Jeff Schell (MS, 1996)

Jeff Schell received his MS from MSRC in 1996, working with Dr. Steven Morgan. His thesis research examined the ability of crab larvae and megalopae to adjust their vertical migraton patterns depending on the tidal environment. During his time at MSRC, Jeff was a member of the intramural soccer team and also participated in the Vax to Flax race, during a year in which the graduate students beat the faculty.

After graduation, he went on to earn his Ph.D. in Zoology/Aquatic Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a research interest in Sargassum Studies, Plankton Ecology, Marine Environmental History. He is now a Professor of Oceanography at the Sea Education Association in Woods Hole, where he lives by the teaching philosophy that:

"the primary goal of a teacher is to empower students to become independent, life-long learners, and scientifically literate, engaged, citizens of the sea. A successful teacher is one that has worked to become superfluous. "

 

His M.S. thesis title is "Plasticity in the timing of vertical migrations by crab larvae and megalopae in different tidal regimes" and is available in MASIC.

Jeff returned to SoMAS in December 2024 and was the Oceans, Sustainability, and Atmospheres seminar speaker on the topic "Ecology of Holopelagic Sargassum: distribution, diversity, and growth"