Bill Dennison - Professional History
 | William C. Dennison PhD |
Dr. Bill Dennison is a Professor of Marine Science and Vice President for Science Applications at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES). Dr. Dennison’s primary mission within UMCES is to coordinate the Integration and Application Network. The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science is one of two research and service institutions in the 13-institution University System of Maryland. UMCES is comprised of three laboratories distributed across the watershed of Chesapeake Bay within Maryland: Appalachian Laboratory in Frostburg, Chesapeake Biological Laboratory on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay in Solomons and Horn Point Laboratory on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay near Cambridge as well as Maryland Sea Grant College in College Park, Maryland. UMCES also operates an Annapolis Liaison Office.
Bill Dennison rejoined UMCES in 2002 following a ten year stint at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. He originally started at UMCES (then the Center for Environmental and Estuarine Science) in 1987 as a Postdoctorate/Research Assistant Professor based at Horn Point Laboratory. In Australia, Bill developed an active Marine Botany group at the University of Queensland with strong links to the Healthy Waterways Campaign for Moreton Bay. Bill obtained his academic training from Western Michigan University (B.A., Biology & Environmental Science), the University of Alaska (M.S., Biological Oceanography), The University of Chicago (Ph.D., Biology), and State University of New York at Stony Brook at Stony Brook (Postdoc, Coastal Marine Scholar).
Beginnings
| My academic career has been shaped by where I came from and who taught me. In terms of where I came from, I grew up in Southwestern Ohio (Oxford, Cincinnati, Dayton). Both of my parents were from Oxford, Ohio, home of Miami University and we spent a lot of time visiting grandparents in Oxford. I went to Oakwood High School in Dayton, Ohio. I enjoyed spending weekends and summer days poking around in forests, streams and rivers in the rolling hills of SW Ohio. But I really loved our summer vacations in Michigan at a lake cottage near Traverse City and canoe trips in Canada. I learned to SCUBA dive when I was 12 years old at a local Boys Club (but got officially certified when I was 17 years old at the YMCA). I couldn’t get enough of the underwater stuff—and decided to go to school in Michigan so that I could get out to the Great Lakes as well as the smaller lakes. I went to Western Michigan University (1972-6) in Kalamazoo and majored in Biology and ended up with a second major in a newly formed Environmental Science program. My first mentor was Dr. Richard (“Doc”) Pippen, a botanist who could tell me about the fascinating plants that I had been seeing in the lakes. “Doc” let me hang out with his graduate students—my first taste of research. I took classes at the Kellogg Biological Station and went on my first marine biology field trip to the Florida Keys. I probably spent too much time chasing around on field trips (instead of studying), but it was lots of fun. I was beginning to think that I would become a limnologist. |
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Converting to Marine Biology
| One of my regular dive buddies, Mike Beaulac, graduated before I did and went off to Alaska to find a job. He ended up with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service based in Juneau, in Southeast Alaska (1976-1977). He helped me get a job as a diver/deck hand on a 65’ boat, M/V Curlew. This was a dream job—I flew out to Juneau on the day after my graduation. We traveled throughout SE Alaska on the Curlew, doing underwater assessments, mostly in conjunction with other federal agencies. Our primary job was to find suitable locations for putting logs into the water where the freshly cut trees could be floated in rafts over the pulp and sawmills. This cold water diving was absolutely spectacular—the invertebrates of the Pacific Northwest are large, colorful and varied. Swimming through kelp forests, catching abalone, Dungeness crabs, salmon and halibut, watching Dahl porpoises and humpback whales converted me forever into a marine biologist – it was good-bye to limnology.
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Sea Semester
| After this first summer in Alaska, I went off to do a sea semester with the Sea Education Association, based in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. This program which entailed spending 6 weeks in Woods Hole and 6 weeks on a tall ship, the R/V Westward, was a fantastic introduction to the sea, combining nautical and marine science. We sailed from Miami, Florida to Woods Hole, via the Bahamas, Savannah, and several stops in Chesapeake Bay (W-33). To this day, I cannot believe how much I learned (and retained!) from this program, spending long hours with Drs. Bob Guillard and Peter Kilham in Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory library and long hours at sea with Dr. Arthur Gaines. Highlights included picking through the floating rafts of sargassum to find the cryptic animals that live there, hauling up the bizarre deep water creatures from our mid-water trawls, taking sexton readings of the evening stars to learn celestial navigation, meeting Chesapeake watermen of Tangier Island, and sailing into Woods Hole. This experience in Woods Hole and at sea fueled my desire to learn more about the sea, so I began looking for graduate programs in marine science.
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Alaska
| I returned to Southeast Alaska for another season on the M/V Curlew, and alternated with stints on the sister ship, M/V Surfbird to spot and map bald eagle nest trees and to map salmon streams. On one of our port calls in Sitka, Alaska, I met my future Master’s advisor, Dr. C. Peter McRoy, on the University of Alaska’s research vessel, R/V Acona. Peter had just obtained a large multi-year National Science Foundation grant with a group of colleagues distributed throughout the country to study seagrasses. I visited the University of Alaska campus in Fairbanks, met some interesting graduate students who were to become my cohort, and entered the Master’s program in oceanography (1978-1979). My master’s research ("Light Adaptations of Plants: A Model Based on the Seagrass Zostera marina L.").was conducted largely in Izembek Lagoon, at the tip of the Alaska peninsula looking out on active volcanos and the Aleutian Islands. We lived and worked in World War II quonset huts and hiked out onto the seagrass using snowshoes to avoid sinking in the soft mud. The large brown bears, caribou and salmon made for interesting sights, but the weather was generally awful—particularly the nearly constant gale force winds. But Izembek Lagoon was a natural wonder and the extensive seagrass bed supported large waterfowl populations. I became interested in the seagrass leaf canopy—it had the leaf area of a tropical rain forest. I conducted some in situ experiments, using shade screens and sun reflectors to increase and decrease light availability. My Master’s research led me to consider the different scales of light absorption by seagrass leaves, and an interest in light absorption at the molecular scale. I spent the next summer (1980) on the North slope working for several different groups, drilling through sea ice to measure sea ice algae for Dr. Don Schell, and working for an environmental consulting company on a research boat, D.W. Hood. We dodged icebergs in the Beaufort Sea to conduct environmental baseline studies associated with the potential drilling for oil offshore. This proved to be a demanding and exhilarating task and I enjoyed the opportunity to experience the polar realm.
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Don Schell sampling in the arctic 
Izembek Lagoon signChicago and Woods Hole
| Upon completing my Master’s degree, I visited several marine research institutions, searching for a place to follow my interests—and again relying on graduate students to guide me in my choice. I also presented my Master’s results at a scientific conference in Los Angeles. There I was intrigued by presentations by scientists investigating light absorption at the molecular level (photosynthetic unit concept). In questioning them following their talks, I met my PhD advisor, Dr. Randy Alberte from The University of Chicago. I entered the PhD program at The University of Chicago (1981-1984) and found this to be an intellectually stimulating and challenging environment. The combination of theoretical and practical science came together in a way that suited me well. Surprisingly, The University of Chicago had a rich tradition of scientists traveling to Woods Hole in the summer to do research. This rich century-old tradition, which included the initial directors of the Marine Biological Laboratory and the creation of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution by Chicago scientists, had not been recently pursued until Dr. Alberte’s group began studying marine plants in Woods Hole. I spent my initial summer in Woods Hole, living out a dream of conducting research SCUBA diving in Great Harbor. I spent hundreds of hours underwater at my study site, getting to know the undersea life as part of my research. I conducted in situ experiments and learned how to measure photosynthesis in the lab with Dr. David Mauzerall, from Rockefeller University. I returned to Chicago in the winter to analyze data, write proposals, take graduate courses and to assist in undergraduate teaching. In the following summer, I worked for Dr. Ivan Valiela as a teaching assistant for the Marine Ecology course. This proved to be a superb opportunity—I had a laboratory for the entire summer, the visiting lecturers were a who’s who of marine ecology and I was able to interact with Ivan and his group. I continued this way for two years (summers in Woods Hole and winters in Chicago), studying seagrasses using in situ manipulations of light and nutrients as well as transplant experiments. Dr. Bob Aller taught me the necessary biogeochemistry to conduct nutrient experiments. In 1984, I wrote and defended my dissertation, interspersed with a Caribbean research project. The Caribbean research project was with another Peter McRoy graduate student, Dr. Susan Williams. We studied seagrass and algae while living underwater in the Hydrolab habitat at Salt River canyon off St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. For a boy from Ohio, this was the ultimate undersea experience.
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Bill Dennison and Randy Alberte at 
Stony Brook, NY
| In searching about for a postdoctoral position, I looked for an institutional position that would allow me to expand my research interests. I was lucky enough to obtain such a position (Coastal Marine Scholar) at the Marine Sciences Research Center at the State University of New York at Stony Brook (1984-1987). I quickly gravitated to the Carpenter/Capone lab, where Drs. Ed Carpenter and Doug Capone were investigating nitrogen cycling in marine ecosystems. I bought an old wooden boat (Adohr) to live aboard and serve as my diving platform. I began looking around at the seagrasses of Long Island and repeatedly encountered very turbid waters. Upon investigation, the turbidity was caused by very dense populations of a small, previously undescribed phytoplankton. This phytoplankton was dubbed the ‘brown tide’ because of the color it imparted to affected waters. The ‘brown tide’ received considerable media attention, largely because it induced massive shellfish mortality as well as seagrass declines. We assembled a team of researchers to investigate the ‘brown tide’, which was to occupy much of my effort at Stony Brook. In addition, I was able to travel to the Australian Institute of Marine Science with Doug and his research crew which included his wife, Dr. Linda Duguay. We worked in the laboratory of Drs. David Barnes and Bruce Chalker and went on research cruises to the Great Barrier Reef on the R/V Sirius and the Lady Baston. This was a wonderful opportunity—we were able to compare and contrast inshore, mid-shelf and outer shelf reefs. Our timing was fortutitious in that we were able to witness a large outbreak of crown-of-thorns (Acanthaster planci) and dive on the fore reefs of all of the reefs due to a seasonal lull in the prevailing winds. While Doug & Linda studied nutrient dynamics, I began investigating water motion effects with Dave Barnes. I also traveled around Australia, meeting up with future colleagues, Drs. Hugh Kirkman, Di Walker and Tony Larkum. Back at Stony Brook, I continued to investigate the recurring ‘brown tide’, as well as starting a project in the outer Bahama islands aboard the R/V Calanus with Doug Capone and Dr. Fred Short, another Peter McRoy graduate student. I met one of Doug's graduate students, Judy O'Neil, and we married several years later. Our interest in tropical ecosystems also led us to create a field course for Stony Brook undergraduates at La Parguera field station in the SW corner of Puerto Rico with our colleagues Drs. Bob Cowan and Sue Spanagle which we ran jointly for two years.
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Chesapeake Bay
| I continued to migrate towards the equator, and was presented with an opportunity to join the faculty of the Horn Point Laboratory, part of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (1987-1991). Drs. Pat Glibert and Todd Kana, friends from Woods Hole, helped me find space and get me started at Horn Point. Drs. Mike Kemp, Laura Murray and Court Stevenson introduced me to the seagrasses and wetlands of Chesapeake Bay. I studied seagrass/nutrient interactions in Chesapeake Bay, co-taught a wetlands course and began to develop an interest in the management applications of our seagrass research. I also maintained my interest in tropical ecosystems. Along with Judy, I spent two summers teaching a course at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research, “Ecophysiology of corals, mangroves and seagrasses”. I joined Judy and the R/V Westward in Bermuda for a sail to Woods Hole (W-99), which rekindled my interest in Sea Semester style teaching/research. I signed up for a stint as chief scientist on the R/V Westward, and we sailed from Maine, over Georges Bank, through the Gulf Stream and Sargasso Sea, to Barbados and ultimately to St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (W-102). I enjoyed teaching in these various experiential field courses, and had an opportunity to try out teaching traditional classroom undergraduate biology at Salisbury University, spending a semester as a visiting faculty. Along with my Horn Point colleagues and collaborators from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, we started a research program in Chincoteague Bay, one of the barrier island lagoons along the Atlantic Ocean. Just as this program was getting underway, a new opportunity presented itself.
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A Decade in Australia
| Remembering my enjoyable visit to Australia, when an opportunity came along to take up a lectureship in Marine Botany at the University of Queensland, located in Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, I jumped at the opportunity. I arrived in the Botany Department simultaneously with Professor George Stewart, which proved to be exceptionally good fortune. George was not only an excellent department chair, but he became a colleague on several ecophysiology projects using marine plants. Studying marine botany from within a Botany Department, instead of at a marine laboratory, provided unique opportunities. For example, Dr. Christa Critchley, who took over from George as department chair, helped our group develop expertise in measuring photosynthesis underwater with pulse amplitude fluorometry. Teaching field classes at Heron and Stradbroke Islands allowed for a good training ground for marine botanical students and research projects associated with the field classes often developed into thesis projects and larger programs. As a result of being in the right place at the right time, our Marine Botany group was able to flourish. I was inspired by the Brisbane Lord Mayor, Jim Soorley, who supported our research and worked to implement the necessary changes to improve ecosystem health of Moreton Bay. Prof. Paul Greenfield from the University of Queensland was my mentor in the Healthy Waterways program, as we developed a large multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional study. My first PhD student, Dr. Eva Abal, became a key colleague when she moved into the role of Scientific Coordinator of the Healthy Waterways campaign.
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Returning to Chesapeake Bay
My experience with the Healthy Waterways campaign in Australia convinced me that I wanted to devote my remaining career to solving, not just studying environmental problems. Simultaneously, the faculty of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, led by Dr. Don Boesch, initiated an Integration and Application Network to address environmental problem solving focused on Chesapeake Bay. Thus, when a new position was created for a Vice President for Science Applications to energize the Integration and Application Network, it seemed a natural that I take on this effort (2002 – present).The goal of IAN is to inspire, manage and produce timely syntheses and assessments on key environmental issues, with a special emphasis on Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. IAN will then take these syntheses and assessments into the policy arena to develop solutions to environmental problems.
The initial phase of developing the Integration and Application Network was to form a suite of tools that can be used by scientists in various integration and application opportunities. Dr. Tim Carruthers came from Australia with me, and we have steadily built up a core staff, funded largely through grants and contracts. We have renovated a building on the Horn Point Laboratory campus to house the core IAN staff. We also renovated office space in Annapolis for the Annapolis Synthesis Center. A variety of active partnerships have developed with various agencies, universities, and non-governmental organizations. An IAN web site was created to share the tools developed through IAN activities. For example, symbol libraries were created to aid in the creation of conceptual diagrams, used in various science communication applications. These symbol libraries have become a global resource used by thousands of scientists. In addition, workshops and courses in science communication have been taught by IAN, internationally, nationally and locally. These courses culminated in a science communication handbook. The IAN web site also features real-time and archived web-cast seminars, enewsletters, printed newsletters, an image library, posters and presentations, discussion forum, workshop and conference proceedings.
The major focus of our activities is on Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. Developing an integrated assessment process for Chesapeake has been an ongoing effort. The IAN team has been expanded to include scientists based in Oxford, Maryland in a partnership with the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office and scientists based in Annapolis, Maryland in a partnership with the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program. An annual communication cycle has been initiated with ecological forecasts in the spring, tracking conditions during the summer and analyzing the forecasts and then in the winter, providing an integrated assessment of the previous summer. In parallel efforts, we have developed strong, ongoing partnerships with colleagues in the Maryland Coastal Bays.
A lesser focus is on activities at national and international realms. I serve on the Scientific Steering Committee for the Land-Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone, using this organization to help us disseminate our tools internationally. I maintain some ongoing activities in Australia, serving as a reviewer of Swan River, Great Barrier Reef and Moreton Bay resource management activities. As well, I maintain as active interest in the International Riverfoundation which funds the annual Riverprize for the best river management program globally, awarded at the annual Riversymposium in Brisbane, Australia.