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Some fought back tears while others shouted chants outside the Academy of Natural Sciences on Tuesday evening, where roughly 80 people gathered with candles to mark one month since the museum closed to the public.
The crowd, organized by the Save the Academy Coalition, included longtime museum supporters holding signs alongside a more boisterous group of Drexel University students who marched roughly a mile and a half from the university’s dragon statue at 33rd and Market streets.
All carried candles outside the museum’s shuttered doors as speakers reflected on the academy’s impact and expressed frustration with the institutions responsible for its closure.
The vigil came one day after Philadelphia City Council members grilled Drexel officials over the decision to close the nearly 200-year-old museum and threatened to subpoena university officials who failed to attend the hearing.
Among those marching Tuesday were Drexel students Ashen Harper, Reese Miller and Ghost Fazek Asstivala, members of the university’s chapter of Young Democratic Socialists of America.
The students said they felt an obligation to oppose the decision made by their own university.
“We can’t stand for that and we just have to fight the fight to keep it open,” said Harper, referring to the loss of what the group considered a priceless educational institution.
Miller said they began studying invertebrate paleontology at the museum in April under Alejandra Martinez Melo, its former collection manager of invertebrate paleontology who was among speakers at the event.
“She taught me to love echinoderms, which was my main research focus over the summer with her,” Miller said. “And she pushed me to talk to more people, come out of my shell.”
Miller said the closure disrupted plans to continue working at the academy.
“When they announced that the academy was closing, I was in pure shock,” Miller said.
Martinez Melo was visibly emotional as she addressed the crowd Tuesday, describing the academy’s exhibits as her “other children.”
“I don’t know what is going to happen with my older baby,” said Martinez Melo. “I don’t know if it is gonna be taken to a storage, to a landfill. I don’t know. Drexel doesn’t even know. Nobody has an idea of what is going to happen, but as a mom I ask for your help and your support.”
The emotional gathering came just a day after a contentious City Council hearing, where lawmakers pressed Drexel officials for answers about the museum’s closure.
Monday’s City Council hearing drew more than 120 supporters, some of whom booed during Drexel’s testimony as lawmakers questioned the financial justification for closing the museum.
Drexel President Antonio Merlo did not attend, citing a university accreditation visit. Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration also declined to send a representative, instead submitting written testimony from Deputy Mayor Trish Wellenbach.
Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr., whose district includes the museum, tore up the administration’s statement in frustration.
Council members announced plans to pursue subpoenas and continue the hearing Nov. 16.
Drexel representative Melissa Richman testified that the academy’s public programs cost $7.7 million last year but generated only $3 million in revenue. Academy board chair Suzanne Biemiller presented a different financial picture, reporting a museum budget of $3.6 million and revenue of $2.7 million.
The conflicting figures prompted questions about what expenses each calculation included and how much money reopening the museum would actually require.
Save the Academy organizer Sarah McAnulty said Tuesday she was encouraged by the hearing.
“I think it went incredibly well,” McAnulty said. “We’re thrilled that City Council was so on our side and asked hard questions of powerful people.”
Still, she criticized the absence of Merlo and an administration representative, calling it disappointing.
The movement to save the academy began shortly after Drexel and academy leadership announced Sept. 1 that the museum would close, citing financial struggles and declining attendance.
Supporters organized demonstrations throughout September, including a rally outside the museum Sept. 8 and a candlelight vigil and march to City Hall on Sept. 27, when more than 200 people gathered as the museum closed.
The William Penn Foundation offered to cover a year of Drexel’s financial subsidy to allow time for a long-term solution. As of Monday, the foundation said it had not received a response to its offer.
The coalition has also held an online rally, recruited volunteers and pressed elected officials for intervention, helping bring the closure before City Council.
McAnulty said supporters are seeking a concrete plan from Drexel and academy leadership, including an assessment of the funding necessary to reopen the public museum.
The academy’s scientific research and collections are continuing, but public access remains suspended.
With another Council hearing scheduled for Nov. 16, McAnulty said she expects the fight to continue.
“I do think it’s a war of attrition,” she said. “And I know that my colleagues and I are stubborn and never giving up, so I hope they get comfortable.”
