Following Teemer’s Knauss Fellowship Journey

New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium is happy to have Teemer Barry represent NJSGC’s program as a 2026 John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow.

Throughout his fellowship, Teemer will share monthly reflections on his experiences as he explores the intersection of marine science, policy, and public service.

Follow along as Teemer documents his Knauss Fellowship journey.

June 2026 Update

The fellowship’s beginning was ceremonious in more ways than one. As is the norm, the first two days saw the introduction of fellows to the Silver Spring NOAA headquarters and acting Chief of Staff Laura Grimm with waffles and orchestral pop remixes. On the third day however, this orientation was met with the arrival of Capitol Hill Ocean Week (CHOW), which we were elected to help operate. It is my interpretation that the conference usually takes place far later in the typical fellowship year structure but I will admit that as the largest disruption caused by the change in start date, the alternate schedule has not produced much in the way of inconvenience.

On June 5th, I properly began my assignment with the aid of a provided laptop and the support of kindred alumni from both the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and the Jose E. Serrano Educational Partnership Program. Perhaps the greatest boon to this period of adjustment was the overlap with several summer programs from the NOAA Earnest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship to the NOAA Experiential Research and Training Opportunity (NERTO), with there being many similarly fresh faces getting acquainted with the office’s business. The first weeks began as they always do; with a great deal of literature review and orientations, constraining the scope of the analysis I was to perform closer and closer to the operations of the Mussel Watch Program. The task set ahead for the coming weeks would include the prototype creation of a service delivery map for the Mussel Watch Program’s semiannual newsletter. Ultimately, the culmination of the month’s efforts would be the successful delivery of the fellowship year’s project description and the planning of a July filled to the brim with activities and potential deliverables.