John Szczepanski Email and Phone Number

I worked collaboratively with other scientists, engineers, and regulatory specialists to support a wide variety of project types, including those that span marine, coastal, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems. I served as a project manager and subject matter expert in marine, coastal, and freshwater ecology, and was responsible for development of environmental monitoring plans; I oversaw freshwater, coastal, and marine ecological field programs. As a senior scientist of the Environmental Sector's Planning, Permitting, and Licensing division, I facilitated the implementation of water quality monitoring projects, watershed based plan development, and water quality improvements in ponds and lakes including the deployment of floating treatment islands. I have spearheaded the permitting of sustainable energy through responsible siting and understanding the regulatory needs of both state and local environmental statutes. I have conducted invasive species removal, monitored nesting shorebirds, advised on the environmental impact for a number of utility enhancement projects, and facilitated the design and implementation of stormwater improvement Best Management Practices (BMPs). Additional details about specific projects are available upon request.

At Princeton Hydro, I worked mainly with the Aquatics Division often developing watershed management plans based on the EPA 9-element (9E) framework and carrying the Best Management Practice (BMP) projects recommended in the plans through implementation. Development and implementation of these strategic conservation plans were a major part of my role. I had also overseen the implementation of 2 watershed protection plans (WPP) funded by 319(h) funding. I provided technical support and facilitated acquisition of financial support for the various stakeholders to benefit the trust resources by securing the 319(h)-Clean Water Act grants for many of the projects. I have also performed a number of lake and pond assessments involving water quality monitoring.A major responsibility of at Princeton Hydro was to serve as a technical expert for the interpretation and application of environmental laws and regulations. I did this by taking part in many critical reviews in opposition of planned residential and industrial development like critical technical review of the Transco Pipeline NESE project traversing Raritan Bay, as well as serving as Environmental Expert on several municipal planning boards in support of development application reviews for stormwater and environmental compliance. I also developed a native/invasive species inventory to support an invasive species barrier design to be implemented in the Lake Champlain Canal.

My main functions as a trustee for natural resources at the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge were reviewing and facilitating wildlife and subsistence management actions to include working with the State, Tribes, and other partners as well as providing input for developing short and long-range biological plans. I was project manager of the Hurricane Sandy Resiliency Project (Project #37) including projects for both a restoration of hydrology by way of small channel excavation at Reeds Beach and a breakwater modification at Supawna Meadows NWR. My responsibilities included coordination of project activities with contractors such as timeline and budget review, development of reviews for Section 106 and Section 7 consultations, tribal consultation, keeping regional administration up to date, and developing biological monitoring plans for each site.My general Refuge duties have included facilitating and conducting wildlife management of public natural resources by participating in efforts to collect data of various wildlife populations (i.e.- horseshoe crabs, bats, migrating shorebirds, waterfowl, salt marsh nekton communities, etc.) and implementing management actions based on the data. Experience has also been gained in collecting abiotic data from the environment as well, including installing and reading both Surface Elevation Tables (SETs) and feldspar horizon markers to quantify sediment accretion, and installing and reading level-loggers to learn patterns of water level and inundation.Practical skills gained from this position include being trained in pesticide use and application, GIS mapping, specimen collection with ditch nets and throw traps, and core sampling; formal training includes successful completion of Contract Officer Representative training and received full FAC-COR Level II certification.

As Faculty, facilitated learning in an online-classroom environment for the UoP’s Axia College Online’s BIO 100 Intoduction to Life Science, SCI 275 Environmental Science, and SCI 162 Principles of Health and Wellness courses.

As marine science coordinator, I initiated development of a new marine science curriculum with an emphasis on conservation, implemented the new courses for students interested in marine science (including a 2-week coral reef ecology course in the US Virgin Islands), and organized field collection trips to procure educational specimens for the school. I was also invited by the Ross School to be a guest speaker during World Environment Day discussions on the feasibility of off-shore sustainable energy. I provided strong leadership in establishing and fostering collaborations with local ecological teams at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), the Shinnecock Bay Restoration Program, Concerned Citizens of Montauk (a group that spearheads local water quality monitoring), and the Long Island Aquarium (for cephalopod husbandry and conservation), as well as consulted on a student project with Smithsonian scientists to develop a South Pacific coral reef field guide for the Solomon Islands Government. As the sole marine science faculty member of Ross’ Innovation Lab (a STEM gifted and talented program) I also supervised and assisted with student projects that involved developing elasmobranch husbandry, marine mollusk genetic identification, cephalopod cognitive assessment, 3D modeling of turtle skulls for use as sediment collection devices, and the development an autonomous water chemistry monitoring drone. The latter two of these projects involved understanding and regular implementation of 3D modeling software and training in global positioning and ArcGIS applications.

I was the Chief Field Biologist and lead author for monthly fish trawl monitoring program. I provided input and strong leadership in the design, planning, and execution of this research trawl and study to support bottom trawl surveys along the East Coast of the United States. This baseline population study was developed and implemented to assess local fish and invertebrate populations at two reference sites and the then proposed construction site of the Block Island Wind Farm for Deep Water Wind (which is now operational). The monthly study included coordination of the Virginia Marise and her crew with the technical crew to tow a 62’ otter trawl along 2 different transects at each site. All species collected are sorted, counted, and weighed; stomachs of commercially important flatfish and gadids are excised and analyzed for diet characterization. I was responsible for scheduling of vessel, crew (boat crew of 3 and scientific technical crew of 3), and gear, maintenance of safety standards and consistency of field sample collection protocol. Upon completion of each trip and entry of data, I compiled the data and incorporated it into appropriate descriptive tables and graphs, wrote a monthly synopsis with basic analysis, and had it vetted through colleagues for publication. I was also asked to provide support on Coastal Vision’s lobster trawl survey for the BIWF, counting and measuring macroinvertebrates and fish collected in lobster traps.

Outdoor retail outfitting specialist, sales and consultation of outdoor gear and outerwear

I served as faculty supervisor for a coastal ecology research project. Five students were mentored and taught field sampling techniques using deployment and retrieval of lobster traps from a 16’ whaler, population assessment using quadrats, sediment typing in intertidal regions, and marine organism identification. I maintained consistency with past years’ protocol. Data collected included data on intertidal invertebrate population dynamics, sediment profile and preference, lobster sex ratios, and potential effects of environmental changes on all these aspects of the ecosystem. As a lecturer, I developed and taught lectures and labs for Human Anatomy and Physiology as well as labs for Biology 101.

As a teaching assistant, I developed and implemented Human Anatomy labs for 11 semesters, as well as coordinated a team of ~7-12 other Human Anatomy teaching assistants over 15 lab sections for 3 semesters. I also taught Biology 101 labs and developed a writing-based Biology for Daily Living recitation section for non-majors.As a doctoral researcher, I was the sole investigator of the trophic ecology dynamics of skates and rays in Narragansett and Delaware Bays. Project design and implementation was done without supervisor involvement, as my advisor’s main area of research was not elasmobranch ecology. I developed my doctoral research to compliment a similar study done on common shark species in Delaware Bay. I coordinated with 2 state agencies for 2 years, concurrently, to join on their monthly trawl surveys and collect samples. My research involved assisting in state surveys and keeping the benthic elasmobranchs for his own data. Trophic ecology was determined by collection of stomach contents via gastric lavage or dissection, then identifying the invertebrate and fish prey species found in the stomachs. Data was compiled and analyzed using Microsoft Excel, PrimerE, and EstimateS statistical software. A portion of the research is currently under in the revision stage after acceptance to the journal, Environmental Biology of Fishes. Throughout the course of this project, I mentored three undergraduate assistants, teaching them lab techniques and statistical analyses. One particular assistant was chosen as part of Rhode Island’s EPSCoR Coastal Fellow program.

As an outreach scientist, I was the Senior Outreach scientist for the Graduate School of Oceanography’s science education program. We introduced elementary/high school students to the importance of science, marine resources, and environmental investigation to better understand those resources As a senior member of the program, I also trained incoming scientist and and helped improve their outreach skills.

As an NSF GK12 fellow, I developed and implemented environmental science lessons for inner city elementary school students with the staff of the Wagner Free Institute of Science.

As Teaching assistant, I was responsible for set-up and supervision of undergraduate Organismal Biology and Genetics labs. I also served as graduate student research assistant working on investigating contractile properties of squid and cuttlefish. The Master's degree work on this study involved assessing and evaluating the differences in force and velocity of the mantle muscle of various cephalopods in relation to different physical demands of their respective environments and lifestyle. I engaged in field collection of specimens at the University of Maine's Darling Marine Center in Walpole Maine via rod and reel angling and cast net. I was also in charge of maintenance of live specimens in a flow-through, ocean water aquarium system.

As an Eighth grade Earth Science Teacher, I developed and taught a inquiry-based, hands-on Earth Science curriculum for the 8th grade level at Avenel Middle School. Topics included basic geology, plate tectonics, atmosphere dynamics, energy and conservation, etc. I assessed student learning and evaluated their progress toward the state education standards. I organized a school-wide field trip to Newark’s Liberty Science Center to see the film “Volcanoes of the Deep Sea” to show how local scientists (Dr. Richard Lutz of Rutgers) lead the way in cutting edge research on deep sea hydrothermal vents.

As a Field Technician/Research Assistant, aided in data collection for multiple projects on the population dynamics, reproductive ecology, and habitat selection of Limulus polyphemus, the American Horseshoe Crab; research done in conjunction with Fordham University, Bronx, NY