Rosenstiel Alumni Fellowship

The University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science Alumni Association is dedicated to building a strong network among our graduates; enhancing their careers and opportunities, advancing their interests, and harnessing their skills and resources for the benefit of the Rosenstiel community. One of the primary objectives of the Alumni Association is to raise funds in support of an annual student fellowship, providing tuition and stipend for an entire academic year.

Thanks to the support of alumni and friends, the RSMAS Alumni Association has awarded ten Fellowships.

Support the Rosenstiel Alumni
Fellowship Fund

Make a gift online:

Designate your gift AREA as Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and gift DEPARTMENT as RSMAS Alumni Fellowship Fund.

Make a gift by mail:

Rosenstiel Alumni Association
4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
Miami, FL 33149


2009-2010 Alumni Fellowship Recipient:
Andrew Kough

A Presidential Scholar, Kough earned a B.S. in Biology from Gettysburg College in 2008. Throughout his undergraduate career, he participated in numerous field studies including the white-throated sparrow project at Cranberry Lake Biological Station and research with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at Patuxent Research Refuge and at the University of Queensland. Kough is currently working toward his Ph.D. jointly in Marine Biology and Fisheries and Applied Marine Physics with Dr. Claire Paris on bio-physical modeling of shrimp larval transport and associated acoustic cues.

Past Recipients

Adam Greer
Adam Greer (2008 – 2009)
Greer graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2007, where he worked with a scientist studying speciation in leaf beetles by looking at the feeding habits of the larvae on different host plants. This experience fostered an interest in population dynamics, and Greer thought it would be interesting and challenging to apply these concepts to marine fish populations. Greer is currently working toward his Ph.D. with Marine Biology and Fisheries Chair and Maytag Professor of Ichthyology, Dr. Robert Cowen on larval stage dispersal and juvenile recruitment of marine fishes.
Lyanne Yurco
Lyanne Yurco (2007 – 2008)
Yurco graduated from Kent State University in 2007, where she participated in a research cruise to the Arctic Ocean that led to her senior honors thesis on the Arctic paleoclimate during the Late Pleistocene through the analysis of sediment cores from the Northwind Ridge, Chukchi Sea. She is currently working on her M.S. in Marine Geology and Geophysics, and her research is focused on high-resolution paleoclimatology of the Cariaco Basin in Venezuela
Jennifer Grimm
Jennifer Grimm (2006 – 2007)
Grimm is currently the environmental coordinator for Florida International University’s (FIU’s) Biscayne Bay campus. She coordinates with each department on the campus to help integrate environmental themes into the classes offered and the creation of new classes. In addition, she develops outreach activities for FIU students and the surrounding community. Grimm previously worked for the City of Miami Office of Sustainable Initiatives. She received her M.A. in Marine Affairs and Policy from the Rosenstiel School in 2008.
Jayme Timberlake
Jayme Timberlake (2005 – 2006)
Timberlake received a B.A. in Environmental Science and Geography with honors from the University of California, Santa Barbara and arrived with working experience in her field of interest, marine resource management and protection. She earned her M.A. in Marine Affairs and Policy at the Rosenstiel School in 2003 and is a habitat restoration specialist with Dudek Associates, a private consulting firm that is restoring wetlands along the Tijuana River.
Jason Seuc
Jason Seuc (2004 – 2005)
Seuc currently works as an environmental permitting project manager for Coastal Systems International, Inc., where he coordinates with local, state, federal, and international environmental agencies to secure coastal and environmental permit approvals for public and private clients. He manages projects involving coastal construction, Environmental Impact Assessments, marinas, island development, and beach renourishment projects in South Florida, The Bahamas, and the Caribbean. Seuc received his B.A. in Marine Affairs from UM in 2003, and his M.A. from the Rosenstiel School in Marine Affairs and Policy in 2008.
Johnathan Kool
Johnathan Kool (2002 – 2003)
Kool is currently carrying out postdoctoral work in Townsville, Australia. He is jointly funded by James Cook University and the Australian Institute of Marine Science to research conservation planning methods, and assist with the developmentof marine protected area networks in the Coral Triangle region of Southeast Asia. He received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology and Fisheries from the Rosenstiel School in 2008.
Jen Litz
Jenny Litz (2001 – 2002)
A fisheries biologist at the National Marine Fisheries Service working in the Marine Mammal Program, Litzs research focuses on marine mammal stranding, health, and stock structure in southeast U.S. waters. After completing extensive research into the social structure, genetic structure, and organohalogen pollutants in bottlenose dolphins in Biscayne Bay, FL, she received her Ph.D. from the Rosenstiel School in Marine Biology and Fisheries in 2007.
Manuel Lonfat
Manuel Lonfat (1999 – 2000)
Lonfat is managing director of Travelers Personal Insurance Catastrophe Modeling Unit based in Hartford, CN, where he heads a team with a variety of backgrounds in science and business, in charge of quantifying the risk posed by natural catastrophes. He graduated with a Ph.D. in Meteorology and Physical Oceanography in 2004, specializing in the assessment of tropical cyclone rainfall impacts.
Tyler Smith
Tyler Smith (1998 – 1999)
Smith is currently an assistant professor at the University of the Virgin Islands Center for Marine and Environmental Studies, where he is a graduate instructor, mentor, and coordinator of the U.S. Virgin Islands Territorial Coral Reef Monitoring Program. His research is focused on coral reef ecology, including how reef systems respond to outside forcing, such as upwelling and climate change. He also specializes in the ecology of deep mesophotic coral ecosystems at the frontier of reef exploration. Smith received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology and Fisheries at the Rosenstiel School in 2006.
Jen Schull
Jennifer Schull (1997 – 1998)
Schull is a fishery biologist at the National Marine Fisheries Service working in the office of Science Planning and Coordination. Her previous research has focused on the distribution and abundance of Goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara, in the Ten Thousand Islands area of Southwest Florida as well as general grouper ecology and monitoring fish populations along the Florida Reef Tract. Schull received her M.A. in Marine Affairs and Policy from the Rosenstiel School in 2000.