Jessica Renee Henkel
500 Poydras Street, Suite 1117, New Orleans, LA, 70130
SCIENCE ADVISOR AND COORDINATOR
Manages and coordinates teams of scientists from Federal and State agencies focused on Gulf of Mexico coastal restoration to advance science, monitoring, and restoration planning at the watershed and regional scale. Accomplished leader and skilled scientist with experience coordinating project teams that include Federal and State agencies, academic consortiums, and stakeholder committees from around the Gulf of Mexico. Strong team player who leads by example and diplomatically builds consensus to achieve goals and reach decisions. Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, well-versed at presenting science, research, and training diverse audiences. Detail-oriented, thorough, and goal driven. Experienced coastal ecologist with proven expertise in database software design, data management, statistical analysis and numerical modeling.
EXPERTISE
Science Advising & Coordinating ⏐ Science-Based Adaptive Management ⏐ Restoration Project Science & Monitoring ⏐ Writing ⏐ Monitoring, Modeling, & Research Plan Development ⏐ Project & Program Management
Teaching⏐ Complex Problem Solving ⏐ Regional Science & Monitoring Studies ⏐ Grant Writing & Administration ⏐ Database Software Design ⏐ Data Management Coordination ⏐ Oral Presentations
EDUCATION
Tulane University, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, LA 2010-2015
Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Dissertation: Migration Ecology of Shorebirds on the Northern Gulf of Mexico and the effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Advisor: Dr. Caroline M. Taylor
University of New Orleans, Department of Biological Sciences, LA 2007-2009
M.Sc. in Biological Sciences, Conservation Biology, with honors
Thesis: Evaluation of the Genetic Management of the Mississippi Sandhill Crane
Advisor: Dr. Jerry Howard
Sea Education Association – Semester at Sea, Woods Hole, MA 2003-2004
Studies in Marine & Nautical Science with field research in the Equatorial Pacific
Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 2000-2004
B.A. in English, cum laude
GRANTS & AWARDS
- Special Act Award – Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council 2020
Recognition for leading the RESTORE Council in the early scoping,
planning, and development of its grants database:
Program Information Platform for Ecosystem Restoration (PIPER) - DOI Decision Analysis Certification Program Cohort Participant 2018 – Present
- NCEAS Open Science for Synthesis Participant 2017
- George Henry Penn Award, Tulane University 2016
- National Academy of Sciences – Science Policy Fellow 2015-2016
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council - National Academy of Sciences – Christine Mirzayan Science and 2015
Technology Policy Graduate Fellow – Gulf Research Program - EPA Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellow 2012-2015
Effects of Global Change on the Migration Ecology of Shorebirds on the
Northern Gulf of Mexico - National Wildlife Federation Young Leader 2011-2015
- State of the Coast Conference – Best Student Oral Paper 2014
- James D. Watkins Student Award for Excellence in Research 2014
Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative - Tulane University Newcomb Fellows Grant 2011, 2012
- NSF Grant for Rapid Response – Population Ecology 2010-2011
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Impacts on migratory shorebirds
and carry-over effects to distant ecosystems - MIGRATE: International Course on Avian Movements and Migration 2010
- Cooper Ornithological Society Student Membership Award 2010-2012
- Dee Saunders Dundee Memorial Graduate Student Scholarship 2010
- Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Env. Education Grant 2010
- LSU – ACRES Cooperative Research Grant (PI; Dr. Jerry Howard) 2008-2010
The integration of molecular analysis into the management of the
Mississippi Sandhill Crane
TO POLICY AND EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH
WORK EXPERIENCE
June 2016-Present: Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council, New Orleans, LA; Science Advisor and Coordinator; Facilitate coordination among multiple Federal and State government agencies and various stakeholders in the Gulf of Mexico region on science to support restoration projects, programs, and impacts on the environment. Serve as co-representative on multi-agency workgroups related to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and RESTORE. Develop and provides advice on Data Management for coastal restoration/habitat protection projects. Design and development manager for the Council’s grants management database: Program Information Platform for Ecosystem Restoration (PIPER).
September 2015-June 2016: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, Gulf Research Program, New Orleans, LA; Science Policy Fellow; Served as the National Academies of Sciences Gulf Research Program 2015-2016 Science Policy Fellow to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. Helped to facilitate coordination among multiple Federal and State government agencies and various stakeholders in the Gulf of Mexico region on science to support restoration projects, programs, and impacts on the environment. Served as co-representative on multi-agency workgroups related to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and RESTORE. Developed and provided advice on Federal regulatory and environmental compliance documentation for coastal restoration/habitat protection projects.
2010-2015; Tulane University, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, New Orleans, LA; Graduate teaching assistant: Courses taught: Ecology Lab for Majors; Diversity of Life lab for Majors
2009 – 2010; Bayou Rebirth, New Orleans, LA; Team Leader: Bayou Rebirth is a non-profit that works to preserve and restore communities in South Louisiana through wetlands restoration and education programs. As a team leader my responsibilities include wetland/ecosystem education and planting instruction for students K-12, and for adult volunteer groups.
2007-2009; University of New Orleans, Department of Biological Sciences, New Orleans, LA; Graduate teaching assistant: Courses taught include: Form and Function for Science Majors; Biodiversity lab for Non-Science Majors; Biodiversity lab for Science Majors.
2004 – 2006, Cambridge University Press, New York, NY; Editorial Assistant – Life Sciences; Associate Production Controller.
RESEARCH & FIELD EXPERIENCE
Fall 2010 – Spring 2015 – Gulf of Mexico Coast; Migratory/wintering shorebird research: During my dissertation research I trapped, banded and collected blood and fecal samples from over 800 shorebirds, across six species, at a total of 6 study sites.
2010 – September; La Pocatiere, Quebec, CA; Migratory shorebird research: As preliminary work on wintering shorebirds I conducted mist net trapping, retrieval, banding, unique-color banding and bleeding of migrating Semipalmated plovers (Charadrius semipalmatus).
2010 – June-July; Fort Jackson, LA; Louisiana State Animal Rescue Team (LSART); Oiled bird rescue/washing: As a contractor with the LSART team I assisted with the oiled bird rescue/washing effort at Fort Jackson, LA during the height of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill rescue effort. This effort included oiled bird handling, bird washing, and general bird husbandry.
2010, 2011 – June; Olema, CA; Tree swallow research: The last two summers I have conducted nest-box trapping, retrieval, and banding of Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) in Olema, CA as part of an on-going migratory connectivity study on this species.
2007 – 2009; University of New Orleans, Audubon Center for Research on Endangered Species and the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge; Graduate Research Assistant: I conducted research to genetically assess the status of captive and reintroduced Mississippi sandhill crane populations. I utilized microsatellite analyses to estimate relatedness amongst captive and released individuals in the population in an effort to improve the genetic management of this critically endangered species.
2003 – 2004; Equatorial Pacific: I designed and conducted research on the intermediate water masses of the equatorial Pacific as an undergraduate student with the Sea Education Association’s Semester at Sea. Using hydrographic data collected by sampling through a cruise track from Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, to Papeete, Tahiti, I successfully mapped the distribution of intermediate water masses of the eastern and central equatorial Pacific.
PRESENTATIONS
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council: Holistic Restoration Approached Watershed by Watershed, April 19, 2016, presentation, 2016 National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration, Coral Springs, FL
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council, Initial Funding Priorities List (FPL), February 2, 2016, poster, 2016 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and Ecosystem Science Conference, Tampa, FL
A boon, not a barrier: The importance of northern Gulf of Mexico barrier islands to migratory shorebirds, August 15, 2015, presentation, 2015 Waterbirds Meeting, Bar Harbor, ME
Migration ecology of shorebirds on the northern Gulf of Mexico and effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, April 17, 2015, dissertation defense, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Oiling rates and condition indices of shorebird communities in the northern Gulf of Mexico following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, September 27, 2014, presentation, 2014 American Ornithological Conference, Estes Park, CO
Stopover ecology of shorebirds on the Northern Gulf of Mexico: how different migration strategies affect habitat use, August 15, 2014, presentation, 2014 Ecological Society of America Meeting, Sacramento, CA
Potential Impacts of Sea-Level Rise on the Migration Ecology of Shorebirds on the Northern Gulf of Mexico, March 19, 2014, presentation, 2014 State of the Coast Conference, New Orleans, LA – Awarded 1st place, graduate student presentations
Impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on Shorebird Communities in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, January 27, 2014, presentation, 2014 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and Ecosystem Science Conference, Mobile, AL – Awarded James D. Watkins Student Award for Excellence in Research
Impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on migratory shorebirds: the Gulf and beyond, October 3, 2013, presentation and workshop for students 15-18, Bard Early College Program, New Orleans, LA
Variation in the migration ecology of shorebirds on the Northern Gulf of Mexico, September 18, 2013, presentation, 5th Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group Meeting, Santa Marta, Colombia
Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill on migratory shorebirds, January 23rd, 2013, presentation, 2013 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill & Ecosystem Science Conference, New Orleans, LA
Migration Ecology of Shorebirds on the Northern Gulf of Mexico, August 18th, 2012, presentation, North American Ornithological Conference, Vancouver, BC
Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill on migratory shorebirds, June 25th, 2012, poster, State of the Coast Conference, New Orleans, LA -Awarded 2nd place, posters
Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill on migratory shorebirds, April 12th, 2012, poster, 2012 Annual Research Day, School of Science and Engineering, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Mechanisms and Effects of Oil Contamination on Migratory Shorebirds in the northern Gulf of Mexico. January 27th, 2012, oral, Effects of Oil on Wildlife, 11th International Conference, New Orleans, LA
Mechanisms and Effects of Oil Contamination on Migratory Shorebirds in the Gulf of Mexico. August 15, 2011, oral, Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group Meeting, Vancouver, BC
Evaluation of the Genetic Management of the Mississippi Sandhill Crane, Grus canadensis pulla. March 16th, 2011, oral, Waterbirds/12th North American Crane Working Group, Grand Island, NE
-Awarded 2nd place, student presentations
Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill on migratory shorebirds, March 15th, 2011, poster, Waterbirds/12th North American Crane Working Group, Grand Island, NE
Importance of Bird Conservation, April 19, 2010, oral, International Language School: presentation for students ages 8-10 in cooperation with the New Orleans Society for Conservation Biology
Evaluation of the Genetic Management of the Endangered Mississippi Sandhill Crane, April 8, 2010, poster, 2010 Annual Research Day, School of Science and Engineering, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
The Evolution of Camouflage: Science Workshop for Girls 9-14, March 13, 2010, oral, Sallie Ride Science Festival, New Orleans, LA
Evaluation of the Genetic Management and Continued Conservation of the Mississippi Sandhill Crane, February 5, 2010, oral, Mississippi Sandhill Crane Recovery Team Meeting, USFWS, Gautier, MS
Evaluation of the Genetic Management of the Endangered Mississippi Sandhill Crane, January 22, 2010, oral, 6th Gulf Coast Conservation Biology Symposium, New Orleans, LA
Conservation of the endangered Mississippi sandhill crane, April 21, 2009, oral, Ben Franklin High school: presentation to A.P. Biology Students in cooperation with the New Orleans Society for Conservation Biology, New Orleans, LA
Conservation of the endangered populations, April 27, 2009, oral, International Language School: presentation for students ages 10-12 in cooperation with the New Orleans Society for Conservation Biology
Pedigree Analyses of the Mississippi sandhill crane (Grus canadensis pulla), October 2, 2008, oral, 5th Gulf Coast Conservation Biology Symposium, New Orleans, LA –Awarded Best student presenter
Pedigree Analyses of the Mississippi sandhill crane (Grus canadensis pulla), September 26, 2008, oral, 11th North American Crane Workshop, Wisconsin-Dells, WI
MEMBERSHIPS
AAAS
Coastal Estuarine Research Federation
Gulf Estuarine Research Society
CERTIFICATIONS
Hazmat – 15 hour
PADI scuba – open water, dry suit, nitrox
ESRI – GIS Training