalk Ends" – 1974 children's poetry collection written & illustrated by Shel Silverstein
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Kick the Can
Fun Fact:
I have travelled the United States alone for two years visiting 44 states.
Barbara Schwarz
Finance Manager
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
I love any of the water play exhibits! They remind me of the hours and hours I spent at the neighborhood pool. Water is the best!)
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"The Shoemaker and the Elves" (and "Miss Rumphius," which I read to my kids)
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Hopscotch!
Fun Fact:
I was the first New Year's Baby in my town.
Chelsea Darter
Development & Membership Manager
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
The Backyard garden because it's a multisensory experience where you're encouraged to get dirty.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"The Giver" by Lois Lowry
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Anything where I could use my imagination. I loved to create and perform my own commercials and TV shows.
Fun Fact:
I'm a photographer! I love telling stories through images!
Sarah Haghi
Education Coordinator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
Science Saturday! Science is LIFE! Good science education is the key to creating future generations of critical thinkers with open minds to the endless capacity for being wrong, learning, & adjusting their views!
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"The Great Good Thing," "The Phantom Tollbooth," and anything and everything by Roald Dahl
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
The floor is made of lava, any game that took place in water, Candyland, and, of course, Operation!
Fun Fact:
I fly helicopters and I am a tango dancer.
Xochitl Garcia
Fun Facilitator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
My favorite exhibit would have to be the bubbles because it brings me back to being a kid. Bubbles are such an underrated activity that we forget we enjoyed when we were younger.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
My favorite childhood book is, "Where the Wild Things Are."
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
Freeze Tag!
Fun Fact:
I played Varsity sports since middle school.
Gabriela Quezada Gallegos
Fun Facilitator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
The fairy garden brings a lot of joy because it has so many colors & is full of unique inventions. It's a free world to make anything and it's easy to enjoy the little details that make it all beautiful. It’s fun to have this place that makes people happy!
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
“Green Eggs and Ham" –By Dr.Seuss
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
“1,2,3 por mi y todos mis amigos” (1,2,3 for my friends and I) and Kickball
Fun Fact:
I flew on a plane for the first time ever at age 19, It was the best experience ever!
Dante Gonzales
Fun Facilitator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
I always loved coming to the museum on Saturdays and watching the train as they zoomed by.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
“Diary of a Wimpy Kid”(All)
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
“New Super Mario Bros” on the Nintendo DS
Fun Fact:
I love comic books and movies, my first memory is watching “Spider-Man 2” on my 4th birthday.
Isaac Ochoa
Fun Facilitator
Favorite Exhibit/Program:
I love the magnet table. It's always so fun to make sculptures or see how far you can make the washers and nuts stick before they fall down.
Childhood Book I Enjoyed:
"Harold and the Purple Crayon" by Crockett Johnson
Game(s) I Liked To Play:
I loved playing all of the "Legend of Zelda" games!
Fun Fact:
One of my eyes is a different color of brown than the other.