PEOPLE & 



PLACES 



"I believe in what extension can do, 



and I'm excited about working with, people who make a difference. " 



— SaraMirabilio 



TOP: Sara Mirabilio joins the Manteo office as a fisheries 

 specialist. BOTTOM: Mirabilito meets participants of the 

 recreational fishing community at the Hatteras Surf Fishing 

 Tournment. 



Marine Educators Association and now serves 

 as secretary. She co-chaired the organization's 

 2003 national conference held in Wilmington. 



Hathaway, a native of Wendell, holds a 

 bachelor's degree in marine biology from the 

 University of North Carolina at Wilmington 

 and a master's in science education from East 

 Carolina University. 



Sara Mirabilio, who joins the Manteo 

 office as a fisheries specialist, says she is ener- 

 gized to be part of a Sea Grant extension team 

 that facilitates the transfer of research results to 

 resource users and managers. 



"I believe in what extension can do, and 

 I'm excited about working with people who 

 make a difference," says Mirabilio, citing state, 

 regional and 

 national impacts. 



Her game 

 plan involves 

 connecting with 

 members of the 

 recreational and 

 commercial fishing 

 communities and 

 encouraging them 

 to plug into Sea 

 Grant as a resource. 



Early on, 

 she hauled the Sea 

 Grant display to the 

 Hatteras Surf Fish- 

 ing Tournament to 

 meet hundreds of 

 participants and re- 

 enforce Sea Grant's 

 ethical angling 

 message. 



She also met commercial fishers who at- 

 tended Sea Grant informational meetings on the 

 N.C. Fishery Resource Grants, which are funded 



by the N.C. General Assembly and administered 

 by Sea Grant. 



To get in touch with state and regional 

 fisheries issues, Mirabilio plans to attend N.C. 

 Division of Marine Fisheries Commission meet- 

 ings, as well as South Atlantic and Mid- Atlantic 

 Fishery Management Councils meetings. 



Though she considers herself a fisheries 

 generalise she is well-versed on national fisheries 

 issues and policies. "If I don't know the answer, 

 I know where to go for the right information," 

 she says. 



She became familiar with national strategic 

 plans and federal processes as a program analyst 

 for the chief scientist of the National Oceanic 

 and Atmospheric Administration/National Ocean 

 Service — the nation's principal advocate for 

 ocean and coastal stewardship. 



In that role, she participated on various 

 interagency workgroups, including one drafting 

 the ecosystem element for the U.S. Climate 

 Change Science Program's Strategic Plan. She 

 also helped develop a monitoring, modeling 

 and research strategy to support a Mississippi 

 River/Gulf of Mexico watershed nutrient reduc- 

 tion plan. 



Mirabilio first arrived in Washington, 

 D.C. as a 2002 John A. Knauss Marine Policy 

 Fellow. Upon completing her master's degree in 

 marine science at the Virginia Institute of Marine 

 Science, she was selected as a fellow and as- 

 signed to the executive branch. She split her time 

 between the NOAA Science Advisory Board 

 and the Coastal American Partnership. 



Mirabilio considers herself in the learning 

 curve — in her Sea Grant role and in her profes- 

 sion. "It's a long road ahead," she says. "It's an 

 ever-changing field. It's never boring." 



Mirabilio, a New Jersey native, earned a 

 bachelor's degree in marine science at Long 

 Island University, Southampton College. 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 21 



