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President of Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry resigns amid financial woes

 
President and CEO Molly Demeulenaere, left, walks children through a "lunar landing" at the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa. Demeulenaere has resigned from the museum. [Loren Elliott | Times (2015)]
President and CEO Molly Demeulenaere, left, walks children through a "lunar landing" at the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa. Demeulenaere has resigned from the museum. [Loren Elliott | Times (2015)]
Published March 8, 2017

TAMPA — Molly Demeulenaere is out as president and CEO of the Museum of Science and Industry after a two-year tenure marked by persistent financial woes that started before her time but showed few signs of improvement.

Demeulenaere's departure was officially called a "resignation" in a news release Tuesday. But MOSI's board of directors met Feb. 28 to discuss a "leadership assessment," according to an agenda obtained by the Tampa Bay Times. Local officials close to the museum operations have questioned her long-term prospects since she was given the job.

In a statement, Demeulenaere said she was "proud of what we have accomplished as a team, serving our visitors and the Tampa Bay community as we pursued our mission of making a difference in people's lives by making science real."

Demeulenaere's exit comes at a critical time for the museum. MOSI is expected to relocate from its longtime E Fowler Avenue home in north Tampa to the downtown development of Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik and Bill Gates' Cascade Investment.

Mike Schultz, president of MOSI's board, said those efforts will continue. Meanwhile, a team of directors will begin a search for Demeulenaere's replacement.

"MOSI's executive team is in place and will carry forward MOSI's mission during the transition," said Schultz, the president and CEO of Florida Hospitals West Florida Region.

Through a museum spokesman, Schultz declined further comment about Demeulenaere's departure.

MOSI still must deal with the financial problems she is leaving behind. After MOSI rejected a $400,000 loan from Hillsborough County — which owns the museum's land and building — Demeulenaere vowed a turnaround in 2016. But the museum continued to struggle.

Ticket sales dropped 20 percent last year, and MOSI finished its fiscal year with a $1.3 million deficit. As of January, MOSI owed vendors about $1 million, according to financial reports provided to the county and obtained by the Times.

Hillsborough County, which has been a consistent benefactor to the museum, could once again offer a lifeline, County Administrator Mike Merrill said. But that may mean more county oversight of the museum's finances.

"At some point I think that's going to have to come back up, but not us alone," Merrill said. "I'm not suggesting the county rescue it by themselves."

Demeulenaere joined MOSI in 2012 as vice president of development. She was promoted to interim president and CEO in 2014 after the retirement of longtime leader Wit Ostrenko.

She was tapped as the permanent replacement in 2015 after a national search. Soon after, the Times reported that Demeulenaere lacked the credentials of her predecessors. She didn't have a background in science or a college degree, even though the job description called for a "master's degree or equivalent experience."

Instead, she was homeschooled and said "professional development is a part of my everyday life."

"That's more valuable than just having a piece of paper," Demeulenaere said in 2015.

Her previous experience included a rocky tenure leading the now-defunct Gulfcoast Wonder and Imagination Zone in Sarasota.

Former board members told the Times that Demeulenaere hid the depths of money troubles at the museum known as G.WIZ. Four months after her 2012 exit, G.WIZ closed its doors. It never reopened.

After the Times story, Merrill said Demeulenaere could "keep the lights on" but was unlikely to lead the museum into a new era downtown.

Later, Hillsborough County staff discovered that Demeulenaere, while interim president, converted a $400,000 line of credit into a five-year loan to pay off vendors without county approval. That loan violated an agreement between the museum and the county. Demeulenaere said it was a mistake and she was unaware of the agreement.

However, the questionable financial maneuvering echoed similar complaints raised by former board members of G.WIZ. After Demeulenaere left, they discovered she took a $50,000 line of credit to cover operating expenses without informing the board. Demeulenaere disputed those claims.

Robert Thomas, who was board chair when MOSI named Demeulenaere its CEO, deferred questions to Schultz but said he's "excited about the future and looking forward to moving MOSI on."

The museum's board voted in April to move to Vinik's new waterside development. A consultant hired by MOSI is evaluating what's next, though the opening of a new science center there is likely five years away.

Hillsborough County paid $14,000 for the national search that resulted in Demeulenaere's hiring. It's unlikely to do so again as it seeks her replacement, Merrill said, though that could change after the vision for the new museum is finalized.

"Between now and then, candidates wouldn't really know what they're signing up for," Merrill said. "There's this period of time where together the county, MOSI's board, Jeff Vinik and his team really need to assess and decide, 'What does this thing look like and how does it get there?' "

Commissioner Al Higginbotham, who represents the County Commission on the MOSI board, would like to see an internal hire, at least in the short term.

"My feeling is it should be someone who understands the nature of MOSI and the financial issues we're dealing with," Higginbotham said.

If the continued uncertainty surrounding MOSI's leadership and financial troubles have spooked Vinik, he has not shown it publicly. Last year, MOSI added two board members with close ties to Vinik: Patti Jurinski, Vinik's sister-in-law; and Kimberly Madison, the director of administration for Strategic Property Partners, which is the company owned by Vinik and Cascade that's overseeing the redevelopment project.

"Strategic Property Partners shares MOSI board's vision," spokeswoman Ali Glisson said, "and remains committed to a future partnership with MOSI and Hillsborough County that creates a world-class science center in downtown Tampa."

Contact Steve Contorno at scontorno@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3433. Follow @scontorno.