Council Members
The council consists of public and government members. All public members apply through a regular recruitment process. For more information about recruitment opportunities, visit Council Recruitment. The public is invited to contact advisory council members about questions, comments, or requests for information concerning council-related issues.
Public Members (12)
- Citizen At-Large (3 seats)
- Conservation (2 seats)
- Diving, Sport
- Education, K-12
- Education, University
- Research, Living Resources
- Research, Non-Living Resources
- Fishing, Industry
- Fishing, Sport
Government Members (9)
- Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Resources
- Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Law Enforcement
- NOAA Fisheries Service
- NOAA Office of Law Enforcement
- NOAA Sea Grant
- Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve
- U.S. Coast Guard
- U.S. Navy
ADVISORY COUNCIL OFFICERS
Russell Kent, Chair, October 2023 - Present
Dr. Lauren Stefaniak, Vice-Chair, January 2022 - Present
Vacant, Executive Officer
PUBLIC MEMBERS
Citizen At-Large (3 seats)
Conservation (2 seats)
Sport Diving
Education
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
LStefania@coastal.edu
Term: June 2023–June 2026
Fishing
Research
GOVERNMENT MEMBERS
Georgia Department of Natural Resources
Georgia Department of Natural Resources - Law Enforcement
NOAA Fisheries Service
NOAA Office of Law Enforcement
NOAA Sea Grant
Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve
United States Coast Guard
United States Navy
Council Subcommittees and Working Groups
Working groups and subcommittees further enhance community involvement in the management of Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. Working groups and subcommittees are established by the Sanctuary Advisory Council to address specific issues or topics requiring focused attention that are best handled in smaller group settings. Subcommittees may consist of current council members, while working groups also include additional stakeholders and subject matter experts to focus on specific issues.
All working groups are chaired by a member of the council and function under the purview of the Sanctuary Advisory Council. Working groups may provide the council with ongoing input on areas such as education or other broad issues. In addition, task-specific working groups are occasionally established by the council to address temporal issues, and then are disbanded once final advice is submitted to the advisory council.