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Jay Inslee: Washington's 1st Congressional District

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Promoting Graduate Studies in Marine Science

10 March 2005

U.S. Reps Jay Inslee (D-WA), Vernon Ehlers (R-MI) and four other Members of Congress introduced legislation to provide a federally-funded scholarship program for graduate students to study marine sciences in areas for which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recruits. Inslee's National Marine Scholarship Act will address current shortcomings in our national university system's ability to attract graduate students into marine sciences and an anticipated shortfall in the number of future ocean professionals. The legislation also encourages marine science participation by minority students and other groups that have traditionally been underrepresented in scientific fields. The bill provides $5 million annually for partial or full scholarships in graduate marine studies, and scholarship recipients will be required to temporarily work for NOAA following graduation.

Said Inslee, "Ocean health is a shared value among communities in Puget Sound, who enjoy our aquatic resources and marine life on a daily basis. By encouraging university students to pursue marine research, we will ensure that the Pacific Northwest has the future talent to address problems facing fisheries, pollution, marine mammals and tsunami detection science. This legislation will be especially helpful to our local colleges and universities that have a strong relationship to NOAA research and ocean studies. Oceans are a critically important habitat and the National Marine Scholarship Act will help us better understand their effect on our climate, ecosystem and economy."

Blake Trask, a master's candidate at the University of Washington's School of Marine Affairs is one such student who could benefit from the legislation. Said Blake, "As a graduate student at the School of Marine Affairs, finding funding for research is always challenging. Many of my colleagues go into serious financial debt, not because they expect to make money, but because they are dedicated and love their work. This legislation sends a signal to graduate students like me that our research is meaningful and that it has a future. The National Marine Scholarship Act would provide me and my colleagues with the funding to conduct high-quality research on ocean issues, and attract other qualified and enthusiastic students to marine science studies."

The legislation is also supported by world renowned scientist and educator Dr. Robert Ballard, who discovered of the remains of the Titanic, and is a member of the U.S. ocean commission and founder of the JASON Foundation for Education. Said Dr. Ballard, "As stated by the U.S Commission on Ocean Policy, our society is profoundly dependent on keeping our seas healthy and sustainable. Achieving this requires not just an ocean-literate society but a new workforce of ocean professionals. This act is a critical step toward that end."

Dr. Ballard continued, "JASON's mission is to inspire fourth through ninth grade students with lifelong passion for science and mathematics. Although we achieve this in many ways, we often use the world's oceans to make science come alive by taking students on 'telepresence' voyages of discovery with preeminent NOAA scientists. Many young JASON students go on to pursue scientific degrees and careers. The scholarships envisioned under this act, followed by temporary jobs within NOAA, would provide the millions of JASON students, and their counterparts nationwide, with the direction and means to pursue careers that will advance ocean literacy and fill urgently required employee pipelines into the public and private sectors."

Said Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers, chairman of the House Science Committee's Subcommittee on Environment, Technology and Standards, "Encouraging students to study the sciences - in this case, the marine sciences - is an important and worthy goal and one that I wholeheartedly support. Through the National Marine Scholarship Act, we will be able to train scientists to implement the recommendations of the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy and to lead agencies like NOAA into the future."

The final report from the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy indicates that within the next 40 years, there will be an urgent demand to educate and train a new federal workforce of ocean professionals to carry out the recommendations of U.S. ocean policy in the 21st Century. Current student aid is not sufficient to meet these demands and many interested students in the Puget Sound might not pursue a career in marine sciences or with NOAA if they do not receive scholarship assistance.

Inslee's ocean scholarship legislation is supported by a variety of organizations, academics and industries, including the National Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense, the Ocean Conservancy, the At-Sea Processors Association, the JASON Foundation, the National Marine Sanctuaries Foundation, and the National Marine Sanctuaries Board of Directors, which includes Jean Michel Cousteau and renowned marine biologist Dr. Sylvia Earle.

Said Kevin C. Duffy, Executive Director of Seattle-based At-Sea Processors Association, "Our Association is pleased to support legislation establishing a National Marine Scholarship Program. A marine scholarship program that attracts the best and brightest to serve in NOAA is an important component of improving understanding of the marine environment and fostering sustainable development policies."

Cosponsors of Inslee's legislation include: Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-MI), Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Rep. Curt Weldon (R-PA), Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), and Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME).