The National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science's Hollings Marine Laboratory (HML) recently completed an onsite retreat as a meansto integrate external expert recommendations and guidance to help develop future researchinvestments for the laboratory.
On February 28th and 29th, NCCOS administrators and scientistshosted four external panelists at the laboratory. The external panelists included:
- Dr. TracyCollier (Science Advisor, NOAA, Oceans and Human Health)
- Dr. Tony Haymet (Director,Scripps Institution of Oceanography)
- Dr. Christopher Portier (Director, National Center forEnvironmental Health and Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry, Center for DiseaseControl)
- Dr. Stephen Weisberg (Executive Director, Southern California Coastal WaterResearch Project)
During their visit, the panelists were presented with an overview of HMLas well as current research efforts that showcased HML's unique partnership comprised ofrepresentatives from the College of Charleston (CofC), Medical University of South Carolina(MUSC), South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), National Institute ofStandards and Technology (NIST) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA).
As part of the retreat, the panelist were also provided with demographic andfunding data in order to critically evaluate current and future needs of the facility. Finally, theexternal panelists were provided a tour of the campus that showcased many of the research programsand state-of-the-art facilities and instrumentation.
The panelists have been charged with takingthe previously described information and assimilating it into a list of detailed recommendationsthat will help the laboratory establish a unique identity when compared to other national researchlaboratories.
NCCOS anticipates that the panelists' draft report will be submitted to the directorwithin 60 days of completing the onsite assessment.