COAS Alumni Profiles:  Kris McElwee

Time spent at COAS is of high value to Kris McElwee. She began her academic career at OSU in a Ph.D. program in geological oceanography before moving to the MRM program to obtain her degree.

“I spent ages and ages at COAS,” she says. “It has really shaped my professional life.” She offers this advice to new students: “I’d recommend they take a little longer to get their degree and do an internship and a thesis.”

Her own project involved an analysis of water management in the Senegal River in West Africa. “I was looking at how the decisions about putting in the dams and managing the water affected the people who lived in the river valley,” she explained. The project combined her interests in science and social issues, as well as building on her previous experience as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya.

McElwee graduated from the MRM program in 2001. She currently lives in Hawaii, where she works for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Pacific Service Center, at the Office of Response and Restoration. She is the Pacific Island Coordinator in charge of supporting regional response teams, Coast Guard and the National Marine Fisheries Service with regard to oil spills, grounded vessels and marine debris in the U.S.-affiliated Pacific Islands.

“The goal of this office is to provide training to the islands on wetland assessment, conflict management and coastal zone management policies. We also assist with contaminated-site management when spills occur,” she said. Her favorite part of her current job is “getting to work with the folks on the islands and helping them identify resources to make a difference in the environment.”

For more information, contact Kris.McElwee@noaa.gov, or visit http://response.restoration.noaa.gov.