Program leadership

Dr. Stephen Brandt - Program director Stephen Brandt came to Oregon Sea Grant in January, 2009 from the the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL), where he had served as director since 1997. He succeeded Robert Malouf, who had served as program director since 1991. Both an oceanographer and freshwater scientist by training, Brandt received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and has had several academic appointments, including as a professor with the University of Maryland’s Chesapeake Biological Laboratory and as Director of the Great Lakes Center for Environmental Research and Education with the State University of New York College at Buffalo.

Read more about Dr Brandt's background and the new appointment here.

Jay Rasmussen leads a team of 20 Extension faculty and numerous support staff in addressing critical marine and coastal issues through proven outreach methods. An historian by education, with a Master's from the University of Utah, he served for 17 years as executive director of the Oregon Coastal Zone Management Association before joining Sea Grant in 1996. He is a past chair of the National Sea Grant executive committee and the Assembly of Extension Sea Grant Program Leaders. He also serves on the Oregon Water Resources Commission.

A science communicator by profession, Joe Cone has been with Oregon Sea Grant since 1983, and over the years he's written and edited books, shot and edited movies and photographs, designed graphics, authored DVDs, and had the great pleasure of working with talented and dedicated colleagues who care about the Oregon coast and ocean. He is also an adjunct graduate faculty member in the OSU Marine Resource Management program and the Science and Math Education Department

Current projects include: Sea Grant video production, communication research, and climate change.

Sea Grant publications and videos include: Celilo Falls and the Remaking of the Columbia River; Fire Under the Sea; Hold That Thought

Nancee Hunter is Oregon Sea Grant's Director of Education. She also serves as a courtesy assistant professor with the Geosciences Dept. at Oregon State University. Nancee oversees the Visitor Center at Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, as well as Sea Grant's K-12, youth and family education programs. In addition, she serves on numerous leadership teams in the state and region, including as a co-chair to the West Coast Governor’s Ocean Awareness and Literacy Action Coordination Team. Prior to her work with Sea Grant, Hunter was the Director of Education at the National Geographic Society.

Projects and areas of interest include: curriculum development, teacher professional development and educational programming for both formal and free-choice learning centers, particularly around the use of geovisualization tools that incorporate earth systems data.

Evelyn Paret has been Sea Grant's fiscal manager since 1998, and it operations manager since 2001. She provides leadership, oversight, and management of the fiscal and human resource administrative operations of  the program. She also oversees our Webnibus online grants management system.

Evelyn is a founding member of the Oregon State University Research Administrators Network, and an active member of the Oregon State Centers, Institutes and Programs Accounting Group, and the 2005 recipient of OSU's Karel J. Murphy Professional Faculty and Leadership Award

Current projects include: Vice chair and chair-elect, National Sea Grant Fiscal Officers Network

A 23-year veteran of Oregon State University service, Program Associate Peggy Harris joined Oregon Sea Grant a little over 15 years ago. Most recently, she has been appointed Administrative Operation Officer for Oregon Sea Grant. With the help of an outstanding support staff, she keeps the engines running for Sea Grant Extension, overseeing a fiscal, human resource, and program accounting operations. Peggy works closely with Extension faculty and leadership on program planning and implementation, impact accountability, and program reporting, and takes a lead role on special projects.