“That Is Truly What Our Goal Is, To Create Passion In The Young”, An Interview With Student Curator & Aquarist Monique DeLeon

ThePersaudCatalog
Jun 7
7 min read

*A gorgeous portrait of Monique DeLeon by the seaside. Credit to Monique DeLeon.*

Recently, our head writer was immensely grateful to be able to sit down with Monique DeLeon, student curator at the Cabrillo Aquarium, to discuss her work & student leadership at the aquarium.

Monique DeLeon is an Aquarist, & the Head Student Curator at Cabrillo High School Aquarium in Southern California. In addition to this, she manages the Instagram & Facebook pages for the Aquarium, as well as the eclectic gift shop.

In today’s interview, we sit down with Monique to discuss this beautiful facility, the aquarium from a student perspective, the new tropical fish gallery set to be opened in late 2025, & her work at the aquarium, in a comprehensive 13-question-long interview.

Before delving into today’s interview, please note everything said has been edited for clarity, & that the opinions of our interviewee do not necessarily reflect the opinions & values of our organization. With that being said, let us delve into the contents of the interview!

The Contents Of The Interview

Questions About Her Passion:

1. What sparked your passion for aquariums, & marine biology?

Quite honestly, I want to say that my passion was sparked when I started last year (2024) when I joined the aquarium. I wanted to take the aquarium as one of my elective classes, & I realized how much I enjoyed the opportunity to learn, especially about marine biology.

2. Do you have a specific person, place, or thing that helped to spark your passion?

My friend, Joanne Cacho, who was a senior in my first year, truly helped spark my passion. I owe quite a lot to her. Seeing her working in the aquarium, & helping people, encouraged me to be a much better leader. She helped me develop this passion that I have, for both the aquarium & marine biology.

3. Do you have a favorite marine or terrestrial animal, & if so, what is it? What is your favorite creature kept at the aquarium?

My favorite marine animal is actually Penguins! I know that many people don't consider them marine animals, however, I do, as they spend a lot of time in the ocean hunting for food. I don't have a favourite, I find all of them to be so cute! I particularly adore African Penguins, Emperor Penguins, & Adélie Penguins.

*A huddle of Adelie Penguins on Sea Ice in Antarctica, with one bravely leaping from one peace of sea ice to the next. Credit to photographer Nick Dale.*

My favourite creature at the aquarium has got to be the California Sheephead, as they are very sociable & they always come close to us during feedings.

*A California Sheephead roaming the cold Kelp Forests. Credit to Douglas Klug.*

Questions About Her Position At The Aquarium, & Cabrillo High School Aquarium:

4. How did you begin at the aquarium, & how long have you been in your role?

I started last year (2024), in my junior year; this is my second year here. I always wanted to try out the aquarium class, I always wanted to try it as an elective. Originally, I had planned to take Advanced Florals that semester, a class dedicated to flower arranging. The teacher for that class, unfortunately, left that semester, & so I went for the aquarium instead. That was a great decision of mine.

5. What exactly is your role at the aquarium as Head Student Curator at the aquarium, & what do you do in your capacity as Head Student Curator? What time commitment does the role require?

As the head student curator, we are expected to lead & go above & beyond time-wise. We are expected to show new volunteers how to handle various tasks such as feeding, water quality monitoring, & developing curriculum, as our staff advisors are often busy. We are supposed to oversee day-to-day operations, & guide students who have questions or are struggling with any tasks. We basically make sure that the aquarium doesn't crumble. We act as the liaison between the students & the staff, as the staff are often very busy.

Additionally, although I am the head curator, we have other curators which manage smaller, more specialized responsibilities. We have a curator dedicated to sharks, octopi, nutrition, water quality, developing curriculum, & so on & so forth. About time, head curators are expected to be at every open house barring problems, do holiday feedings on days when school is not in session, & do tours with elementary school children during lunch. Being a head curator takes up much of my time outside of school.

Every year, we create different laboratory activities, & host tours for younger students in elementary & middle school. Our curriculum topic this year concerns the Channel Islands of California, so our activities are centered around Kelp Forests, & energy pyramids.

6. Apart from being Head Student Curator, you also play a very prominent role in managing the gift shop & social media pages. Do you mind elaborating on what exactly you do in your managerial capacity? Have you headed any new initiatives for either recently?

Starting with the gift shop, my primary job is to make sure that we have people staffing it & signing up to do volunteer hours. I also ensure that all of our inventory is out & stocked properly, as well as our prices are correct. I handle deposits, & all of the money fundraiser from our gift shop goes to a scholarship fund for distinguished students who prove their commitment to the aquarium. These scholarships are for seniors or those going into college, as a thank you for your time & commitment to the Aquarium. You have to apply for it as you would with any ordinary scholarship, & the money is used to cut into your student loans or college payments. The amount differs from student to student depending on how many hours you have committed to the aquarium.

7. The Cabrillo High School Aquarium has recently begun hosting a short-day Summer Camp to show students about the processes of the aquarium, which is such a wonderful program. Do you mind explaining to the audience what the program consists of, your role in it, & your goal with it?

Our summer camp is a five day day-camp which people can drop their children off to to learn more about the ocean. We provide them with laboratory activities, & our topic for this year is energy! It's all about the energy pyramid. We also showcase our feeding procedures to the children, as we still must feed our animals during the camp.

As for my role in it, I wish that I was more dedicated to the program or the summer camp this year, however with my schedule, I am completely booked. I haven't had a chance to assist in developing activities, however I will be helping administrate the camp & take care of the children on the day of.

As for our goal, we just want to make a program that reaches as many students as possible because this summer camp really does inspire kids to get involved in our aquarium. This allows for future marine biologists to get more inspired, & that is truly what the goal of our aquarium is. To create passion in the young.

8. Can you describe the process of what it took to come from a simple volunteer to head student curator?

It took countless hours of working, & I wish to say that I am very lucky to be the head curator. Usually our head curators are regular curators managing a specialized role beforehand, however I went from a regular aquarium student to being the Head Curator, which is a huge step.

I had to apply for the position & be interviewed for it, & since I was very involved with the social media pages, & the gift shop my junior year, they saw my commitment & ultimately chose me as Head Curator.

9. What has been your proudest moment at the aquarium so far?

I think that my proudest moment was receiving a 90,000$ grant for our newest Tropical Fish gallery. For a bit of context, the Monterey Bay Aquarium generously donated 6 tanks from their closed Tentacles exhibit to us, which we are now using to house a plethora of tropical species.

We had to go to the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, & two of our head curators presented the grant, & we won! It was such a moment of inspiration & awe, we're so grateful to the community for supporting us & backing us up. The council was in pure awe of what we do, & they've always supported us & what we do for our community. They were more than happy to give us the grant, & I'm so proud that we have such a reputation now.

10. I’m sure that you have faced just as many challenges & setbacks as you have leaps forward. What has been the biggest hurdle that you have faced in managing the aquarium, the gift shop, & the accompanying social media pages?

For me at least, it is the pure volume of work required to upkeep my role with the aquarium. It's a very large workload & sometimes I become stressed out, however I have a fantastic team & if I have a problem we make sure that we can fix it & we come together. That is likely the biggest channel that I face.

11. What do you intend to pursue after the Aquarium career-wise? If you do not know or do not wish to answer, that is perfectly reasonable & understandable.

I do know what I want to pursue! My goal is to pursue graphic design, as I love the arts. I'd like to combine science & art to help create science communication posters or material to help companies & the public.

12. Do you have any advice that you would give to new aquarists, new students looking to join your program, or passionate young aspiring scientists in general?

Never stop loving what you do. Continue to be passionate because we are the future, & I know that we can overcome any challenges that come in our way.

13. Do you have any final words regarding the aquarium, your role, or marine biology?

I'm grateful to speak so openly about the aquarium, & our last open house will be on May 14th, 2024 from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM PST, at the Cabrillo High School Aquarium. I highly recommend going, or going to one of our open houses if you are ever in the area. It is such a magical place.