COASTAL BIOLOGY

Flagship Program Annual Report

Major Activities 2013-2014

The Coastal Biology Advisory Committee and the Coastal Biology Director determine priorities each year based on an expected budget. While there were some emergency needs this year that required reassigning funds, we were able to fund our priorities. In general, our goal is to provide resources for students and faculty engaged in coastal research. The proposed budget for each item is shown below in parentheses. However, it is often difficult to determine to which category expenditures belong given that some purchases can fit in several categories. Total budget for the Coastal Biology Flagship program in 2013-2014 was $50,000. Planned expenditures are underlined. Approximate actual expenses are emboldened.

  1. Student research and travel support ($10,000).
  1. Sixteen students were supported (maximum $500/graduate student and $300/undergraduate) who presented papers at scientific meetings. We sent a number to an international meeting this year. Several students won various awards at these meetings for their research presentations. These funds have enabled the Biology Department to increase the number of undergraduates that conduct research. (Travel = $7,718 & research = $3,239).
  1. Support for department as hosts of coastally oriented scientific groups and societies ($3,000).
  1. We hosted a very large (600+ attendees) Benthological Society on campus in spring 2014. ($949)
  1. Support of infrastructure to support coastal research, i.e. boats and vehicles, including safety equipment ($10,000),
  1. Annual maintenance of the 27’ R/V “Osprey” and 21’ “Genetic Drift”, trailers as well as the purchase of a small skiff.($4,332)
  2. Marina rental fee for R/V “Osprey”.($5,249)
  3. CPR, safety training for boat certification. ($690)
  4. SeaTow Membership, boat insurance ($3,265)
  1. Support of the GTM-NERR initiative (Estuarine Reserve), which included both teaching and research support ($5,500),
  1. Support of GTM-NERR Research Coordinator (also supported by DEP contract).($1,791)
  2. Support of research initiatives by Dr. Gilg, which involve students. These funds come both from student support and GTM support, which are difficult to separate fiscally.
  3. Support of teaching initiatives by Dr. Smith and Dr. Johnson at the Reserve.
  1. Support of research in and on the St Johns River ($4,400),
  1. Vessel support of Dolphin research. (Costs associated with this item embedded in 3A, 3B & 3C above.)
  1. Support of the Florida Institute of Oceanography, Field Studies in Marine Biology course ($10,000),
  1. UNF is one of the five state universities hosting the course, which consists of students moving from university to university to experience the full array of coastal environments found along Florida’s coasts. ($5,548)
  1. Public Outreach and education ($2100).
  1. Supported of an OLLI course focused on Coastal Biology, spring 2013.($600)
  2. Supported two Brotman Family Public Lectures. ($2,000)
  1. Miscellaneous support of Coastal faculty ($4,000).
  1. Support for faculty requests when matching funds associated with grants were required, e.g. Dr. Ross for research at Mote Marine Lab. ($2,500)
  2. Purchased equipment (PCR Machine). ($8,998)
  3. Many other smaller requests associated with research or teaching($3,121). [Many small requests that were not easily placed in a budget category are included here.]

Future Goals/Needs

Maintenance of Program - The most critical element required to maintain the Coastal Biology program is the need for continued base-level support, currently at 50K. This funding level provides resources to undergraduates and graduate students for research, training and professional exposure at the level of our current student population. It does not provide significant funding for faculty research, since the Biology Department emphasis is for faculty to apply for external funds. It will be difficult to expand the potential training and research opportunities for additional students without additional faculty. Thus, proposals for additional one-time funding must revolve around programs that will bring additional high achieving students to the campus and into our programs in the future when more resources are available.Our vessels are also showing signs of aging. There will be a need for new outboard engines on the R/V Osprey and a new boat and motor for the R/V Genetic Drift in the near future. An Auxiliary account is accumulating funds from grants, but this alone will not be sufficient. Whenever boats are used by faculty with grants, there is a fee. However, additional funds will be required since faculty use vessels for unfunded research and for teaching.

Enhance K-12 Interaction - The growing relationship with the NERR at GTM would benefit from additional resources. We proposed several options that would provide greater opportunities for K-12 students at Duval County schools as well as potential approaches to engage “at-risk” students using models currently working well at GTM. Both options require additional staff that would be based at GTM.

Engage Current Teachers - Another way to expand the reach of the Coastal Program to a large number of potential UNF students is to engage teachers. A summer Marine Science course designed specifically for teachers that would follow the approach currently used in the Florida Institute of Oceanography “Study Abroad in Florida” course would be an excellent mechanism. In this course, middle and high school teachers would move to Marine Labs around the state and immerse themselves in various coastal habitats.

Benchmarks

Prime goals of the Coastal Biology Flagship Program remain to 1) develop a Coastal Biology program that would gain national prominence in the discipline, 2) raise the public profile of the Biology program and UNF, and to 3) enhance the opportunities of UNF students in Coastal Biology. These are not goals that can be met in any year, but long-term goals that require continuous and multi-year commitments of time and energy. Below are metrics that point to major progress in meeting those goals since initiation of the Coastal Biology Flagship program.

  1. Two concentrations (tracks) within the Biology degree oriented toward Coastal Biology/Marine Biology were developed and implemented that are attracting students. One of these tracks (Coastal Environmental Biology) has been proposed as a separate standalone degree within the Department of Biology that we hope will begin fall 2014. This track is for students who plan to enter the work force after graduation.
  2. National prominence is a long-term goal, but we are making significant progress. This goal can only be met by supporting existing faculty and hiring excellent new faculty. The role of the flagship program is to support those faculty whose primary research relates to coastal issues or organisms. Five new faculty with Coastal Biology expertise were added since the flagship program was initiated. Coastal Biology faculty obtained major grants, including significant involvement in the Deep Horizon Oil Spill research. Faculty routinely review technical papers and grants submitted to major scientific journals. Coastal Biology faculty serve on International Journal editorial boards and publish in high quality journals in their fields.

UNF became an active member of the Florida Institute of Oceanography (FIO) when it was reformulated as an AISO and has taken the lead in the development of a Florida-wide Field Studies in Marine Biology taught for the second time in summer 2014. This course and additional courses for graduate students and teachers are planned for the future in concert with FIO. Funds to reduce costs to students through these programs were approved by the legislature in an expanded budget; a request approved by the Florida Board of Governors.

Coastal Biology Faculty received an NSF grant to host a Coastal Biology component of NSF’s REU program. Summer 2014 hosts the second year’s cohort bringing some of the brightest undergraduate students in the country to UNF’s campus.

Applications for the M.S. Biology program, especially for students applying for coastally related research was extremely high again this year with a large cohort expected for fall 2014. Applications came from students graduating from some of the top undergraduate institutions in the country. The Coastal Biology graduate program at UNF is now nationally known. Our work with students, graduate and undergraduate, is being recognized for the high quality of research being presented by our students at national meetings. The Coastal Biology Program hosted 600+ scientists for the Benthological Society in spring 2014. Many attendees commented that they had no idea that we had the infrastructure and programs that they saw and heard about. This group included many from other Florida universities.

Our graduate students made presentations at a scientific meeting in New Zealand last year as well as at other meetings in the U.S. raising the status of UNF and the Biology Department. We now have a faculty member that is part of the fisheries panel helping federal fisheries regulators decide how best to regulate and manager marine recreational and commercial fishing. Collectively,efforts of faculty, staff and students are rapidly leading towards meeting the goal of national recognition.

  1. Engaging the local public has many benefits. We have finally reached a point where the media call our faculty when various events occur and they need technical assistance. Our faculty are continually in the local news and involved with programs focused on filming the natural world. We have taken reporters in the field and in vessels with us as a way of emphasizing how teaching and research work together and assist local governments when asked. We hope to be a participant in a summer Marine Biology course for teachers taught under the sponsorship of the Florida Institute of oceanography, which will further embed UNF in the public mind as a place where Coastal research occurs.

The Brotman Family public lecture series has been a success, but relies on continuous help from UNF’s public outreach offices. We have not reached “critical mass” yet in our efforts to develop a relationship with the public. Our spring “Life on the First Coast” public course through the OLLI program has been a great success and limited only by available faculty time. These public courses sponsored by continuing education have allowed us to make contact with a large number of the public interested in Coastal Biology.

Our relationship with the National Estuarine Research Reserve located near Ponte Vedra (GTM-NERR) has expanded with anew contract that will move five of their staff to UNF, although they will still be working at the Reserve facility. The expanded relationship that comes with this national reserve offers our faculty and students research opportunities and water access. Estuarine Research Reserves (NERRs) were establishedto not only preserve areas for future study, but to educate the public as well. Coastal research and education correspond with the goals of the Flagship program and the GTM-NERR/UNF Coastal Biology flagshipconnection is a natural one. Biology faculty and studentshave been conducting research and teaching classes at the reserve for the past several years. The Biology Department is committed to finding mechanisms that will continue the relationship with the reserve.

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