Staff Update

September 2002

by Sea Grant Staff

Jesse Schomberg

Jesse Schomberg has been hired as Minnesota Sea Grant's new coastal communities and land use planning extension educator. This rock-climbing father of two will work with communities in the Western Lake Superior Basin to help community leaders better understand the impacts that different land management decisions have on water quality and community character.

"I'm looking forward to bringing the latest science to people who can use it," said Schomberg, who has moved from the University's Natural Resource Research Institute but is maintaining his ties to the Duluth Streams project. "After collecting the data for several years, it seems like a natural extension for me to share it and information about how pollutants get into water, participate in discussions about how to minimize water pollution, and help communities implement watershed-based ideas."

Schomberg will work with related programs in northern Wisconsin and the Twin Cities area to provide watershed-based nonpoint pollution education materials and technical guidance to promote community involvement in water resource protection, while accommodating compatible economic growth.

Schomberg earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Minnesota Duluth, and went on to earn a master's degree studying aquatic invertebrates at Idaho State University.

Sarah Donahue

Sarah Donahue has joined us as an intern for two years to help conduct exotic species teacher workshops. Sarah is a graduate student in environmental education at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

She will be arranging three workshops to acquaint teachers with the ESCAPE compendium (for more information, see Escaping Classroom Routines with Exotic Species story and she will help judge a high school student essay contest about exotic species.

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