MSI has a proud history of benefitting from an extremely talented pool of marine biologists. Our instruction is widely known as top-notch due to the contributions of these sea-savvy individuals. What happens to all those amazing people who have toiled and moved on through MSI as Instructors?

Several of our past instructors would like updates as to their current whereabouts and work. Here is what they had to say...

Sarah Lecus		I'm currently working with California Fish and Game conducting Delta fish population surveys. My favorite "WOW fact" I've learned here is that Delta Smelt smell very strongly like cucumbers! I'm also volunteering with NOAA as a kayak naturalist and with Surfrider to educate the public about marine debris. Here's a picture of me holding a baby White Catfish.
Beth Lenz		I am currently working at the UC Davis Bodega Marine laboratory as a lab technician. I assist in climate change research with the Bodega Ocean Acidification Research (BOAR). I also maintain projects that examine spatial and temporal changes in seawater chemistry and the impacts of this variability on the ecology, physiology, and biomechanics of critical nearshore marine invertebrates.
Peggy Lynch			After leaving MSI, I moved to Santa Barbara to start a grad program in marine science. I did some work that I really enjoyed, assessing different approaches to rebuilding collapsed fisheries, but at the end of the day, I knew I didn't want a career that was solely focused on research. Two of the things I missed most while in grad school were the personal connections and concrete sense of doing something meaningful that I'd found so fulfilling while teaching at MSI - I knew I wanted those things in my future career! I completed my masters, spent a lot of time working with a pediatrician, applied to med school. And so here I am- in medical school at the University of Virginia. I'm just starting out, but I'm planning to go into pediatrics.
Lisa Gilfillan			Since making the tough decision to leave MSI, I relocated to sunny San Diego to pursue a graduate degree in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. My thesis work focused on the occurrence of micro plastic in the California Current and because of this I am now an active participant in banning plastic bags in CA and raising awareness of the negative impacts of plastic in our environment. When I’m not working as an educator guide at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park, I continue to do research at Scripps. This current project involves quantifying the concentration of plastic from the North Pacific gyre (aka: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch). Although I miss MSI and my friends and colleagues from there, San Diego is the right place for me. Keep up the great work MSI!
Adrienne Frisbee		I'm now living in Santa Cruz and working as the Environmental Education Specialist at the non-profit Watsonville Wetlands Watch. I also just earned my teaching credential in secondary education from San Jose State University. MSI was really my first job in education, and I'm really thankful that it gave me the opportunity to become a teacher!