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NMFS-Sea Grant Alumni

Since 1990, Sea Grant and NMFS have partnered to train students through this joint fellowship program in two specialized areas: population and ecosystem dynamics as well as marine resource economics.

Population and ecosystem dynamics involve the study of fish populations and marine ecosystems to better assess fishery stock conditions and dynamics. 

NMFS-SG Fellows Class of 2021
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Katherine Dale
California Sea Grant
University of California San Diego
Faculty Advisor: Rita Mehta
Project: Predicting spatio-temporal shifts in larval fish abundance in the eastern Pacific using Bayesian hierarchical modeling
Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Andrew Thompson

Matthew Damiano
North Carolina Sea Grant
North Carolina State University
Faculty Advisor: Jie Cao
Project: Development and application of a spatially-explicit stock assessment and management strategy evaluation tool for common dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea
Beaufort Lab (SEFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Kyle Shertzer

Nicholas Fisch
Florida Sea Grant
University of Florida
Faculty Advisor: Robert Ahrens, Ed Camp
Project: Evaluating the use of composition data within fisheries assessment and its effect on management
Beaufort Lab (SEFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Kyle Shertzer

Amanda Hart
Woods Hole Sea Grant
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
Faculty Advisor: Gavin Fay
Project: Tackling technical interactions in ecosystem-based fisheries management through management strategy evaluation
Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Jonathan Deroba

Cameron Hodgdon
Maine Sea Grant
University of Maine
Faculty Advisor: Yong Chen, James Sulikowski
Project: A framework to assess and forecast spatio-temporal dynamics of fish stocks in a changing environment
Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Burton Shank

Samuel May
Washington Sea Grant
University of Washington
Faculty Advisor: Kerry Naish
Project: Quantifying the effects of assortative mating on population recruitment and viability
Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Eric Ward, Robin Waples, Mike Ford

Victoria Quennessen
Oregon Sea Grant
Oregon State University
Faculty Advisor: Will White
Project: Sea turtle population dynamics: consequences and response to climate-shifting sex ratios
Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Stephan Munch

David Nicholas Weber
Texas Sea Grant
Texas A&M University
Faculty Advisor: David Portnoy
Project: Applying genomic techniques to fisheries management: a focus on exploited groupers (family Serrandiae)
Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Beverly Barnett

Devynn Wulstein
Hawai’i Sea Grant
University of Hawai’i
Faculty Advisor: Joshua Madin
Project: Structure-from-motion to benthic population models: developing a pipeline for broadscale decision-making on coral reefs
Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Thomas Oliver

Russell Dame
Washington Sea Grant
University of Washington
Faculty Advisor: Kerry Naish
Project: Quantifying the effects of assortative mating on population recruitment and viability
Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC)
NOAA Mentor: Eric Ward, Robin Waples, Mike Ford

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Nicholas Grunloh

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow California Sea Grant Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Santa Cruz NOAA Mentor: E.J. Dick

Megan Feddern

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Washington Sea Grant Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle NOAA mentors: Eric Ward and Christopher Harvey

Maia Sosa Kapur

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Washington Sea Grant Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Auke Bay and Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle NOAA mentors: Dana Hanselman and Melissa Haltuch

Liese Carleton

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Virginia Sea Grant Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Miami NOAA Mentor: Matthew Lauretta

John Best

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Washington Sea Grant Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Seattle NOAA Mentor: James Thorson

Emily Liljestrand Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Michigan Sea Grant Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Woods Hole NOAA Mentor: Jonathan Deroba

Claire Rosemond Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow Oregon Sea Grant Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle and Newport NOAA Mentors: Jason Cope and Aaron Berger

Bethany Johnson

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow California Sea Grant Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Santa Cruz NOAA Mentor: Stephan Munch

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Robert Wildermuth

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
MIT Sea Grant
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
Project: Performance evaluation of qualitative and Bayesian network social-ecological models for use in an integrated system
http://www.smast.umassd.edu/lab_fay/

Molly Timmers

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
Hawaii Sea Grant
University of Hawaii
Project: Understanding and predicting population outbreaks of the destructive coral-eating crown-of-thorns sea star, Acanthaster planci, in the U.S. Pacific Islands

Kristen Omori

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
Virginia Sea Grant
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Project: Dealing with most species: improving methodology for forming and assessing species complexes

Mackenzie Mazur

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
Maine Sea Grant
University of Maine
Project: Developing a management strategy evaluation framework for the Maine lobster fishery in a changing Gulf of Maine
http://mackenzie-mazur.squarespace.com/

Joseph Langan

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
Rhode Island Sea Grant
University of Rhode Island
Project: A bayesian state-space approach to improve projections of stock biomass for managing New England groundfish
https://web.uri.edu/gso/joe-langan/

Gabriel Englander

Marine Resource Economics Fellow
California Sea Grant
University of California Berkeley
Project: Estimating the Effectiveness of the World’s Fishing-Restricted Areas

Sabrina Beyer

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellow
California Sea Grant
University of California Santa Cruz
Project: Oceanographic effects on rockfish (Sebastes spp.) reproductive success and consequences for population
https://sabrinabeyer.com/

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Caitlin I. Allen Akselrud

Sea Grant Program: Washington Sea Grant

School: University of Washington

Professor: Trevor Branch and Andre Punt

NMFS Mentor: Anne Hollowed

Research:  Lowering the risk of overfishing while increasing profits for California’s most valuable fishery, California market squid

Award Ends: 2020

Reed Brodnik

Sea Grant Program: Maryland Sea Grant

School: University of Maryland

Professor: Thomas Miller

NMFS Mentor: Kiersten Curti

Research: Impacts of misspecification of spatial structure of assessment and stock on reliability of reference points

Award Ends: 2020

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Adam Hayes

Sea Grant Program:  Washington Sea Grant

School: University of Washington

Professor: David Layton

NMFS Mentor: Alan Haynie

Research:  Network analysis of a quota share market                                                                     

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Marine Resource Economics

Name: Natalie Lowell

Sea Grant Program: Washington Sea Grant

School: University of Washington

Professor: Lorenz Hauser

NMFS Mentor: Eric Ward and Robin Waples

Research:  Genetic risk assessment of native shellfish aquaculture                                               

Award Ends: 2020

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Elizabeth Ng

Sea Grant Program: Washington Sea Grant

School: University of Washington

Professor: Timothy Essington

NMFS Mentor: Jonathan Deroba

Research: Does predation information improve stock assessment?                                              

Award Ends: 2020

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Cassidy Peterson

Sea Grant Program: Virginia Sea Grant

School: Virginia Institute of Marine Science

Professor: Rob Latour

NMFS Mentor: Enric Cortes

Research: Management Strategy Evaluation of Highly Migratory Coastal Sharks  

Award Ends: 2020

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Megan Winton

Sea Grant Program: MIT Sea Grant

School: University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth

Professor: Gavin Fay

NMFS Mentor: Benjamin Galuardi

Research: Integrating telemetry data to improve abundance estimates and management advice for a highly migratory marine predator

Award Ends: 2020

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Cassie Finer

Sea Grant Program: Oregon Sea Grant

School: Oregon State University

Professor: David Lewis

NMFS Mentor: Cameron Speir

Research: Dike removal and salt marsh restoration for fish habitat: Estimating the effects on coastal land markets

Award Ends: 2018

Fellowship: Marine Resource Economics

Name: Charles Waters

Sea Grant Program: Washington Sea Grant

School: University of Washington

Professor: Naish

NMFS Mentor: Jeff Hard Research: Modeling the effects of inbreeding in salmon hatcheries on the eco-evolutionary dynamics of supplemented wild populations

Award Ends: 2018

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Dan Ovando

Sea Grant Program: California Sea Grant

School: University of California, Santa Barbara

Professor: Costello & Gaines

NMFS Mentor: Jason Cope

Research: A Bayesian framework for utilizing fishery independent Marine Protected Area monitoring data in stock assessments

Award Ends: 2018

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Erin Bohaboy

Sea Grant Program: Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant

School: University of South Alabama

Professor: William Patterson

NMFS Mentor: Shannon Cass-Calay

Research: Modeling the Effects of Release Mortality Mitigation in the Gulf of Mexico Recreational Reef Fishery: Red Snapper

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Mikaela Provost

Sea Grant Program: California Sea Grant

School: University of California, Davis

Professor: Louis Botsford

NMFS Mentor: Michael O’Farrell

Research: Sensitivities of West Coast fish stocks to environmental variability, and their use in management

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Robert Dunn

Sea Grant Program: California Sea Grant

School: San Diego State University/University of California, Davis

Professor: Hovel/Baskett

NMFS Mentor: Steve Munch

Research: Analysis of size-structured predation and multi-trophic level harvest using stage-structured and integral projection models

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Zack Oyafuso

Sea Grant Program: Hawaii Sea Grant

School: University of Hawaii

Professor: Erik Franklin

NMFS Mentor: Jon Brodziak

Research: Transitioning stock assessments of commercially important Hawaiian demersal fish species through age-structured assessments

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Brandon Chasco

Sea Grant Program:  Oregon Sea Grant

School: Oregon State University

Professor: Selina Heppell

NMFS Mentor: James Thorson

Research: Integrated spatial, temporal mixed-effects models: leveraging stock assessment techniques for threatened and protected species.

Award Ends: 2019

Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Anna Birkenbach

Sea Grant Program:  North Carolina Sea Grant

School: Duke University

Professor: Martin Smith

NMFS Mentor: Min-Yang Lee

Research:  Structural modeling of transitions to catch shares                                                          

Award Ends: 2018

Fellowship: Marine Resource Economics

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Andrew Carr-Harris
Sea Grant Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant
School: University of Rhode Island
Professor: Hirotsugu Uchida
NMFS Mentor: Min-Yang Lee
Research: Econometric Models of Community Resilience and Regional Effects of Fishery Management: an Application to Northeast Fisheries
Award Ends: 2017
Fellowship: Marine Resource Economics

Name: William Goldsmith
Sea Grant Program: Virginia Sea Grant
School: Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Professor: John Graves and Andrew Scheld
NMFS Mentor: Kristy Wallmo
Research: Characterizing the Behavior and Preference of Anglers in the Recreational Fishery for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus) along the US East Coast
Award Ends: 2017
Fellowship: Marine Resource Economics

Name: Kelli Johnson
Sea Grant Program: Washington Sea Grant
School: University of Washington
Professor: Andre Punt
NMFS Mentor: Isaac Kaplan
Research: Multi-Species Methods to Facilitate the Transition from Heuristics to Statistics in an Ecosystem Based Approach to Fisheries Management
Award Ends: 2018
Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Quang Huynh
Sea Grant Program: Virginia Sea Grant
School: Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Professor: John Hoenig
NMFS Mentor: John Walter III, Jon Brodziak
Research: Extensions and Applications of Mean Length Mortality Estimates
Award Ends: 2018
Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Lisa Ailloud
Sea Grant Program: Virginia Sea Grant
School: Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Professor: John Hoenig
NMFS Mentor: Matthew Lauretta
Research: Improving Stock assessments and Management Advice for Tunas and other Highly Migratory Species
Award Ends: 2018
Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Cecilia O’Leary
Sea Grant Program: New York Sea Grant
School: Stony Brook University
Professor: Janet Nye
NMFS Mentor: Timothy Miller
Research: The Mechanistic Influence of Climate on Fish Population Dynamics and Distribution and its Implications for Spatially Integrated Stock Assessment
Award Ends: 2018 Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Mary Donovan
Sea Grant Program: Hawaii Sea Grant
School: University of Hawaii, Manoa
Professor: Megan Donahue
NMFS Mentor: Ivor Williams
Research: Ecological Indicators of Coral Reefs across Multiple Spatial Scales in Hawaii
Award Ends: 2018
Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Name: Nicholas Ducharme-Barth
Sea Grant Program: Florida Sea Grant
School: University of Florida
Professor: Robert Ahrens
NMFS Mentor: Kyle Schertzer
Research: Using VMS Data to Understand the Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Fishery and Targeted Populations
Award Ends: 2018
Fellowship: Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Benjamin Marcek
Virginia Sea Grant
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Professor: Mary Fabrizio
NMFS Mentor: Richard Brill, Joseph (Kevin) Craig
Research: Individual-Based, Dynamic-Landscape Models of Marine Fishes Incorporating Ecophysiological Constraints

Peter Kuriyama
Washington Sea Grant
University of Washington
Professor: Trevor Branch
NMFS Mentor: Alan Hicks, John Harms
Research: Integrating Hook and Line Survey Data and Ecological Observations to Improve Stock Assessments of Key Rockfish Species in Untrawable Habitats

Laura Urbisci
California Sea Grant
University of California, Santa Barbara
Professor: Hunter Lenihan
NMFS Mentor: Kevin Piner
Research: Developing a New Ecosystem-Based Management Approach: Using Ecosystem Models to Calculate a Better Estimate of Population Scale for Single-Species Models

Katherine Kaplan
New York Sea Grant
Cornell University
Professor: Patrick Sullivan
NMFS Mentor: Dvora Hart
Research: Evaluating Atlantic Sea Scallop Incidental Mortality and Habitat Effects from Bottom Fishing using the Habitat Mapping Camera System

Mark Stratton
Virginia Sea Grant
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Professor: Rob LaTour
NMFS Mentor: Rick Hart Research: Ecosystem Drivers of US South Atlantic Coastal Fish Stock Assessment

Matthew Nuttall
Florida Sea Grant
University of Miami
Professor: Elizabeth Babcock
NMFS Mentor: John Walter III Research: Environmental and Ecological Influences on the Dynamics of Gulf Menhaden (Brevoortia patronus)

Lisa McManus
New Jersey Sea Grant
School: Princeton University
Professor: Simon Levin
NMFS Mentor: Rusty Brainard
Research: Assessing the Impacts of Connectivity on Coral Reef Metacommunity Dynamics in the Coral Triangle

Allison Dedrick
California Sea Grant
University of California, Davis
Professor: Lou Botsford
NMFS Mentor: Mandy Karnauskas
Research: Quantifying the Interactive Effects of Ocean Acidification, Temperature Change, and Fishing Behavior on Population Dynamics and Management Decisions

Lauren Yamane
California Sea Grant
University of California, Davis
Professor: Lou Botsford
NMFS Mentor: Steve Lindley
Research: Quantifying the Roles of Environmental Variability and the Portfolio Effect in the Population Dynamics of the Sacramento River Fall Chinook Salmon Stock

Christine Stawitz
Washington Sea Grant
University of Washington
Professor: Tim Essington
NMFS Mentor: Melissa Haltuch
Research: Evaluating the Importance of Growth Variation in Marine Fish Population Dynamics and Stock Assessment

Marine Resource Economics

Jennifer Meredith
Washington Sea Grant
University of Washington
Professor: Chris Anderson
NMFS Mentor: Amber Himes-Cornell
Research: Modeling the Migration Decisions of Fish Harvesters in Rural Alaska

Jeffrey Schrader
California Sea Grant
University of California, San Diego
Professor: Joshua Graff Zivin
NMFS Mentor: Dale Squires
Research: Forecasts and Adaptations

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Katelyn Bosley (OR)
Christopher Free (NJ)
Steven Garner (MS-AL) 
Ian Kroll (NC) 
Cole Monahan (WA)
Lynn Waterhouse (CA) 
 
Marine Resource Economics
Marysia Szymkowiak (DE)
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Lewis Barnett (CA)
Meagan Dunphy-Daly (NC) 
Susan Hilber (OR) 
Jeffrey Rutter (WA)
Cody Szuwalski (WA)
 
Marine Resource Economics
Kailin Kroetz (CA) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Elizabeth Council (FL) 
Benjamin Galuardi (MIT) 
Charles Perretti (CA) 
Holly Ann Perryman (CA)
Matthew Smith (VA)
 
Marine Resource Economics
David King (CA) 
Andrew Ropicki (FL) 
Andrew Scheld (RI) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Emilius Aalto (CA)
Valerie Brown (CA) 
Mark Fitchett (FL)
Dan Goethel (MIT)
Samuel Truesdell (ME) 
 
Marine Resource Economics
Geret Depiper (MD) 
Peter Hayes (ME) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Melissa Hedges (LA) 
Mark Henderson (VA)
Patrick Kilduff (CA) 
Jocelyn Lin (WA) 
Patrick Lynch (VA)
Skyler Sagarese (NY)
James Thorson (WA)

Marine Resource Economics

Ben Gilbert (CA)
Chris Keneddy (FL) 

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Dovi Kacev (CA) 
Brandon Puckett (NC) 
Kevin See (WA) 
Taylor Chapple (CA)
Steven Saul (FL)

Marine Resource Economics

Teresa Stafford (TX)
Stephen Kasperski (MD)

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Kiersten Curti (RI) 
Carey McGilliard (WA)

Marine Resource Economics

Ming-Yang Lee (IL-IN) 
Elizabeth Smith (RI) 

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics

Amanda Bradford (WA)
Robert Leaf (VA) 

Marine Resource Economics

Cameron Speir (IL-IN) 
Matthew Freeman (RI) 

Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
John Brandon (WA) 
William Eldridge (WA) 
Michael Errigo (ME) 
Sarah Glaser (CA) 
Matthew Krachey (NC) 
 
Marine Resource Economics
Harrison Fell (WA) 
Joshua Wiersma (RI) 
Tina Wilson (LA) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
James Murphy (WA) 
Beth Gardner (NY) 
Jamie Leff (NH)
 
Marine Resource Economics
Leif Anderson (WA) 
Joshua Abbott (CA) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Katherine Mills (NY) 
Eric Ward (WA)
 
Marine Resource Economics
James Hilger (CA) 
Alan Haynie (WA) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Thomas Ihde (VA) 
Melissa Haltuch (WA) 
Yasmin Lucero (CA) 
Stephanie Wood (MIT) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
John Walter (VA)
Michael Frisk (MD) 
Ian Stewart (WA)
Julie Neer (LA) 
 
Marine Resource Economics
Reena Shaw (RI) 
Michael Price (MD) 
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Dana Hanselman (AK) 
Christopher Grogan (WHOI)
 
Marine Resource Economics
Sylvia Brandt (CA)
Ronald Felthoven (CA)
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