TAMPA, Fla. – With a focused mission to better understand and conserve the ocean environment, the Guy Harvey Foundation (GHF) collaborates with local, national, and international organizations to conduct scientific research and provides funding to affiliated researchers who share this objective.
As part of that mission, the non-profit organization annually recognizes undergraduate and graduate students at Florida colleges and universities whose research focuses on the biology, ecology, habitat or management of sustainable marine fisheries in Florida’s marine environment with a $5,000 Guy Harvey Scholarship Award.
Tampa-St. Petersburg area students Ashley Ohall and Alex Siegel are two of the eight individuals who have received this scholarship and will also receive a certificate designed and signed by world-renowned marine wildlife artist, conservationist and GHF Founder/Chair Emeritus, Dr. Guy Harvey.
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“It is vitally important that we fund research and also support the efforts of the next generation of marine researchers, scientists and conservationists,” said Dr. Harvey. “With these scholarships, we can continue to inspire and attract more bright young minds as they pursue research opportunities that will ensure a properly balanced ocean ecosystem for years to come.”
Tampa native Ashley Ohall is an undergraduate biotechnology major at the University of Florida’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. Her research is focused on studying the effects of varying nitrogen conditions on photosynthetic processes and cultural growth in the marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana. Ohall also works at the Durham Lab within the Department of Biology.
Hailing from Moorhead, Minnesota, Alex Siegel is a graduate student pursuing a masters in conservation biology at the University of South Florida, St. Petersburg.
His research focuses on evaluating the potential species and habitat benefits in the restoration site of the Robinson Preserve, a more than 600-acre coastal preserve located in northwestern Bradenton in Florida.
Siegel will utilize environmental DNA (eDNA) to evaluate the spatial and temporal biodiversity of migratory animals, such as sharks and large bony fish, monitoring where they go and how long they are utilizing the preserve as a nursery.
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The Guy Harvey Scholarship Award was established in 2010 through a partnership between Florida Sea Grant and the Guy Harvey Foundation. Since then, 74 students from 11 different Florida colleges and universities have received more than $359,000 in scholarships.
Applications for the 2023 Guy Harvey Scholarship Award will open later this summer. Stay up to date on application requirements and deadlines at https://www.flseagrant.org/student-opportunities/, or contact Florida Sea Grant Student Programs Coordinator Cassandra Sexon at students@flseagrant.org.
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