Meet the Winners of the 2024 Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award

In remembrance of Vembu Subramanian—our friend, colleague, and SECOORA Data Manager—SECOORA established an award for the next generation of ocean experts to network with others in their field and/or present their work at meetings or conferences within the United States.

The following students and early career professionals were awarded funds for the 2024 Vembu Award to present their research at conferences of their choosing:

• Anna Weber, postdoc at the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT)
• Celina Ceballos, graduate student at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU)
• Mallory Mintz, graduate student at the University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography (UGA SkIO)
• Jamie Long, undergraduate student at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Chapel Hill

Read more about their research and the conference they will be attending below.

Anna Weber, FIT

Project and Conference Description

Anna is developing a model to predict shark spatial responses to climate change. The model takes into account the possibility that local adaptation may lead to different shark subpopulations exhibiting different responses to ocean warming. By integrating genetic information with environmental data, they can make predictions about future distributions that are more accurate and population-specific. This model and its results will be presented at the 2025 Joint Meeting for Ichthyologists & Herpetologists, which includes the annual meeting of the American Elasmobranch Society. Many of the anticipated end users of this model will be in attendance at the meeting, so it represents a crucial venue to disseminate the project.

“I am so excited to share my latest research with the shark science community, and I’m very grateful to SECOORA for their support!”

— Anna Weber, postdoc at the Florida Institute of Technology

Celina Ceballos, FGCU

Project and Conference Description

Celina will be presenting a portion of her master’s thesis on the plasma proteomics of loggerhead and Kemp’s ridley sea turtles stranded during Florida red tide events for identification of diagnostic biomarkers. Sea turtles are just some of the many wildlife species adversely affected by brevetoxin, the main toxin produced by red tide, but since sea turtles are threatened or critically endangered species, red tide-induced mass stranding events can cause significant damage to their populations. Currently, there are only a few experimental treatments and no definitive diagnostic criteria for brevetoxicosis in sea turtles other than stranding and association with red tide, and often sea turtles experience delayed exposure multiple weeks after a bloom because of the long temporal scale of trophic transfer of toxins. Proteomics is a state-of-the-art technology that can lead to new discoveries about the impact of diseases and toxins on physiology, especially in terms of biomarkers and eventual mechanism-based treatments. Celina will be presenting the results of her study to the Southeast Regional Sea Turtle Meeting, a biannual meeting that connects all of the sea turtle scientists within the southeast, a very important audience to hear about her work on helping to ameliorate some of the impacts of one of the threats to sea turtles.

“I have been looking forward to presenting at a sea turtle-specific conference for the entirety of my marine science career, and the ability to present at the Southeast Regional Sea Turtle Meeting through the SECOORA Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award is an incredible honor, more than I had dreamed of.”

— Celina Ceballos, graduate student at the Florida Gulf Coast University

Mallory Mintz, UGA SkIO

Project and Conference Description

Mallory’s research explores the bloom dynamics of the red tide-forming dinoflagellate Akashiwo sanguinea in estuaries nearby Savannah, Georgia. Their blooms can reach high concentrations and cause harm to marine life, even though the species isn’t known to produce a toxin. Mallory’s project combines gene expression analysis with frequent field sampling to uncover the environmental and biological factors that drive A. sanguinea bloom formation. By studying its adaptive strategies and interactions with other microorganisms, her work seeks to better understand bloom development and variability, ultimately improving predictions and management strategies for harmful algal blooms. This research is particularly important for Georgia, where limited monitoring leaves coastal ecosystems and aquaculture facilities vulnerable. She will share my findings at the Aquaculture 2025 Triennial conference and looks forward to engaging with scientists and industry professionals alike.

“I am thrilled to receive the Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award! This recognition supports my work exploring the drivers of harmful algal blooms in coastal Georgia and provides a platform to share findings and collaborate across fields. I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to ongoing discussions in marine science and to honor the legacy of this award with my work.”

— Mallory Mintz, graduate student at the University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography

Jamie Long, UNC Chapel Hill

Project and Conference Description

Corals are the foundation of reef ecosystems that are instrumental to marine biodiversity. Stress induced by anthropogenic climate change threatens coral reefs, causing the breakdown of corals’ symbiosis with dinoflagellate algae, which are essential for coral health and reef persistence via their autotrophic contributions to coral energy. This study aimed to investigate changes in symbiont density, chlorophyll a concentration, δ13C and δ15N, and lipid content at various timepoints across seasons (Summer, Winter, Spring, and Fall) in Oculina arbuscula. By observing these trends in plasticity in temperate corals, which typically tolerate a greater range of temperatures than tropical corals, they can gain insight into how corals can be resilient to long term environmental changes such as ocean warming. Jamie will be presenting this work at the 2025 meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) held in Atlanta, Georgia. SICB strives to advance interdisciplinary research and awareness among the fields of organismal, functional and evolutionary biology.

“I am extremely honored to have been selected for a 2024 Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award. Attending and presenting at a scientific conference will allow me to connect with other scientists, learn about current research, and develop my science communication skills. I would also like to thank SECOORA and my advisor, Dr. Karl Castillo, for this opportunity.”

— Jamie Long, undergraduate student at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill