{"id":172500,"date":"2026-02-10T22:37:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T22:37:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/172500\/"},"modified":"2026-02-10T22:37:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T22:37:15","slug":"longtime-director-leaving-childrens-discovery-museum-in-san-jose-the-mercury-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/172500\/","title":{"rendered":"Longtime director leaving Children\u2019s Discovery Museum in San Jose \u2013 The Mercury News"},"content":{"rendered":"

When San Jose\u2019s Children Discovery Museum recently replaced the giant, inflatable rubber duck that serves as its rooftop mascot, kids noticed. Quite frankly, they were a little concerned and wanted to know what happened to the old one.<\/p>\n

The marketing department came up with a tale to satisfy their curiosity. Discovery Duck, they said, had retired to a pondside community in Denver to be closer to her grandchildren.<\/p>\n

That, of course, is also what they could say about Marilee Jennings, who is stepping down this month after 39 years with the downtown learning center, including the past 18 as its executive director. She\u2019s off to Colorado to be closer to her grandkids, ages 3\u00bd and 3 months.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur stories are fully aligned,\u201d said Jennings, who started as the museum\u2019s head fundraiser about three years before its landmark purple building opened in 1990 at Discovery Meadow Park.<\/p>\n

\"MarileeMarilee Jennings, the executive director of Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, is retiring after 37 years with the San Jose institution. Photographed on Jan. 26, 2026, in San Jose, Calif. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

During Jennings\u2019 decades at CDM, the museum has both physically grown and evolved in how it approaches teaching children about the world around them. That included the expansion of outdoor spaces with Bill\u2019s Backyard: Bridge to Nature in 2017 and the Exploration Portal in 2024. Jennings also helped build a relationship with Zoom that led to the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum Zoom Zone at the San Jose Mineta International Airport.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the happiest an exhibit has made me was opening Bill\u2019s Backyard,\u201d Jennings said. \u201cI think it was the exact right thing to do at the time we did it for where kids are in needing to play outside, helping parents feel comfortable, that their children can kind of maneuver the natural world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jennings says she still gets excited by the sound of the museum coming alive each day with kids. But her favorite day in the museum every year is the annual Three Kings celebration in January, which started about three decades ago as an outreach to the Latino community.<\/p>\n

\"Marilee<\/p>\n

Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group<\/p>\n

Marilee Jennings, executive director of the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum of San Jose, watches as renowned children\u2019s entertainer Raffi Cavoukian rides a snail exhibit at the new outdoor Exploration Portal, unveiled on Friday, June 21, 2024, in San Jose, Calif. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Legacy<\/p>\n

Legacy for Children Award recipient Sylvia Acevedo poses with Children’s Discovery Executive Director Marilee Jennings in the museum’s outdoor amphitheater at the Keep on Playing gala on Saturday, June 24, 2023. (Sal Pizarro\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Marilee<\/p>\n

Marilee Jennings, executive director of the Children’s Discovery Museum, waits for a jet to pass during a groundbreaking for “Bill’s Backyard,” on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016, in San Jose, Calif. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"SAN<\/p>\n

SAN JOSE, CA – FEBRUARY 21: Executive Director of the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose Marilee Jennings, center, and attendees applaud a speaker during the opening ceremony for the new exhibition, \u201cPotter the Otter: A Healthy Adventure,\u201d at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, on Feb. 21, 2020, in San Jose, Calif. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/p>\n

Photo Jacqueline Ramseyer\/Bay Area News Group\/May 11, 2016Marilee Jennings, Executive Director of the Children’s Discovery Museum, with Kiana Martin, 13, an eighth-grader at Union Middle School who nominated Ruby Bridges for the Legacy for Children Award this year. <\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From left, Dan Amend, Board Chair of Children’s Discovery Museum and President of Toeniskoetter Construction, Marilee Jennings, Executive Director of Children’s Discovery Museum, San Jose Mayor Sam Riccardo, Bill Sullivan, retired CEO at Agilent and current Museum Board Member and Mike Flaugher, Board Chair for Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. <\/p>\n

Bill’s Backyard: Bridge to Nature dedication was held at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose on Oct. 19. Third-graders from Horace Mann Elementary School were the first to try out the new playground\/nature park. The park is named after Bill Sullivan, retired Agilent Technologies and current Museum Board Member.
\n(Jacqueline Ramseyer\/Staff Photographer)<\/p>\n

\"Lion<\/p>\n

Lion dancers roam through the large crowd gathered for the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum\u2019s Mid-Autumn Moon Festival on Sept. 27. (Lauren Uppal\/Mosaic)<\/p>\n

\"Lion<\/p>\n

Lion dancers roam through the large crowd gathered for the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival at the Children’s Discovery Museum in downtown San Jose on Sept. 27, 2025. (Lauren Uppal\/Mosaic)<\/p>\n

\"Hispanic<\/p>\n

Hispanic Heritage Month kicked off on Sunday, Sept. 14, at Children\u2019s Discovery Museum with a performance by Dulce Tricolor Venezolano, a traditional Venezuelan dance group. The museum has cultural events scheduled through Oct. 12. (Courtesy photo)<\/p>\n

\"Rich<\/p>\n

Rich Turner, director of exhibits at the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum of San Jose, stands at the entrance of the new outdoor Exploration Portal at an unveiling, Friday, June 21, 2024, in San Jose, Calif. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Children\u00e2\u0080\u0099s<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s Discovery Museum of San Jose debuted their outdoor Exploration Portal with preschoolers from Educare California at Silicon Valley taking the honeycomb exhibit for a test run, Friday, June 21, 2024, in San Jose, Calif. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Kevin<\/p>\n

Kevin Saxton and Terence Tang of the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum inflate a new 12-foot-tall, rooftop Discovery Duck on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, in San Jose, Calif. The old 5-year-old duck is being retired. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Arturo<\/p>\n

Arturo Medina, an instrumental organizer of the event, received his own special crown during El D\u00eda de los Tres Reyes Magos \/ Three Kings Day at the Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A crowd watches Mariachi Mexico perform during El D\u00eda de los Tres Reyes Magos \/ Three Kings Day at the Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"(left<\/p>\n

(left to right) Archita Satapathy, 14, of San Jose, Aanvi Jena, 11, of San Jose, and Kopal Kulshreshtha, 12, of San Jose, dance during a Diwali celebration at Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2022. Diwali, a religious festival of lights, usually lasts five days and is celebrated during the Hindu lunisolar month Kartika. (Shae Hammond\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

\"Children\u00e2\u0080\u0099s<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s Discovery Museum of San Jose hosts the Children of the Dragon
\nFestival, a celebration of Vietnamese culture on April 21 and 22.<\/p>\n

\"Third-grader<\/p>\n

Third-grader Mia Pizarro builds a fort at the new Bill’s Backyard playground.
\nBill’s Backyard: Bridge to Nature dedication was held at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose on Oct. 19. Third-graders from Horace Mann Elementary School were the first to try out the new playground\/nature park. The park is named after Bill Sullivan, retired Agilent Technologies and current Museum Board Member.
\n(Jacqueline Ramseyer\/Staff Photographer)<\/p>\n

\"Bill's<\/p>\n

Bill’s Backyard: Bridge to Nature dedication was held at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose on Oct. 19. Third-graders from Horace Mann Elementary School were the first to try out the new playground\/nature park. The park is named after Bill Sullivan, retired Agilent Technologies and current Museum Board Member.
\n(Jacqueline Ramseyer\/Staff Photographer)<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group<\/p>\n

1 of 18<\/p>\n

Marilee Jennings, executive director of the Children\u2019s Discovery Museum of San Jose, watches as renowned children\u2019s entertainer Raffi Cavoukian rides a snail exhibit at the new outdoor Exploration Portal, unveiled on Friday, June 21, 2024, in San Jose, Calif. (Karl Mondon\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is just an extraordinary event and the thousands of people in the community pour out for it,\u201d Jennings said. \u201cIt\u2019s just a joyful day where people of Latino descent can take great pride in this celebration, and people who are not of that community can learn more about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s led to other daylong cultural festivals like the Lunar New Year event held last weekend and the celebration of Nowruz, the Persian new year, in the spring.<\/p>\n

Longtime board member Dan Amend called Jennings one of his favorite people in the world, who exhibits thoughtfulness and kindness at her core. He marveled at her tenacity at a time when the city\u2019s cultural institutions were under fire and accompanied her on a \u201croad show\u201d of City Hall offices where she told the museum\u2019s story to elected officials again and again.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think her impact has been both a fortifying of the institution as well as inspirational and unprecedented leadership and guidance,\u201d said Amend, who is president and CEO of commercial real estate firm ACRE Investments.<\/p>\n

In honor of Jennings\u2019 leadership and the museum\u2019s 35th anniversary, the Marilee Jennings Future 35 Fund has been established to give her fans a way to secure Children\u2019s Discovery Museum\u2019s future. You can find out more at www.cdm.org\/marilee-jennings-future-35-fund<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jennings\u2019 successor is expected to be announced in the coming weeks, and she has advice for that person.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe community comes first. Let that be your North Star,\u201d she said. \u201cWe spend a lot of time here reminding one another that our purpose is actually about children, children\u2019s curiosity and creativity. It\u2019s not about imparting facts and figures and miscellaneous skills. It\u2019s about responding to what the child needs in order to grow and become successful.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we look into this community, we see extraordinary ethnic diversity. We see amazing artists, innovative scientists,\u201d she said. \u201cSo that\u2019s why I say let the community drive where the museum is.\u201d<\/p>\n

TECHNOLOGY IS FOR LOVERS: The Tech Interactive is another downtown San Jose institution that\u2019s popular with the younger set, but it\u2019ll be opening its doors Thursday night exclusively to grown-ups ages 21 and up for Tech at Nite: Love Lab,\u201d a Valentine\u2019s Day-themed edition of the popular evening experience.<\/p>\n

Besides having the run of the Tech\u2019s regular exhibits, visitors can enjoy music by Universal Grammar\u2019s DJ Chal\u00e9 Brown and Zuri Alexa, a light and fluid art workshop by led Combsy the Chemist and Local Color, specialty cocktails and even a DIY \u201clove potion\u201d fragrance lab. It runs from 7 to 10:30 p.m., and tickets are available at www.thetech.org\/techatnite<\/a>.<\/p>\n

WASN\u2019T THE SUPER BOWL ENOUGH?: Grammy Award-winning band Los Tigres del Norte participated in a panel discussion after Monday night\u2019s Warriors game and is set to return to the arena for a concert on Feb 20<\/a>. That\u2019s all fine and good, but the band \u2014 which made it big in San Jose in the late 1960s \u2014 also received the key to the city from San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie on Monday. Of course, Los Tigres are deserving of any honor they get, but this seems like a little payback for the Grateful Dead ceremony that San Jose had at City Hall back in December, doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When San Jose\u2019s Children Discovery Museum recently replaced the giant, inflatable rubber duck that serves as its rooftop…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":172501,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[417,184,7,4978,181,23,419,88,90,89,198,200],"class_list":{"0":"post-172500","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-jose","8":"tag-around-town","9":"tag-bay-area","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-downtown-san-jose","12":"tag-latest-headlines","13":"tag-local-news","14":"tag-news-columnists","15":"tag-san-jose","16":"tag-san-jose-headlines","17":"tag-san-jose-news","18":"tag-santa-clara-county","19":"tag-south-bay"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172500"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172500\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}