Sea to Shore Alliance has a small but mighty staff including:

• James "Buddy" Powell, Executive Director
• Kerry Baker, Office Manager
• Melody Fischer, Manatee Biologist
• Jay Gorzelany, Research Associate
• Jessica Koelsch, Marine Wildlife Conservationist
• Monica Ross, Behavioral Ecologist

Dr. James “Buddy” Powell: For over 40 years Buddy has worked to conserve manatees and other endangered species around the world, and his efforts have resulted in coastal protected areas in Florida, West Africa, Central America and now Cuba. His approach has been integrating science and education to unlock solutions to conservation issues. In the 1970s, Buddy worked for the US Fish & Wildlife Service as a biologist and manatee specialist. In 1986, he moved to West Africa, where he studied manatees and forest elephants for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and was pivotal in establishing several coastal protected areas. He and his wife, Maureen, moved to Belize in the 1990s, where they managed WCS’s Glover’s Reef Marine Research Station, and then returned to Florida, where Buddy administered Florida’s research program on marine mammals and sea turtles for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. In 2001, he became Vice President for Aquatic Programs at Wildlife Trust. In 2008, Dr. Powell co-founded Sea to Shore Alliance (Sea2Shore). The organization was created to form a partnership of scientists and citizen volunteers with the expertise, passion, and vision to help reverse the degradation of our aquatic coastal environment, loss of species and diversity. Buddy received his BSc. from the University of Florida, his MMA from the University of Washington, and his PhD from the University of Cambridge in England. He was the recipient of the prestigious Pew Award in Marine Conservation in 2000, has been featured on “Champions of the Wild” and National Geographic’s “Wild Chronicles” documentaries, and has been honored by multiple awards and certificates. Buddy has authored two books, numerous scientific publications, and popular articles.

Kerry Baker is a Florida native (from Tallahassee). She completed her B.S. degree in Criminology from Florida State University in 1992. She worked for the Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement State Crime Lab in Pensacola as crime laboratory technician prior to moving to the Sarasota area in 1995. From 1995-2001she worked as a health and safety inspector for the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation's Division of Hotels and Restaurants. From 2001 to the present, Kerry owns and operates an aluminum business with her husband Greg who is also one of Sea to Shore's Aerial survey pilots.  Kerry currently works part time for Sea to Shore as an administrative assistant, bookkeeper and aerial manatee observer. 

Melody Fischer completed her BS in Biology at Transylvania University in Lexington, KY, in 2001. She relocated to Florida in 2003 to pursue a career in biology, specifically marine mammals, and completed a double MS in Marine Biology and Coastal Zone Management in January 2008. Her interest in manatees began with the selection of her thesis topic: Boater Compliance with Manatee Speed Zones on the Intracoastal Waterway near Port Everglades, Broward County, Florida. Her research shaped her career choices, later working aboard a dredge on the Miami River, spotting manatees and advising the dredging crew on protective measures. She also worked in manatee and sea turtle rehabilitation at Miami Seaquarium. She joined Wildlife Trust as a manatee tracker in June 2007, working in the Miami area, and later in Central FL. Since November 2008 she has been working for Sea To Shore Alliance. In addition to tracking animals and doing behavioral observation, she is involved with releases, rescues, and health assessments, as well as educational and press events. She also volunteers for the Marine Animal Rescue Society.

Jay Gorzelany: As Research Associate, Jay leads Sea to Shore’s Protected Species Monitoring Program, and assists with other program areas. He has been actively involved in recreational boating and waterways management studies on both the east and west coasts of Florida. Jay has conducted more than 1,500 hours of low-level aerial surveys in Florida, and has assisted in the design and implementation of the first agency-accepted manatee surveillance protocol (Manatee Watch) for high-speed powerboat races in Florida. He is listed as a Level 4 Manatee Watch Observer by the State of Florida and has served as either Primary Observer or Manatee Watch Coordinator for 38 different marine construction projects and special events. Jay was an authorized participant in the United States Marine Mammal Stranding Network for fifteen years, and coordinated the investigation of more than 300 marine mammal stranding events, involving more than 400 animals and sixteen different species. He has both authored and co-authored numerous technical reports and peer-reviewed scientific publications related to environmental assessment, boating management studies, and marine mammal strandings, and is the principal author of the Sarasota County Manatee Protection Plan. He has more than thirty five years experience in marine and estuarine aquatic research. Previously, Jay worked as a Senior Biologist for Mote Marine Laboratory for 25 years.  Jay received a BA in Marine Biology from the University of Bridgeport in 1979 and a Masters or Science degree in Bio-Environmental Oceanography from the Florida Institute of Technology in 1983.

Jessica Koelsch: As Marine Wildlife Conservationist, Jessica is involved in a wide range of conservation- and policy-driven research projects, such as manatee aerial surveys, manatee response to changes in warm water at winter aggregation sites, and impacts of Florida fisheries on sea turtles. She also promotes community-based stewardship programs such as NESTS – Neighbors Ensuring Sea Turtle Survival, and the annual Right Whale Festival in Jacksonville Beach. Prior to 2010, as the Senior Program Manager at Ocean Conservancy, she engaged in science-based advocacy for marine wildlife. Projects included reducing by-catch in fisheries; implementing the Florida Manatee Recovery and Manatee Management Plans; addressing entanglement threats; supporting sea turtle and North Atlantic Right Whale conservation; and educating boaters, beach-goers, residents, and the general public. She was appointed to multiple Working Groups, Take Reduction Teams, Advisory and Rule Review Committees, and Chair the multi-agency Entanglement Working Group. She worked closely with other NGO’s as well local, state, and federal agencies on marine wildlife conservation and management issues, especially at the regional level. From 1991 to 2000, Jessica was Senior Biologist/Manatee Research Program Manager at Mote Marine Laboratory. She has a B.S. in Marine Biology from Florida Institute of Technology and M.S. from USF Tampa.

Monica Ross: Monica has over twenty years of experience working with manatees for state, non-profit or private research organizations. Her knowledge and skills obtained while using telemetry equipment to monitor wild manatee behavior and movement, in addition to her work with captive and rehabilitated manatees, has enabled her to provide input to management groups on manatee habitat selection and use. Monica coordinated the field efforts for the Manatee Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP) project from 2002-2008 and in 2009 - with Sea2Shore - shifted her position into a supportive role to expand her focus to other research projects. Currently Monica is focusing her efforts on documenting manatee use during winter within a few of the smaller springs along the St. Johns River. She assists U.S. Geological Survey-Sirenia Project with photo-identification of manatees at Homosassa Spring and several power plants throughout Florida. Monica is working in collaboration with Stetson University to document and characterize the disturbances of catfish on manatees during winter at Blue Spring State Park. She is also working in collaboration with Dauphin Island Sea Lab to determine manatee fringe habitat use within Alabama. Monica obtained her Bachelor in Biological Sciences from Florida State University and her Masters in Biology from the University of Central Florida. Even though most of her career has been focused on marine mammal cognitive and adaptive abilities, she has also worked on projects focusing on oyster larvae development, Florida game-fish stock enhancement, fish tag shedding/retention and fish population monitoring programs. Monica also has more than seven years of professional animal training experience with dolphins, birds, and small terrestrial animals along with fifteen additional years of personal experience training dogs for competitive obedience, agility or herding competitions. Enjoying animal behavior is not just a job for her but a way of life.