{"id":29171,"date":"2019-03-05T10:01:56","date_gmt":"2019-03-05T15:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/?p=29171"},"modified":"2019-03-05T14:55:33","modified_gmt":"2019-03-05T19:55:33","slug":"oceanic-office-surf-alum-finds-calling-as-marine-tech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/2019\/03\/05\/oceanic-office-surf-alum-finds-calling-as-marine-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond SURF"},"content":{"rendered":"

The best time on a research cruise is at sunrise, according to Jillon McGreal<\/strong>. As a marine technician for the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, the 2014 SURF has become the go-to person between scientists and ship crew, troubleshooting anything from sample equipment launches to wireless internet.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Former SURF Jillon McGreal (third from left) found her passion as a marine technician aboard research cruises, like here in 2014 on the R\/V Endeavor. Photo by Mike Costa\/URI Graduate School of Oceanography<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cYou do a lot,\u201d says McGreal, who graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2015 with a bachelor\u2019s in marine biology. \u201cMy main job is taking care of scientific equipment, but we are in charge of safety on the deck, securing supplies at shore, and even getting toilet paper.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like being awake when the sun comes up, but our espresso machine is key!\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2014, McGreal researched Asterias forbesi<\/em>, better known as the Atlantic sea star, alongside mentor Dr. Marta Gomez-Chiarri<\/strong>. The echinoderm at that time was being afflicted by a disease of which scientists knew little. The SURF experience, she says, helped her discover a passion for working on the sea.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you are designing an experiment, I feel like I am using the same part of my brain as when someone says, \u2018Here is this fitting that needs to go with this other super crazy fitting, help me figure it out\u2019,\u201d the Chatham, N.Y. native explains. \u201cYou have to think about everything, which inspires me to be creative.\u201d<\/p>\n

After graduation, McGreal was unsure of her next step, not wanting to pursue a doctorate or work strictly in a lab. While working as a cruise technician aboard the R\/V Siquliak through URI\u2019s Graduate School of Oceanography in 2017, however, one of the crew members taught McGreal a skill which provided a spark for her career path: welding.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t grow up with my dad having projects in the garage or cars or anything, and in the past I would not feel super confident doing more technical things,\u201d she admits. \u201cBut learning how to weld gave me confidence to do more mechanical work.\u201d<\/p>\n

McGreal was accepted into the IYRS School of Technology & Trades in Newport and, after a year of working among the insides of ships, earned certificates in the installation and maintenance of marine systems, from engines and hydraulics to plumbing and electrical networks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe learned on systems which teachers would intentionally break,\u201d explains McGreal. \u201cWe learned how to figure things out and make the equipment work again. One of the big takeaways for me was not being intimidated by things I haven\u2019t seen before and being able to troubleshoot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, the former SURF student is not looking too far ahead into the future, enjoying much of her time as a reliable hand aboard the many research cruises organized by BIOS.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get to be involved with the science but work with my hands every day,\u201d she says. \u201cThis is my dream job, and the ship is my home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Into the Real World<\/h2>\n
\"Tadros\"
Former SURF Steven Tadros collects coral in the British Virgin Islands for the reef restoration project he worked on in 2015 with URI’s Dr. Graham Forrester. Photo: Graham Forrester<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Steven Tadros<\/strong> didn\u2019t want to become a lawyer or doctor, like his parents Mary and Oncy implored. Marine biology was the 2015 SURF\u2019s passion. Now an ocean scientist for global environmental consultancy firm RPS, the Ashland, Mass., native counts his SURF experience as one of the most important.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy parents emigrated from Egypt, so they are very traditional,\u201d Tadros explains. \u201cBeing a marine biologist was kind of a joke to them at first, but now they know I am taking care of myself and are proud.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2015, Tadros wanted more research experience in the field. Enter former SURF mentor Dr. Graham Forrester<\/strong>, who brought the then University of Rhode Island junior on board to study coral reef restoration in the British Virgin Islands.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would dive three to four times a day in five foot waters, where the conditions were tough when waves would take you from the coral,\u201d recalls Tadros. \u201cWe were trying to create an innovative and cheap way to restore the reefs there.\u201d<\/p>\n

After his SURF project ended, Tadros continued to work alongside Forrester, a professor of natural resources science at URI, on coral reef restoration, presenting his work at two conferences. A friendship formed between the undergraduate and his mentor, a relationship which has been invaluable for Tadros as he navigates his career path.<\/p>\n

\u201cSURF gave me the opportunity to go out into the field, collect and analyze data, but I cannot express enough gratitude for putting me with Dr. Forrester,\u201d he says. \u201cHe has been a great resource for me professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n

As an ocean scientist at RPS, Tadros trains organizations across the globe on the company\u2019s software which models the effects of a potential oil spill, as well as help draft environmental impact statements for those groups. Looking to the future, the 2015 SURF has a wide-open road.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m 24, so every week my mind changes about what I want to do,\u201d says Tadros with a laugh. \u201cRight now, I am building experience and making unbelievable connections. That\u2019s a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SURF alums Jillon McGreal, Steven Tadros recall impact of research experience on career path<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1994,"featured_media":29540,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[888],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current-winter-19"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29171","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1994"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29171"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29171\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29579,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29171\/revisions\/29579"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29540"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}