New Hampshire Sea Grant is pleased to announce that University of New Hampshire (UNH) graduate student Nick Anderson has been named a finalist for the 2021 class of the National Sea Grant College Program’s prestigious John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship.
The Knauss Fellowship honors John A. Knauss, a founder of the National Sea Grant College Program, who formerly served as a NOAA administrator and dean of the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography. Since 1979, over 1,400 early-career professionals have participated in this year-long paid fellowship that matches highly qualified graduate students with host offices in the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government in Washington, D.C. Fellows work on national policy issues affecting ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources.
Nick will be completing his master’s degree from UNH’s Department of Natural Resources and the Environment this fall. He received his bachelor’s in marine and freshwater biology from UNH, and is originally from Chaska, Minnesota. While at UNH, Nick has been involved in the Center for Freshwater Biology, the UNH Connors Writing Center, and the Jackson Estuarine Laboratory. He has also served as a fisheries observer aboard commercial groundfish vessels in New England, which furthered his interests in marine policy and fisheries management.
Nick’s master’s research, advised by Dr. Catherine Ashcraft, assistant professor for natural resources and the environment, and Dr. Frederick Short, research professor emeritus, brought him to James Bay, Québec, Canada. There, Nick collaborated with Canadian First Nations’ communities and researchers to develop a novel video-monitoring methodology and coastal habitat health index for rapid assessment of eelgrass beds. In summer 2019, Nick submitted a successful proposal for NH Sea Grant development funding to expand his research to include eelgrass habitat in Great Bay, NH and the Piscataqua River watershed.
"It’s an honor to have been selected for the Knauss Fellowship. I’m excited to work with our government and apply what I’ve learned as a student at UNH to the coastal resource challenges facing our nation."
- NICK ANDERSON, 2021 KNAUSS FELLOWSHIP FINALIST
Nick joins a cohort of 74 finalists in the 42nd Knauss class, representing 27 of 34 Sea Grant programs. Knauss Fellowship finalists are chosen through a competitive process that includes several rounds of review at both the state Sea Grant program and national levels. Students finishing Master’s, Juris Doctor (J.D.), and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees with a focus and/or interest in marine and coastal science, policy, or management apply to their state’s Sea Grant programs. If applicants are successful at the state level, their applications are then forwarded to a national panel of experts who select the finalists. This fall, the 2021 finalists will participate in a virtual placement week to get to know each other and interview with potential host offices. Following placement, they will begin their fellowships in February 2021.
Read the official NOAA Sea Grant announcement: Sea Grant Announces 2021 Finalists for the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Program
For more information about graduate fellowship opportunities through NH Sea Grant, click here. We are currently accepting inquiries for 2022 class of the Knauss Fellowship.
