NORWALK, Conn. — On his second day as president of The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Brian L. Davis stopped and paused at the shark tank to watch a parent and child peer through the glass.

“Watching the guests engage to different degrees, what they find passionate in this place, has been really exciting,” Davis said. “This is a perfect example, this interaction between a parent and child and the conversation that goes on there, and then, if they can layer in the conversation with our staff, it’s the magical stuff that we love.”

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Brian Davis, new president of The Maritime Aquarium, poses in front of one of the displays at the aquarium in Norwalk, Conn. Davis succeeds Jennifer E. Herring, who retired Dec. 27 after heading the aquarium for a decade. AP Photo/The Hour, Erik Trautmann

In late December, Davis took over as president and CEO of The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, an institution whose opening in 1988 helped revitalize SoNo and whose exhibits now draw 500,000 visitors annually.

He fills the post held by Jennifer E. Herring, who retired Dec. 27 after heading the Maritime Aquarium for a decade. During her tenure, the Aquarium underwent a $4.5 million renovation, purchased a new research vessel, expanded educational collaboration with schools, and maintained fundraising through tough economic times.

Davis, who most recently worked as vice president of education and training at Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta – one of the world’s largest aquariums – said he plans to spend his first 30 days getting to understand the Maritime Aquarium “100 percent” and his first 100 days reaching out to the community.

“I’ll just be meeting with them to find out what they love and what they’d like to see for the future,” Davis said. “I’m getting all information in relation to which things have been planned for the future, and then continuing on with those ideas.”

While the Maritime Aquarium’s future under Davis has yet to come into focus, he gave several clues about his priorities. Drawing more visitors is one priority.

Davis arrives at the Maritime Aquarium amid allegations of financial improprieties. Earlier this month, Aquarium officials announced that Chief Operations Officer Roy Dowdell was placed on administrative leave Oct. 27 and resigned from the position on Nov. 3. According to a forensic accounting audit, Dowdell took more than $78,000 from the nonprofit organization through petty cash and credit card discrepancies, officials said.

Davis said Tuesday that the matter is under police investigation.

For now, Davis says he’s attending staff meetings, walking through the Aquarium and enjoying people enjoying its exhibits. Among those people have been his children who flew in from out of town to pay a visit.

There was no shortage of guests at the Aquarium. Upward of several thousand people, including many families with small children, came through the doors. Aquarium officials attributed the attendance to the holiday school break.

Davis, a New Jersey native, graduated from Rutgers University in 1992 with a bachelor’s of science degree and started his career as an educator at New York Aquarium. He joined the Georgia Aquarium in 2003, according to his biography provided by the Maritime Aquarium.

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