The Value of the Virginia Aquarium | Annual Report FY19

The Value Value of of the the The Virginia Aquarium Aquarium Virginia Scratch & See How Much You Support

Adding $276 million to the economy page 6

264 stranded sea turtles

4,584 early learners

page 15

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Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center | FY19 Annual Report

“What you do makes a difference.

And you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

–Jane Goodall

A Year in Review Economic Impact Study

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Construction

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First Step Campaign

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Animal Training

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Professional Development

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President’s Circle

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Animals

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Tomistoma Eggs

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Protect Sea Life

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Stranding Response

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Changing Exhibits

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Early Learners

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Future Visioning

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Financials

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Board of Trustees Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center Foundation July 2018 – June 2019

David C. Burton

Sherri L. Miles

President’s Circle

Clancy A. Holland

Barbara Ciara

Scott D. Miller

Rendy Adams

Ann W. Host

Michelle Collins

Kathryn J. O’Hara

Thomas C. Broyles

Wiley F. Mitchell, Jr.

Wanda Cooper

Carolyn Robertson

Barbara Taylor Creech

Elly D. Mladick

Sal DaBiero President Elect

George A. Faatz

Christopher W. Rusbuldt

Nancy A. Creech

Frederick J. Napolitano II

Chris Graves

Bert Schmidt

Robert H. DeFord, Jr.

Jane M. Purrington

Craig Grube Vice President

Bert “Burr” Henderson

John Settle

John H. Fain

C. Mac Rawls

Cory Mayo Secretary

Katherine Hines

Jean F. Siebert

Morris H. Fine

Timothy B. Robertson

Andrew C. Hodge

Michael Standing, Jr.

Robert C. Fort

Martha “Kay” Roland

Ellen O. Keeter

Ray Toll

Thomas E. Fraim, Sr.

Dan Ryan

Mollie S. Korte

Cathie France Vick

Thomas E. Fraim, Jr.

Michael C. Savvides

William M. “Bill” Macali General Counsel

Troy A. Lindsey

Frank W. Wagner

Thomas R. Frantz

Andrew W. Vakos

JT McDonald

Michael Wagner

William A. Hearst

Ned Williams

Cynthia W. Spanoulis Executive Director

Cheryl McLeskey

Samantha Wetzler

W. Kenneth Wilson, Jr.

Tom McNicholas

David W. Williams

Dorcas T. Helfant- Browning

Delceno C. Miles Chairperson of the Board Lee Entsminger President

Daniel R. Peterson Treasurer

Nikki Williams

In loving memory of our friends and trustees...

Ed Synder Trustee & friend

Jean F. Siebert Trustee & friend

John Settle Trustee & friend

The Virginia Aquarium’s Value From giving outstanding guest experiences

The South Building expansion and renovations

to our visitors, to saving endangered species

are underway, and the Darden Marine Animal

and returning them to the wild, to providing

Care Center will open next spring. These two

exceptional animal care to our resident animals

projects are the results of our most recent capital

and providing educational programs to our

campaign that we completed in December 2018.

community, the Virginia Aquarium is making a significant impact with our mission to inspire the

We have many exciting things happening, and

conservation of the marine environment.

together we know the best is yet to come.

Additionally, during this fiscal year, we worked

We continue to look ambitiously to the future, and

with Sage Consulting Group to measure our

have embarked on a Master Plan project that will

economic impact on the City of Virginia Beach and

expand our campus dramatically over the next

the Commonwealth of Virginia. Realizing that our

ten years. This project will allow us to expand our

impact spreads beyond our walls both in terms

mission and economic impact for the community

of our mission and the dollars we bring to the

and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

community is inspiring, and astounding. Each year our organization supports over 3,250 jobs for our

We are so grateful for your generous support

community and adds $276 million to our economy.

of the Virginia Aquarium. Your support creates tremendous impacts felt throughout the world for

We hope you are as proud as we are of the work

the conservation of the marine environment.

we are doing and the impact we are making.

Cynthia W. Spanoulis Executive Director

Lee Entsminger Foundation President

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Economic Impact Study According to a Sage Policy Group, Inc. economic impact study, the Virginia Aquarium supports more than $257 million in annual economic activity in Virginia Beach and over $276 million across the Commonwealth of Virginia.

This survey was conducted by Christopher Newport University and administered during the peak and shoulder seasons, and the study was presented to Virginia Beach City Council in January 2019.

Other key findings from the study include: the Aquarium supports more than 3,250 jobs in Virginia Beach once multiplier effects are considered; in fiscal year 2018, the Aquarium generated enough City tax revenue to conceptually pay the salary for nearly 180 additional teachers or firefighters and 185 additional police officers; and City of Virginia Beach tax revenues increase by $12 for every one visitor to the Virginia Aquarium via indirect and induced impacts.

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Renovations in the South Building require demolition to make way for exciting new exhibits.

Construction The South Building renovation began in earnest this year, with the closure of the building to guests in January 2019.

Construction crews began demolition inside the building in May, after Aquarium staff and animals moved to the Main Building.

Once complete, the South Building will feature incredible new exhibits, animals, and areas. Some of these include the Jellies Gallery supported by The Dreyfus Family Foundation; Undersea Super Powers Gallery supported by Joan and Macon Brock, which will feature a giant Pacific octopus and an invertebrate touch pool; a new Toddler Zone supported by John O. and Susan Wynne; a completely new CafĂŠ; Our Watershed supported by Jane P. Batten; and a new flexible-use outdoor Amphitheater supported by Roy E. Hendrix. The South Building renovation will also include the new Veterinary Care Center featuring the Windows into Animal Care Gallery, which will offer observation windows into treatment rooms, the water quality lab, and conservation research, as well as a role-playing area, the Animal Discovery Exhibit, supported by the Goode Family Foundation.

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First Step Campaign The Virginia Aquarium was proud to participate in the First Step campaign, organized by the Aquarium Conservation Partnership and including more than 20 aquariums from across the country. This campaign encouraged consumers to skip the straw and make your last straw the first step to being single-use plastic free. Coupled with our on-site green programs, which include using compostable plastics in the Aquarium CafĂŠ, reducing plastic in our Aquarium store items, and recycling chip and candy bags, this program helped create awareness about plastic use and the valuable actions we can take to

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prevent it from landing in the ocean.

Our animal care team utilizes many of the same practices Dr. Ramirez presented.

Animal Training From training elephants to training your pets, the Eleanor & Henry Watts Conservation Speaker Series featured an incredible presenter: Ken Ramirez, Chief Training Officer of Karen Pryor Clicker Training. Mr. Ramirez, a biologist and animal behaviorist with over 40 years of experience in animal care and training, spoke in February about the value of training and how it is used to improve the lives of pets, animals at the aquarium, and animals in their habitats.

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Thanks to the generous support of Mrs. Batten, staff members are better able to care for our animals and educate the public.

Batten Professional Development Program The Batten Professional Development Program at the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center was established in 2012 by Mrs. Jane P. Batten.

Annual support of this program is made possible by the Batten Fund for the Virginia Aquarium, held by the Hampton Roads Community Foundation. The program provides resources to enable existing Aquarium staff members to further their education, training, and professional engagement in support of the Aquarium’s conservation mission. The fund also allows talented undergraduate and graduate college students to acquire valuable education and work experience through internships with the animal care, education, exhibit, and research sections of the Aquarium.

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Left to right: Cynthia, Mrs. Joan Brock & Dr. Ken Chandler

President's Circle Honorees The President’s Circle is a select group of former Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center Foundation Board Members who support the Aquarium above and beyond their Board service.

These members are inextricably tied to the long-term success of the Aquarium, and this year

Macon Brock

the Foundation was proud to honor two President’s Circle members. John Fain and Macon Brock were the first two Virginia Aquarium President’s Circle Honorees. Both gentlemen gave

John Fain

deeply of their time, effort, and experience, and the Aquarium is forever indebted to them.

Mr. Fain and Mr. Brock (posthumously) were honored at the event in May, which also featured a special presentation by Peggy Sloan, Chief Animal Operations Officer for Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium and Chair of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums Board of Directors.

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This fiscal year we had

Orange filefish

7,643 animals spanning

342 different species

We added 14 new species...

Red-winged blackbird Virginia opossum

Green moray eel

Betta

Redtail sharkminnow

Orange filefish

Threadfin rainbowfish

American toad

Boeseman's rainbowfish

Red-winged blackbird

Turquoise rainbowfish

Northern oriole

Parkinson's rainbowfish

Northern cardinal

Spotted scorpionfish

Virginia opossum

...and had 175 babies!

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were golden poison dart frogs

Tomistoma Eggs Ralf, our male Tomistoma crocodile, and Sommer, our female, began displaying courtship behaviors around February 2019, but it wasn’t until spring that we learned Sommer was gravid. She began building a nest and nestguarding, and when we excavated the nest mound we determined she laid a clutch of 23 eggs! Although after incubation, we learned the eggs were nonviable, this was a very exciting first step for our animals and our future.

We learned valuable information about this endangered species, and hopefully we will see further copulation and successful hatching from this pair soon!

Ralf & Sommer’s successful reproduction would help to ensure the long-term sustainability of genetic diversity of their species in AZA institutions.

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Protect Sea Life In October 2018, the Virginia Aquarium began soliciting presale applications for a new license plate. Proceeds from the “Protect Sea Life” license plate benefit the Aquarium’s conservation and research programs, including our statewide Stranding Response Program. With each plate sold, the Aquarium’s programs receive $10.

This additional revenue source will only increase the impact of the valuable work done year round. Once the pre-sold license plates are distributed, the plate will be available at DMV locations statewide.

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We pre-sold 603 license plates, exceeding the required 450!

Stranding recap

Stranding Response Marine Mammal Responses

Of the 117 marine mammal strandings, one of the most notable was a manatee mortality. This was the first manatee stranding in Virginia in more than 30 years.

Bottlenose Dolphins

73

Large Whales

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Seals

10

Other Small Cetaceans

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Manatee

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Sea Turtle Responses Loggerhead Green Kemp’s Ridley

155 13 80

Leatherback

3

Unidentified

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The 3 leatherbacks we encountered were entangled in pound nets. All were disentangled and one subsequently died from the entanglement injuries.

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Changing Exhibits Featuring curious monkeys and familiar faces, the changing exhibits from this year were among the best! Curious George: Let’s Get Curious opened in September and continued through January with an exciting mix of interactive exhibits and math, science, and engineering-based adventure. Cats & Dogs, which ran from January to September, showcased the hidden lives of our favorite pets. This exhibit highlighted a sensory and interactive journey with

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games and simulations showing why and how our pets show their feelings!

Toddlers & Early Learners Thanks to generous support from Bob and Leslie Fort, the Virginia Aquarium’s Early Learner programming has seen one of its most productive years! From Toddler Tuesdays and Toddler Trek, to Playtime with Miss Jenny and S.T.E.A.M., children from toddlers to age 7 have early exposure to these concepts, which science has shown to be immensely valuable for young learners!

4,584 early learners participated in specialized programming this year!

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Future Visioning The Virginia Aquarium’s impact extends far beyond the walls of our building.

From the on-going education and conservation projects to the economic impact of our operations, the important work we do can be felt throughout the Commonwealth. That’s why we’re looking to the future. Adding the Darden Marine Animal Care Center and renovating the South Building are two of the first steps in an aggressive plan to establish the Aquarium as one of the premier facilities in the nation. We aren’t just thinking big – we’re thinking boldly, confidently, and purposefully. We’re not asking for permission, we’re asking what’s possible. The next ten years are going to be amazing. We can’t wait to show you.

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Operating Revenue & Support $14,151,099

52%

Admission Revenue

$7,365,622

13%

Contributions, Grants & Support

$1,882,975

11%

Retail

$1,607,847

8%

Membership

$1,108,541

7%

Facility Use & Concessions

$938,680

7%

Education Programs

$972,572

2%

Investment Income

$274,862

City

Foundation

Operating Expenditures

$13,554,216

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36%

Exhibits & Husbandry

$4,841,881

13%

Education

$ 1,749,455

12%

Research & Conservation

$1,579,612

9%

Administrative

$1,305,458

8%

Merchandising

$1,112,376

10%

Marketing

$1,356,898

8%

Guest & Member Services

$1,096,644

4%

Fundraising

$511,892

Net: $596,883

Attendance

590,173 Memberships Sold

8,160

Student Attendance

39,373

Thank you to our numerous donors & sponsors who helped us to further our mission.

Your continued support benefits our community in more ways than one.

For a complete list of the Honor Roll of Donors, please visit www.VirginiaAquarium.com

There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about. –Margaret J. Wheatley

The mission of the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center is to inspire conservation of the marine environment through education, research, and sustainable practices.