Zoo touts its latest addition: New chief
Gina Tenorio (The Desert Sun)
Issue date: 5/11/09 Section: Entertainment
The Living Desert has hired a Pennsylvania zoo director as its new president and CEO.
Stacey Johnson, currently executive director of the Lehigh Valley Zoo in Schnecksville, Pa., will replace longtime CEO Karen Sausman, who officially retired in 2008 but who has continued to work full-time at The Living Desert.
Sausman has been the top official at the Palm Desert zoo and botanical garden since it was founded in 1970.
"We're all looking forward to having him (Johnson) here," said Sausman, who holds the title of president emeritus. "I knew he was an active young professional that was well thought of. When I spoke to him, I thought he was very genuine and articulate."
Johnson has worked at the Pennsylvania zoo - located on a game preserve north of the Allen-town/Lehigh Valley - for 21/2
"I hadn't visited the Palm Desert area before. I didn't really know what to expect," Johnson said of a recent trip to the Coachella Valley. "When I saw the zoo, I thought, 'This zoo has real exciting possibilities.'"
Johnson has a 20-year background in zoo administration and conservation.
Prior to joining the Penn-sylvania zoo, he was curator of Texas Wild at the Fort Worth Zoo in Fort Worth.
He holds a bachelor of science degree in zoology from Colorado State Uni-versity and has been a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 1989, serving on the organization's accreditation commission.
He is vice-chair of the association's Bear Taxon Advisory Group, that examines the conservation needs of bears worldwide. He is also coordinator of the Jaguar Species Survival Plan, which manages the breeding of jaguars.
An exact start date for Johnson has not yet been set, Sausman said. "We know he will be coming sometime in June."
Meanwhile, Johnson has begun planning to move his family to the Coachella Valley. He will be joined by his wife, Chantel, and their 2-year-old daughter, Celest.
For more information about this story visit
www.mydesert.com
Stacey Johnson, currently executive director of the Lehigh Valley Zoo in Schnecksville, Pa., will replace longtime CEO Karen Sausman, who officially retired in 2008 but who has continued to work full-time at The Living Desert.
Sausman has been the top official at the Palm Desert zoo and botanical garden since it was founded in 1970.
"We're all looking forward to having him (Johnson) here," said Sausman, who holds the title of president emeritus. "I knew he was an active young professional that was well thought of. When I spoke to him, I thought he was very genuine and articulate."
Johnson has worked at the Pennsylvania zoo - located on a game preserve north of the Allen-town/Lehigh Valley - for 21/2
"I hadn't visited the Palm Desert area before. I didn't really know what to expect," Johnson said of a recent trip to the Coachella Valley. "When I saw the zoo, I thought, 'This zoo has real exciting possibilities.'"
Johnson has a 20-year background in zoo administration and conservation.
Prior to joining the Penn-sylvania zoo, he was curator of Texas Wild at the Fort Worth Zoo in Fort Worth.
He holds a bachelor of science degree in zoology from Colorado State Uni-versity and has been a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 1989, serving on the organization's accreditation commission.
He is vice-chair of the association's Bear Taxon Advisory Group, that examines the conservation needs of bears worldwide. He is also coordinator of the Jaguar Species Survival Plan, which manages the breeding of jaguars.
An exact start date for Johnson has not yet been set, Sausman said. "We know he will be coming sometime in June."
Meanwhile, Johnson has begun planning to move his family to the Coachella Valley. He will be joined by his wife, Chantel, and their 2-year-old daughter, Celest.
For more information about this story visit
www.mydesert.com
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