Mr. Stephen Gill was born in Lake Placid, New York in 1948.  He earned his BS and MS in Oceanography from New York University School of Engineering and Science.  Gill came to work for NOAA in 1975 as an Oceanographer for the National Ocean Service.  From 1997 to his retirement in 2016, Mr. Gill served as Chief Scientist for NOAA/NOS Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services.  

Scope and Content Note

Mr. Robert Hansen was born in on Earth Day, April 22, 1949, in Bayshore, New York.  He was the first in his family to attend college, and earned his Bachelor’s and then a Master's Degree in Geography from the University at Albany.  Mr. Hansen came to work for NOAA as a cartographer in Aeronautical Charting.  He then worked as a technical information specialist for the National Ocean Service, chief of the NOAA Map Library, constituent affairs specialist, NOAA Historian, and retired as the national outreach coordinator for Education.   

Dr. Jeanette Davis is a Marine Microbiologist who currently serves at NOAA Fisheries in the Office of Policy  where she conducts research and provides support on programs and policies regarding resources in the ocean. Dr. Davis was first exposed to the marine environment as a student at Hampton University during an internship where she lived on a 53-foot sailboat for a month, exploring the Chesapeake Bay. She earned a B.S. in Marine and Environmental Science from Hampton University and a PhD. in Marine Microbiology from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Mrs. Linda Lawhorn-Brown was born in Winnsboro, South Carolina in 1958.  She moved to Washington, D.C. while she was in high school, and after graduation, attended the University of Maryland- College Park, where she majored in special education.  In 1987, Linda came to work for NOAA.  Her first position was with Bill Stanley, who served eventually as NOAA's historian.  Since 1990, Linda has worked in the Office of the Under Secretary, working closely with various administrators, dignitaries, and NOAA staff.  

Scope and Content Note

Mr. Steven Wilson was born at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines in 1959.  He studied Food Science and Technology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.  Wilson worked as a USDA poultry and then NOAA fishery products inspector.  In 1988, he became Deputy Branch Chief for the National Marine Fisheries Service.  He also worked as Deputy Director of Field Operations, Chief Quality Officer, and Assistant Director of Quality and Technology.

Dr. Patricia Clay is a fisheries anthropologist with the Social Science Branch of NOAA, where she has worked since 1993. She has a B.A. in Anthropology and Modern Languages from Notre Dame, and a PhD in Anthropology from Indiana University. She works with the NMFS Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts from the NMFS headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Dr. Rita Curtis is the Chief of NOAA Fisheries Service Office of Science and Technology, Economic and Social Analysis Division. Dr. Curtis first began working with NOAA in 1999 as an economist for the Office of Science and Technology. In 1999, she completed her PhD in Agriculture and Resource Economics from the University of Maryland. Beforehand, Dr. Curtis worked at the Pacific Islands Fishery Science Center in Hawaii studying the longline fleet.

Roger Griffis is a climate change coordinator for NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service. He has a B.S. in Biology from Carleton College and a Master’s in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from UC Irvine. Griffis grew up in Minnesota with a fascination for lakes and streams, and was particularly inspired by the complexity of ecosystems. Wanting to play a role in protecting the environment, he was led to conservation work through the Knauss Sea Grant Fellowship in Washington D.C in 1994.

Dr. Mark Holliday has a B.S. in Biology from SUNY Stony Brook, a Master’s in Marine and Environmental Science from Long Island University, and a PhD in Marine Studies from the University of Delaware. Growing up around the water, Holiday always knew he wanted to have a career in marine science. He came to NOAA after finishing his Doctorate through the Intergovernmental Personnel Act before being hired as a fisheries statistician. He later became the Chief Financial Officer for the Office of Science and Technology.

Dr. Rebecca Lent knew she would study economics in college after taking a course in high school. She obtained her Bachelor degree in Economics from University of California San Diego and her Master’s degree from San Diego State. After graduation, she worked at Oregon State University in the economics of the salmon industry. While there, she pursued a Ph.D. in Marine Economics graduating in 1984. Dr. Lent worked in academia for 10 years in Quebec before beginning her career at NOAA Fisheries in 1992.