In May of 2002, Dr. David K. Brezinski was named Associate Curator of the Section of Invertebrate Paleontology. In the face of intense budget constrictions that confronted the museum in the Fall of that year, then-Director DeWalt and Dr. Brezinski agreed to delay his arrival at the museum until the financial situation was resolved. For that reason, the title Associate Curator-Adjunct was created in October 2002, and Dr. Brezinski has been serving in that capacity ever since.

Dr. Brezinski’s expertise spans a broad range of geologic and paleontologic subjects. He is an internationally recognized authority on Carboniferous and Permian trilobite taxonomy, paleoecology, paleobiogeography, and evolution. He is also known for his expertise in Appalachian geology and Carboniferous stratigraphy and paleoclimatology. Working from his position as Senior Scientist-Paleontologist-Stratigrapher of the Maryland State Geological Survey, his first order of business as curator was to bring greater visibility to the section, both within theregion and within the museum. Working closely with collections manager Kollar, he assembled the section web page featuring geology and paleontology virtual educational tours, developed geology and paleontology educational tools to teach about the Lewis and Clark expedition, assisted in developing and launching the Galey Geology Series at Powdermill Nature Reserve, and established the PAlS (Patrons And lauradanae Supporters) friends group for the section. In keeping with Andrew Carnegie’s vision for the museum, PAlS activities have been geared towards helping non-scientists understand important geological and paleontological principles using rocks of the Tri-State region. This effort has produced hiking guides of the Pittsburgh City Parks as well as other educational programs that concentrate on local geology and paleontology. During his tenure as curator-adjunct, Dr. Brezinski has published more than 25 research and educational papers.