Hal Berger, a marine science doctoral student at the University of Connecticut, is one of 10 early career scientists awarded the 2024 National Marine Fisheries and Oceans Grant Fellowship, which supports important fisheries research. be.
Connecticut Sea Grant was involved in the selection process, and Berger will oversee the fellowship in collaboration with UW’s faculty advisors and leaders from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA).
Hal Berger (submitted photo)
“I’m very excited because I know this was quite a competition,” Berger said. Berger became interested in marine science when he attended a summer camp at SeaLab in his hometown of New Bedford, Massachusetts, when he was in middle school. Largest commercial fishery in the Northeast. “This will provide me with funding to continue the research I have been doing and dive into the fisheries management side of things.”
After a year as a John A. Knauss Research Fellow at Sea Grant, Berger will begin work on his PhD in 2022, focusing on research in the Atlantic scallop fishery. The new fellowship will provide resources to pursue a Ph.D., she said. It was conducted under the guidance of UConn marine science professors Samantha Shedlecki and Catherine Matassa, and two experts from the Tohoku Fisheries Science Center, Shannon Mesek and Dvora Hart.
Specifically, her research involves using existing datasets and models to assess the effects of changing ocean conditions on the population dynamics of scallops, one of the most valuable fisheries in the United States. Contains. She plans to integrate key environmental factors and potential management strategies into current stock assessment models to enhance the long-term sustainability and resilience of the fishery.
“Halle is an outstanding scholar and former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sea Grant Knauss Fellow,” says Sima Evin, research coordinator at Connecticut Sea Grant. “She is the first undergraduate student to receive a prestigious NOAA Fisheries/Oceans Grant Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Fellowship, and I have every confidence that she will achieve her research goals. is cutting edge and has the potential to have a real impact on scallop management knowledge and practice.”
The NMFS and Sea Grant joint fellowship program has supported more than 160 fellows since its inception in 1999. This program provides significant career development opportunities for program graduates who go on to serve in key roles in NOAA Fisheries, other agencies, academic institutions, and fisheries. Administrative Council.
“Halle makes us proud by winning not one, but two consecutive highly competitive national fellowships,” said Sylvain de Guise, director of Connecticut Sea Grant. . “We are pleased to be able to help support talented young scientists through the NOAA fellowships our program administers.”
The Connecticut Sea Grant College Program (CTSG) is part of the National Sea Grant College Program Network managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). CTSG is based at UConn Avery Point in Groton, and several staff members hold academic appointments in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, including UConn Extension. For more than 30 years, CTSG has worked to promote the wise use and conservation of Long Island Sound and other regions’ coastal and marine resources through research, community engagement, and education. https://seagrant.uconn.edu
