Our Location
The Center is headquartered in Miami, Florida and has science laboratories located in Beaufort, North Carolina; Panama City, Florida; Pascagoula and Stennis, Mississippi; and Galveston, Texas. We also have researchers located in Lafayette, Louisiana, as well as port agents and fisheries observers stationed throughout the region.
The Southeast region is among the most complex and diverse regions in the United States, spanning three large marine ecosystems:
- Gulf of Mexico
- South Atlantic
- U.S. Caribbean
NOAA SEFSC: We Are Here For You (1:11)
What We Do
The Southeast Fisheries Science Center conducts multidisciplinary research to inform natural resource management in the Southeast United States, including the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean and South Atlantic. Our science is used by NOAA, Regional Fishery Management Councils, Interstate and International Fishery Commissions, and other Federal, state and local agencies to make informed management decisions to protect and conserve the living marine resources in the Southeastern U.S. and Atlantic high seas.
We have 4 primary divisions conducting and supporting our science, as well as 4 laboratories throughout the southeast region.
We work with our NOAA Fisheries counterpart, the Southeast Regional Office, to provide independent, objective science to inform regional fisheries management decisions.
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Our Leadership
Clay Porch, Ph.D.
Director
Dr. Porch has held various positions with the agency for more than 25 years, winning multiple awards for his leadership and administrative capabilities. He has served as a member of the Science Center’s leadership team since 2006. He has overseen population assessments and research for vitally important domestic fish populations in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean, as well as some in the South Atlantic and internationally for the International Commission for the Conservation of Tuna.
Management Team
Directorate Office
Lisa Desfosse, Ph.D.
Deputy Director of Science and OperationsJohn Walter, Ph.D.
Deputy Director of Science and Council Services-
Directorate Office
- Trika Gerard, Ph.D., Chief of Staff to the Science and Research Director
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Directorate Office
- Erica Rule, Chief of Staff for Science Planning and Operations
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Social Science Research Group Branch
- Matthew McPherson, Ph.D., Branch Chief
Fisheries Statistics Division
David Gloeckner, Ph.D.
Division Director-
Fisheries Monitoring Branch
- Alan Lowther, Ph.D., Branch Chief
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Fishery Sampling Branch
- Lawrence R. Beerkircher, Branch Chief
Operations, Management and Information Division
Braydon Mikesell
Division Director-
Budget and Administration Branch
- Isabel Holder, Branch Chief
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Information Resources Management Branch
- Tyree Davis, Branch Chief
Protected Resources and Biodiversity Division
Mridula Srinivasan, Ph.D.
Division DirectorSustainable Fisheries Division
Shannon L. Cass-Calay, Ph.D.
Division Director-
Gulf and Caribbean Species Branch
- Kate I. Siegfried, Ph.D., Branch Chief
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Highly Migratory Species Branch
- Craig Brown, Ph.D., Branch Chief
Beaufort Laboratory
Theresa L. Goedeke, Ph.D.
Laboratory Director (Acting)-
Sustainable Fisheries Branch
- Erik H. Williams, Ph.D., Branch Chief
Galveston Laboratory
Farron Wallace
Laboratory Director-
Fishery Management Branch
- Rick Hart, Ph.D., Branch Chief
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Fishery Ecology Branch
- Matthew W. Johnson, Ph.D., Fishery Ecology Branch Chief
Mississippi Laboratories
Todd Kellison, Ph.D.
Laboratory Director (Acting)-
Harvesting Unit
- John Mitchell, Harvesting Unit Supervisor
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Resource Surveys Branch
- Karen Mitchell, Branch Chief
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IT Unit
- Charles Weber, Supervisor
Panama City Laboratory
Ron Hill, Ph.D.
Laboratory DirectorOther Locations
Beaufort Laboratory
Fisheries research at the Beaufort Laboratory furthers the nation's conservation objectives primarily through the collection and analysis of data to describe the individual and population biology of living marine resources, understand the structure and function of large Marine ecosystems, assess fish stocks, assess population and health of sea turtles and dolphins, conduct aging of reef fishes, and collect data and samples and conduct assessments with commercial menhaden fisheries and recreational headboat fisheries in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.
Panama City Laboratory
The Panama City Lab performs research relevant to the formulation of national plans to manage the marine fishery resources of the U.S. South Atlantic, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico. Our current research program encompasses a spectrum of projects including basic fishery biology, ecology, routine monitoring and data collection, and habitat mapping.
Mississippi Laboratories
The Mississippi Laboratories (Pascagoula and Stennis locations) research activities are in response to resource management, environmental, and utilization needs and are by design inherently responsive to various legislative and fishing industry needs throughout the southeast region. We are also the home port of the NOAA Ships Gordon Gunter, Oregon II, and Pisces, which conduct scientific surveys of the health and abundance of fishery resources and marine mammals.
Galveston Laboratory
The Galveston Lab provides scientific information on the management of commercial and recreational shellfish and finfish, conservation of coastal habitats, and protection of threatened and endangered marine species of the Gulf of Mexico. The Galveston Lab also supports staff in Lafayette, LA at the Estuarine Habitats and Coastal Fisheries Center which provides scientific information on conservation of coastal habitats, management of commercial and recreational shellfish and finfish, protection of threatened and endangered marine species, including the Marine Mammal Molecular Genetics Lab, protection of coastal wetlands.