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Meet the U.S. IOOS Office

Bringing federal leaders, ISS contractors, and consultants together to power our nation’s ocean observing system.
The U.S. IOOS Office is a national–regional partnership of federal staff, ISS contractors, and external consultants. Together they implement the ICOOS Act, develop standards, coordinate observing systems, and foster partnerships that keep the nation and world informed about ocean and Great Lakes conditions.

Director's Office

Federal Leadership, ISS Support and Consultant

Email: krisa.arzayus@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9455

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Implementation of the ICOOS Act
  • National Ocean Service Coastal Roundtable Rep
  • Congressional visits and legislative engagement
  • Program planning and execution
  • Compliance with NOS guidelines and policies (e.g., safety, awards, IT, personnel)
  • Program office risk management
  • Designated Federal Official (DFO) for the U.S. IOOS Advisory Committee
  • Federal employee performance management (pay pool manager)

Email: aaron.d.colohan@noaa.gov   Tel: ‪(251) 207-1020‬

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Project improvements lead
  • IOOS Leadership decision tracking
  • Strategic analysis of policy, planning, and execution

Email: becca.derex@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9462

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Legislative Affairs Lead
  • Budget Formulation Lead
  • Planning and Performance Management
  • Requirements management
  • Supports reporting as required by the ICOOS Act

Email: laura.gewain@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9456

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Director’s and Deputy Director’s calendars
  • Director and Deputy Director travel
  • Director and Deputy Director correspondence
  • Staff support to the Director for International Activities, GOOS, and AmeriGEOSS
  • Manage IOOS Social Media channels
  • Staff support to Director and Deputy projects
  • Special projects as assigned by the Director and Deputy

Email: mary.solokas@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 964-1193

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Information and Federal Records Management
  • IOOS meeting coordination and support
  • Travel Planning
  • IT Coordination
  • Safety and Facilities Management

Email: justin.franks@noaa.gov

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Assist with web site maintenance, issues, and updates
  • Collaborate with Communications team to add new site content
  • Ensure functionality and efficiency of site

Email: kate.culpepper@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9457
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Communications (e.g., press releases, media events, outreach materials)
  • Education & outreach activities
  • Coordination with NOAA Public Affairs, NOS Communications and Education Division, IOOS Association Education and Outreach Council, and external communications contacts

Operations Division

Operations Division, Regions, Data and Products Branch

Email: becky.baltes@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9469

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Provide oversight and management of the Data and Products Branch
  • Oversee Marine Life and Data Management and Cyberinfrastructure programs which plan and manage projects to collect and disseminate physical, chemical, and biological oceanographic data
  • Lead IOOS office strategic planning, and program and process improvement
  • NOS representative to NOAA Observing System Committee

Email: mathew.biddle@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9470

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • IOOS POC for NCEI data archival
  • Marine Life DMAC lead
  • IOOS representative to the NOAA NOS Data Governance Board
  • Chair of the ERDDAP Strategic Insight Group
  • Manage DMAC Community of Practice including regional data manager engagement, organizing annual meetings/code sprints, and technology/communication platforms including IOOS GitHub, ioos_tech forum, Google Summer of Code, and Slack workspace
  • Promote and communicate IOOS data products and services through management of the IOOS CodeLab

Email: laura.brenskelle@noaa.gov   Tel: (828) 419-1121

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Data standardization for biological observing methods
  • Engagement with the Regional Associations, Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON), and Animal Telemetry Network (ATN) communities
  • DMAC project support

Email: gabrielle.canonico@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9452

Programmatic Responsibilities:

Email: courtney.edwards@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-5742 Programmatic Responsibilities:
  • Regional Association project coordination and tracking
  • Support U.S. IOOS Advisory Committee
  • Support administration of IOOS cooperative agreements and RCOS certification

Email: rhyan.grech@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 639-8656

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Regional Association project coordination and tracking
  • Support NOAA to Regional Association engagement
  • Support communications

Email: susan.fox@noaa.gov   Tel: (843) 481-0288

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Lead for Regional Association coordination for GCOOS, GLOS, NANOOS, PacIOOS, and SECOORA
  • Monitor and provide technical oversight of Regional Association cooperative agreements
  • Coordinate NOAA to Regional Association engagement

Email: hassan.moustahfid@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9468

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Scientific and technical liaison for marine biological and ecosystem programs
  • Building partnerships between biological and ecosystem programs in IOOS Enterprise and with international partners
  • Advance and promote emerging technologies (including Super Intelligence, biomolecular and advanced acoustic technologies)

Email: maria.murray@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-6114

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Lead for Regional Association coordination for AOOS, CARICOOS, CeNCOOS, MARACOOS, NERACOOS, SCCOOS
  • Monitor and provide technical oversight of Regional Association cooperative agreements
  • Coordinate NOAA to Regional Association engagement

Email: micah.wengren@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9441
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Manage the IOOS Data Management and Cyberinfrastructure Program and DMAC Community of Practice: regional data manager engagement, annual meetings/code sprints, and technology/communication platforms including IOOS GitHub, ioos_tech forum, Google Summer of Code, and Slack workspace
  • Manage National-scale DMAC cloud cyberinfrastructure and data management implementation with support from IOOS’ partners
  • Functional POC for cloud computing, cloud data management, and geospatial/GIS activities
  • NOAA Data Governance Committee workgroup representative: NOAA Catalog, NOAA Enterprise Metadata, and Open Geospatial Consortium
Operations Division, Observation and Prediction Branch

Email: kathleen.bailey@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9449

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Supervision and oversight of the Observation and Prediction Branch
  • Oversee programs that plan, manage, collect and disseminate oceanographic observations, and programs that develop ocean predictions using numerical circulation models
  • Provide leadership and support to ensure user needs are met with ocean observation and modeling products
  • Oversight of the IOOS partnership with the National Data Buoy Center, and the IOOS-NDBC Service Level Agreement
  • Project point of contact for IOOS gliders, regional water level observing, and moorings

Email: zack.baize@noaa.gov

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Support NOS New Blue Economy activities
  • Program Manager for Ocean Enterprise Accelerators
  • Support NOAA environmental economics activities and ocean enterprise studies

Email: emily.landeen@noaa.gov   Tel: (‪301) 327-0142‬

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Point of contact for IOOS hurricane glider collaboration
  • Supports IOOS’ hurricane glider coordination efforts, including monitoring glider data flow and tracking metrics
  • Provides technical input for environmental compliance on award activities, including advising on environmental impacts

Email: tiffany.c.vance@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9445

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Ocean Technology Transition (OTT) Program Manager
  • Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) Program Manager
  • Transition Manager for the Pacific Northwest HAB Bulletin and IOOS representative to the HAB Tech Team and the Ecosystem Forecasting Roadmap Tech Team
  • Federal Lead for the IOOS cloud computing sandbox for ocean models
  • Functional POC for geospatial, cloud computing, and GIS activities
  • IOOS co-lead for biogeochemical, ocean acidification, and HAB related data
  • DMAC Project Manager Environmental Sensor Map
  • DMAC implementation and architecture

Email: breanna.vanderplow@noaa.gov   Tel: (410) 541-6446

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Liaison to support modeling efforts of the Regional Associations and IOOS Modeling Community of Practice including service delivery and requirements management
  • NOS Coastal Cloud Sandbox project management and user engagement
  • IOOS Modeling Program (including the Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed) support
  • NOS Modeling Portfolio support in managing products for data acquisition of coastal model forcings, visualization and dissemination of model output, task management, and organization of open source code repositories
  • Hurricane Glider support through tracking and reporting storms and glider-model data comparisons
  • IOOS Model Viewer project management and user engagement
  • Water level and waves project liaison facilitating data flow of observations to NOAA products and services

Email: brian.zelenke@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9440

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Program and Technical Lead for the U.S. HF-Radar network
  • Stakeholder management for coastal circulation observing and product development
  • Point of Contact for radio frequency allocation issues
  • Manage the HF-Radar Data Assembly Center
  • Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR)

Email: lucila.houttuijn.bloemendaal@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 622-9382

Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Oversee the IOOS modeling portfolio
  • Manage the suite of projects that evaluate, improve, and transition coastal ocean models and tools for use in operations
  • Liaison with the modeling community
  • Manage the Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed
  • Represent IOOS in NOS modeling efforts

Regions, Budget, and Policy Division

Email: dave.easter@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9453
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • U.S. IOOS implementation and program development
  • IOOS Regional Coordination
  • IOOS business manager

Email: justin.franks@noaa.gov
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Assist with web site maintenance, issues, and updates
  • Collaborate with Communications team to add new site content
  • Ensure functionality and efficiency of site

Email: mary.solokas@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 964-1193
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Supports IOOS program and process improvement
  • Supports IOOS office strategic planning, including implementation and metrics and milestone tracking
  • Supports the Hurricane Glider Program, monitoring Navy glider data flow and tracking glider metrics
  • Office co-lead for data call response and tracking

RB&P, Business Branch

Email: kelly.white@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 533-9465
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Lead for budget execution and financial management
  • Human Resources Liaison, coordinates hiring actions
  • Manages transfers and receipt of funds to other NOAA offices

Email: jennifer.hinden@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-5991
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Federal Acquisition Certification Contracting Officer Representative
  • Grant management and cooperative agreements
  • Trusted Agent

Email: charmaine.jones@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-5387
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Budget execution and financial management
  • Lead for transfers and receipt of funds to and from other NOAA offices
  • Travel budget approver

Email: harvey.kincaid@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-6085
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Grant management and cooperative agreements

Email: izella.murry@noaa.gov   Tel: (305) 699-5124
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Grant management and cooperative agreement administrative support
  • Support office evaluation activities

Email: alejandra.enriquez@noaa.gov   Tel: (202) 936-5840
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Supporting the administration of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law cooperative agreements
  • Coordinating efforts and fostering relationships with the IOOS Regions, IOOS Association, interagency partners
  • Assisting with coordination of observing system assets with partners
  • Environmental compliance support

Email: rosa.gonzalez@noaa.gov   Tel: (240) 621-1911
Programmatic Responsibilities:

  • Coordinates with staff environmental compliance reviews for IOOS authorized, funded, and conducted activities

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