Awards

Northeast Sea Grant Consortium
Regional Superior Outreach Programming Award

The Superior Outreach Programming Award (SOPA) honors superior leadership, teamwork and accomplishment by Sea Grant extension personnel engaged in an exceptional outreach program. Regional SOPA award nominees are solicited approximately every two years for two categories: Individual and Team. Nominee packages are reviewed by a panel of Sea Grant colleagues, who select regional award recipients.

Nominations are currently closed for Northeast Sea Grant Superior Outreach Programming Awards. Check back in early 2026!

Nomination guidelines for the 2024 nomination period are included below for reference:

Nominations Guidelines

Nomination Form

Individual SOPA Winners - Northeast Region

2024 - Gabriela Bradt, New Hampshire Sea Grant (winner of 2024 national SOPA competition!)
NH Green Crab Project

2022 - Jessica Kuonen, New York Sea Grant
Justice-Oriented Online Mapping Tools Guide Inform Equity Efforts

2019 - Teresa Crean, Rhode Island Sea Grant
The Rhode Island Shoreline Change Special Area Management Plan (Beach SAMP)

2017 - Kristen Grant, Maine Sea Grant
The Southern Maine Beach Profile Monitoring Program

2015 – Sarah Redmond, Maine Sea Grant
Advancing the Sea Vegetable Industry in Maine and the U.S.

2013 – Keri Kaczor, Maine Sea Grant
Maine Healthy Beaches Program

Team SOPA Winners - Northeast Region

2024 - Northeast Sea Grant Consortium Leadership for Offshore Wind Energy Coalesces Capacity Across the Sea Grant National Network
Jessica Jansujwicz, Maine Sea Grant
Syma Ebbin, Connecticut Sea Grant
Kayla Walsh, New York Sea Grant
Katy Bland, New Hampshire Sea Grant & NERACOOS
Juliet Simpson, MIT Sea Grant
Poonam Narotam, WHOI Sea Grant
Lily Keyes, MIT Sea Grant
Abbey Greene, Rhode Island Sea Grant

2022 - Pandemic Rapid Response Supporting CT Shellfish Aquaculture Businesses
Tessa Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant
David Carey, CT Dept. Agriculture Bureau of Aquaculture
Kristin De-Rosia-Banick, (formerly) CT Dept. Ag., Bureau of Aquaculture Richard Seiden, CT Dept. Agriculture Bureau of Aquaculture
Michael Zuber, CT Dept. Agriculture Bureau of Aquaculture
Sylvain De Guise, Connecticut Sea Grant

2019 - Aquaculture in Shared Waters Professional Training Program (winner of 2020 National SOPA competition!)
Dana Morse, Maine Sea Grant
Chris Bartlett, Maine Sea Grant
Natalie Springuel, Maine Sea Grant
Sebastian Belle, Maine Aquaculture Association
Chris Davis, Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center
Hugh Cowperthwaite, Coastal Enterprises, Inc
Nick Branchina, Coastal Enterprises, Inc.
Teresa Johnson, University of Maine
Caitlin Cleaver, University of Maine

2017 - Connecticut Shellfish Initiative
Tessa Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant
Anoushka Concepcion, Connecticut Sea Grant
Nancy Balcom, Connecticut Sea Grant
Sylvain De Guise, Connecticut Sea Grant
Julie Rose, NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Milford Lab

2015 - Northeast Coastal Acidification Network
Esperanza Stancioff, Maine Sea Grant
Juliet Simpson, MIT Sea Grant
Judy Pederson, MIT Sea Grant
Juliana Barrett, Connecticut Sea Grant
Tessa Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant

2013 – Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Lobstermen
Dana Morse, Maine Sea Grant
Erik Chapman, New Hampshire Sea Grant
Tessa Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant
Madeleine Hall-Arber, MIT Sea Grant
Jennifer McCann, Rhode Island Sea Grant

National Sea Grant Network
National Awards Received by Northeast Programs

The Sea Grant Association, Sea Grant Extension Assembly, and Sea Grant Communications Network typically recognize these national award recipients biannually during Sea Grant Week.

National Superior Outreach Programming Award

Regional finalists are forwarded to national award competitions representing the entire Sea Grant Network. The Superior Outreach Programming Award (SOPA) honors superior leadership, teamwork and accomplishment by Sea Grant extension personnel engaged in an exceptional outreach program.

2024 - New Hampshire Sea Grant (Individual Award: Gabriela Bradt)
NH Green Crab Project

2020 - Maine Sea Grant (Team Lead: Dana Morse)
Aquaculture in Shared Waters Professional Training Program

2016 - Maine Sea Grant

National Research To Application Award

The Research to Application (R2A) award honors an individual research project or a body of research funded or implemented by a state Sea Grant program that has increased citizens’ understanding and responsible use of the nation’s ocean, coastal or Great Lakes resources, or has supported the informed personal, policy and management decisions of communities, or has led to the development of new products or tools with positive impacts related to a vibrant and resilient coastal economy or environment.

2022 - Lake Champlain Sea Grant

2020 - Woods Hole Sea Grant (PI: Christopher Neill, Woods Hole Research Center)
A Watershed-Scale Analysis of Nitrogen Loading from Cranberry Agriculture in the Weweantic Watershed of Southeastern Massachusetts

2016 - Connecticut, Maine, and New Hampshire Sea Grant programs
Northeast Sea Grant research paves the way for new sea vegetable aquaculture industry in New England