TEAM EXCELLENCE AWARD  Explorers of the Deep 4-H STEM Challenge Team members include: Janice McDonnell, Marissa Staffen, Matthew Newman, Kasey Walsh, Alesha Vega, Sage Lichtenwalner, Chad Ripberger, Josh Kohut, Douglas Zemeckis, Oscar Schofield, Rachel Lyons, Nicole Waite, Dave Aragon, and Michael Crowley

Please join me in congratulating our students here at the International Oceans Meeting sponsored by the Marine Technology Society and the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society. The student poster competition brings the top students among all the student papers submitted to the workshop to participate in a competition. Rutgers had 3 of the 26 finalists in the competition!!! Yes, I said 3!!!! Becca Horwitz (now working with Daphne and Travis) Courtney Dreyfus (Recent graduate of our masters in ocean observing program) Jackie Veatch (working with me). I am also very excited to report that Jackie Veatch was the winner of the competition.  Her poster, paper, and presentation was selected as the winner among an impressive set of scientific and engineering posters!! Jackie follows last year’s winner Schuyler Nardelli.  Impressive to have Rutgers students win consecutive competitions!! Congratulations!!

Ocean News & Technology Young Professional Award: Presented to an MTS member, 35 years of age or younger, who has demonstrated leadership in the Society and works in a professional capacity in management, engineering, or research and development in a marine technology field. Recipient – Ms. Cassidy Gonzalez-Morabito, Systems Test and Integration Engineer, L3Harris Ms. Gonzalez-Morabito is being recognized for her work in the test and integration of software to support naval operations. She has led the updated release of multiple test software packages, which have improved test reliability, reduced false failure rates, increased test speed, updated instrumentation, and simplified operations. These test software packages are used to provide confidence to engine control module (ECM) units before they are deployed in naval aircraft.

Congratulations, to Samantha Alaimo who has been selected to participate in the inaugural NJ Wind Institute Fellowship Program at Rutgers University. As a fellow, she will receive a stipend in the total amount of $30,000 in support of her research assistantship with Travis Miles and Josh Kohut. Sam applied as a MS student to GPO but have successfully transitioned to the PhD program. Our grad students (and their advisors) have had a great success in getting external awards.   Keep it going!

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) recently announced the award of funding for studies to provide enhanced scientific information on the impacts of offshore wind energy development off New Jersey’s coastline as well as the state’s entry into a regional offshore-wind science collaborative. The development of New Jersey’s offshore wind resources is a core strategy of the state’s Energy Master Plan, which identifies the most ambitious and cost-effective ways of reaching 100 percent clean energy by 2050. Identified as priorities by a diverse group of stakeholders, the studies are the first funded projects through the Offshore Wind Research & Monitoring Initiative (RMI). This collaborative effort of the DEP and BPU is working to coordinate and expand research into impacts of offshore wind development on wildlife and fisheries. The projects are funded by two offshore wind farm developers through a fund administered by the state. Among the RMI-funded initiatives is a $2.5 million award to Rutgers University Center for Ocean Observing Leadership to fully support a New Jersey statewide ‘eco-glider’ program that will provide seasonal resolution data for a large range of parameters, including physical and chemical variables, and biological variables spanning from phytoplankton and zooplankton to pelagic fish and marine mammals. Full article at NJAES Newsroom

Congratulations to Emily Slesinger (and Grace) who received the School of Graduate Studies Distinguished Scholarly Achievement Award. The Distinguished Scholarly Achievement Award is the School of Graduate Studies’ most prestigious honor. Awarded to a student who demonstrates the highest possible level of academic excellence and achievement, this award celebrates extraordinary scholarship and research.

Congrats to RUCOOL Ph.D student Lauren Cook for receiving the Frank Marmin Memorial Scholarship from the International Women’s Fishing Association. The mission of the International Women’s Fishing Association Scholarship Trust is to grant research scholarships to graduate students who are committed to studies of the chemical, physical and biological processes of marine science with emphasis on conservation, preservation, and protection of the marine environment. “It was an incredible honor and extremely generous of the Marmin family — this funding was a huge help in getting my research off the ground for this Spring. I’m hoping I can thank them in person soon,” said Lauren. The International Women’s Fishing Association was established in 1955 to promote women’s fishing in an arena primarily dominated by men. Over the years, it has become one of women’s most prestigious fishing clubs, setting the standards for conservation and promoting angling competition among women. To help further one of its chartered objectives, the field of conservation, the IWFA established the IWFA Scholarship Trust to provide financial aid to marine science graduate students. The IWFA Scholarship Trust was established in 1965 to further one of the IWFA’s chartered objectives – promoting conservation.  The IWFA Scholarship Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization organized for the purpose of providing financial assistance to marine science graduate students. The Scholarship Trust is funded by individual contributions from IWFA members and other private donations.