South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium
2000-2005 Strategic Plan

2006 Constituent Survey

Anticipating and responding to constituents' needs is critical to the Consortium's success in serving the state. Planning ensures that programs achieve the maximum possible benefits.

The Consortium's Strategic Plan is continually undergoing revision; as an active document planning activities are ongoing at all times. The Consortium reviews all program areas, selecting several each year for particular attention. Each program area is thoroughly reviewed every four years.

The Consortium's 2000-2005 Strategic Plan is organized as follows:

Introduction
The Vision
What is the Consortium?
   - Consortium Membership and Interactions
   - Consortium Organization
Strategic Planning Process

Strategic Goals:
   Coastal Ocean Studies
   Ecosystem Dynamics
   Climate and Hazards
   Emerging Technologies
   Sustainable Economic Development
   Marine Education
   Management and Administration

South Carolina’s coast is one of the state’s most valuable resources, featuring 2,876 miles of tidal shoreline, 504,450 acres of salt marsh (20 percent of the East Coast’s total), 10,000 square miles of continental shelf, and 500,000 acres of tidal bottomlands. This diverse, complex network of near-shore waters, beaches, and wetlands supports a wide range of marine life and human activity, including shipping, tourism, fishing, manufacturing, residential and commercial development, just to name a few. Over the past four decades, coastal South Carolina has seen unprecedented development and population growth, a trend that will continue well into the new millennium. With growth come change and an increased demand on our resources. Already, pollution, erosion, coastal storms, and poorly planned development have left their mark along the state’s coast. Accommodating the many varied needs of those who use and enjoy its coastal and marine resources presents an enormous challenge. Sea Grant can help generate information and provide outreach programming to address questions such as:

• “How can we continue increasing our demands on these resources without stressing them beyond their limits to be productive?”
• “How do we balance conflicting needs among diverse users?”
• “How do we protect life and property from coastal natural hazards?
• “How can we generate sustainable, resource-based economic opportunities?
• “How do we maintain and improve the quality of life for all citizens of and visitors to the state?

The Vision

The S.C. Sea Grant Consortium is committed to maximizing the economic, social, and environmental potential of the state's coastal and marine resources. Through continuing improvements in internal and external structures (e.g., communications networking, formal extension feedback mechanisms, long-range program planning), the Consortium will continue to realize this potential. The Consortium has identified three concepts that provide the foundation for its future activities:

1. To develop and maintain an integrated research, education, and extension program for South Carolina that seeks to provide for future economic opportunities, improve the social well being of its citizens, and ensure the wise use and development of its marine and coastal natural resources.

2. To continue to build an effective and efficient communications and marine extension network among academia, business, government and the general public to ensure that Consortium activities are responsive to marine and coastal users and that information generated is delivered in a timely fashion.

3. To remain an integral component of the National Sea Grant College Program and other organizations where Consortium activities are responsive to regional and national needs, as well as to those of South Carolina.

The S.C. Sea Grant Consortium is “Science Serving South Carolina’s Coast.”

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What is the Consortium?

The S.C. Sea Grant Consortium is unique among the nation’s 35 Sea Grant programs. Created by the S.C. General Assembly, the Consortium undertakes a diverse range of initiatives to improve understanding of the regions coastal resources and our ability to manage them for long-term benefit. Recognizing the needs and opportunities embodied by the state's vast array of ocean and coastal resources, the S.C. General Assembly formally united the state's various marine programs through the creation of the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium in 1978 (Code of South Carolina, Section 48-4510:100). This legislative mandate sets out three main tenets upon which the Consortium operates:

"To provide a mechanism for the development and management of the Sea Grant Program for the State of South Carolina and adjacent regions that share a common environment and resource heritage."

"To support, improve and share research, education, training and advisory services in fields related to ocean and coastal resources."

"To encourage and follow a regional approach to solving problems or meeting needs relating to ocean and coastal resources in cooperation with appropriate institutions, programs, and persons in the region."

Consortium Membership and Interactions

Institutions that hold charter membership in the Consortium include The Citadel, Clemson University, the University of Charleston, S. C., the Medical University of South Carolina, S. C. State University, S. C. Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Carolina University, and the University of South Carolina. Consortium institutions provide the expertise of their respective faculty and professional staffs, as well as a wide range of facilities and equipment, necessary to carry out the diversity of programs supported by the S.C. Sea Grant program.

The S.C. Sea Grant Consortium became an operating entity in January 1980. With the submission and acceptance of its initial program proposal for Sea Grant support, the S.C. Sea Grant program was designated an Institutional Program that year. In April 1985, application was made to the Secretary of Commerce for Sea Grant College designation; Sea Grant College status was conferred on the Consortium in August 1986 by then-Secretary of Commerce Malcolm Baldridge.

Consortium Organization

The S.C. Sea Grant Consortium is structured to optimize communication and feedback linkages necessary for the proper development and implementation of its programs. Its offices are located in Charleston, S.C. Activities of the Consortium are governed by authorizing committees of the S.C. General Assembly and a Board of Directors to which the Executive Director reports. The Board of Directors includes the chief executive officers of the Consortium's member institutions:

S.C. Sea Grant ConsortiumBoard of Directors

Dr. Ron Ingle, Chairman
President
Coastal Carolina University
Conway, SC 29526

Gen.John Grinalds
President
The Citadel
Charleston, SC 29409

James Barker
President
Clemson University
Clemson, SC 29634

Dr. Raymond Greenberg
President
Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, SC 29403

Dr. Paul A. Sandifer
Director
S. C. Department of Natural Resources
Columbia, SC 29202

The Honorable Ernest Finney
President
S. C. State University
Orangeburg, SC 29117

Dr. Leo Higdon
President
University of Charleston, S.C.
Charleston, SC 29424

Dr. Andrew Sorensen
President
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208

The Board meets annually to review Consortium program policies and procedures. The Board also provides a direct line of communication between the Consortium Executive Director and the higher administrative levels of its eight member institutions

The S.C. Sea Grant program maintains direct contact with coastal and marine user groups and the general public, and serves as a conduit between institutional knowledge-seekers and coastal and marine knowledge-users, through S.C. Sea Grant Extension Program (SGEP) and Communications and Information Services (CIS) activities. These outreach programs assure that (1) problems and needs of those who live and work along the coast are accurately identified, (2) research projects and programs are effectively providing the necessary information, and (3) this information is delivered to target audiences in a timely fashion and "user-friendly" format.

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Program Organization

These management and organizational structures support S.C. Sea Grant Consortium efforts to maximize the potential of state marine and coastal resources. The Consortium strives to deliver programs that bridge the gap between science and policy, wherein effective management of both physical and human resources requires resolution of diverse scientific, economic, social, and environmental questions.

Throughout the 1980s, Consortium efforts had been organized into six program areas: Living Marine Resources, Marine Environmental Research, Coastal Resources Development and Management, Bioengineering and Marine Technology, Coastal Processes and Marine Outreach. The efforts of the program advisory groups, a Blue Ribbon Committee (established in the mid-1980s to make recommendations for reorienting Consortium program areas) and the Sea Grant Extension Program review helped shape the program during the late 1980s and early l990s.

Priority needs within each area continue to fluctuate from year to year, based on changing resource management and state and regional use issues. Thus, Consortium program staff regularly convenes planning meetings to reassess program area emphases and efforts.

In the summer of 1995, the Consortium convened a day-long workshop with more than 40 representatives of the state's "coastal constituency." This issue-identification session was designed to gather input from as broad a spectrum as possible for use in developing and updating the Consortium's strategic plan. Several half-day working sessions with Consortium and Sea Grant Extension staff have followed, with emphases ranging from refining program areas to improving internal communications and management.

The consensus of the "constituents" workshop was that S.C. Sea Grant should continue to focus its efforts toward providing information to help ensure South Carolina's economic growth and quality of life by maximizing the potential of coastal and marine resources. Constituents identified the most pressing concern as the need for solid information to help manage the effects of a growing coastal population. Sustaining the resources and lifestyles that are integral to the state's economic engine will continue to serve as the guiding principle that determines Sea Grant priorities. Closely related issues follow from this principle, namely supporting, through the delivery of objective, science-based information, the management of our state's waters and the natural habitats so closely related to those waters.

The goal of maximizing the potential of our coastal and marine resources is a broad one. To effectively direct our day-to-day activities toward this goal, we established (in 1992) and reaffirmed (in 1995-1996) six program areas, each of which supports the sustainable use of our coastal and marine resources. Sustaining our resources will help guarantee benefit streams for this and future generations of South Carolinians, thereby maximizing the potential of those resources. We tend to think of it as "living off the 'interest' of our natural endowment," or, as others put it, ensuring the well-being of "the goose that laid the golden egg."

The Consortium organizes our research, education, and extension activities around six program areas. A balanced program, including efforts distributed among the following six areas, is the key to achieving the three major goals of the agency.

• Coastal Ocean Studies
• Ecosystem Dynamics
• Climate and Hazards
• Emerging Technologies
• Sustainable Economic Development
• Marine Education

Strategic Planning

1999 Strategic Planning Process

The Consortium's ability to anticipate and respond to constituent's needs is critical to its success in serving the state. The Consortium employs several planning tools to ensure that its programs are achieving the maximum possible benefits. These include both formal and informal mechanisms.

To determine how the Consortium’s most recent strategic plan (1997-2001) addressed the needs of the State, in the fall of 1998 the Consortium’s management team reviewed that plan and agreed to initiate an update. The Core Group felt that the major program areas identified in the existing plan remain relevant; however suggestions of specific action steps were needed for how best to achieve the plan’s goals.

Strategic planning efforts of other Sea Grant programs including those in Florida, Maryland, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Hawaii were reviewed to determine how best to receive input regarding our existing plan. Advice was received on how to maximize the effectiveness of the strategic planning process and successful techniques for soliciting stakeholder input were duplicated. The result was a series of focused workshops planned in seven topic areas:

Workshop Topics:

• Coastal Ocean Studies
• K-12 Marine Science Education
• Coastal Hazards
• Coastal Historical, Cultural, and Natural Tourism
• Aquaculture
• Ecosystem Dynamics
• Emerging Technologies/Biotechnology

Workshop Objectives:

The workshops were designed to achieve four primary objectives:

• Identify priority needs in South Carolina pertaining to the area of concern.
• Identify current activities in South Carolina in the area of concern.
• Identify priority needs in the area of concern that are not being adequately addressed by current activities.
• Identify specific potential actions that SC Sea Grant could take to address these unmet needs.

Goal of the Strategic Planning Process:

The goal of the Consortium’s strategic planning process was to ‘Maximize the ability of S.C. Sea Grant’s research, education, and outreach programs to address the coastal resource needs of South Carolina.’

Objectives of the Strategic Planning Process:

To achieve the Consortium’s strategic planning goal, three objectives were developed:

• Receive input from constituents and stakeholders
• Update the existing strategic plan based on the input received, and
• Use the updated strategic plan to guide programs

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Strategic Goals

The Consortium’s efforts are focused within six strategic issue areas.

Strategic Issue – Coastal Ocean Studies

The South Atlantic Bight (SAB) forms a distinct hydrographic and zoogeographic region of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the southeastern United States. The region is transitional between the Mid Atlantic Bight to the north and tropical waters to the south, lying between Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and Cape Canaveral, Florida. The offshore boundary of the SAB has not been well-defined, but is often referred to as the western wall of the Gulf Stream or the shelf break which occurs at about the 75-meter isobath. The continental shelf throughout the SAB ranges from 50 km in width at Cape Hatteras to 120 km wide at Savannah, Georgia.

The Coastal Ocean Boundary Interactions and Assessment Program (COBIA)

COBIA (Coastal Ocean Boundary Interactions and Assessment) is a joint S.C. Sea Grant Consortium-University of Georgia Sea Grant College Program effort initiated by the Consortium to encourage regional, cooperative, and multidisciplinary studies and research within the coastal ocean of the South Atlantic Bight. For the past eight years, the Consortium has been working with member institutional scientists and staff to organize and implement COBIA programs. Scientists, resource managers and educators are working within the COBIA network to (1) increase communication between and among research institutions and individual scientists, (2) identify research needs in the coastal ocean, (3) initiate new programs of research to fulfill these needs, (4) collect, process and distribute information regionally and (5) effectively incorporate results into future research development and management strategies for the South Atlantic Bight.

COBIA studies examine the exchange of materials across boundaries in the coastal ocean of the southeastern United States, including sediment-water interfaces, land-water margins and frontal zones. This requires an understanding of the relationships of the physical, chemical, geological and biological systems, and a regional approach to provide a common framework for the coordination of coastal research in the SAB. The general research goals of COBIA include:

• Identification of the processes dominating the coastal ocean of the SAB;
  
  
• Quantification of the spatial and temporal variability of these processes; and
  
  
• Ultimately, modeling of the exchanges of water, particulates, nutrients, contaminants, energy and organisms across coastal boundaries within the SAB.

COBIA addresses five basic and interrelated issues pertinent to the interactive nature of estuarine watersheds and the coastal continental shelf environments. These issues include effects of coastal development, pollution and eutrophication of the coastal zone; fisheries recruitment and dynamics, potential mineral resources management and global climate change. Each issue encompasses unique political, economic and scientific aspects, and a major goal of COBIA is to develop the necessary scientific basis for effective policy development. COBIA has adopted an approach that examines the exchange of materials across the boundaries in the coastal region of the SAB as the most effective means of achieving this goal.

Program Area Goal

To identify and understand the processes dominating the coastal ocean of the South Atlantic Bight (SAB) as they affect coastal processes, pollution of the coastal zone, fisheries dynamics and mineral resource management, and are influenced by global climate change.

Program Area Objectives

Coastal Processes Subprogram

The Consortium's objectives under the Coastal Processes Subprogram are to:

• Generate and analyze information on the major physical factors (e.g., erosion and accretion, weather events, river runoff, sand budgets) affecting coastal resources, especially tidal inlets, tidal shoals, and beach maintenance and rehabilitation
  
  
• Evaluate and extend coastal process information and make it available to coastal constituents, coastal resource managers, and municipal leaders for use in decision-making.
  
  
• Gather and, where necessary, generate and disseminate information on natural forces of hurricanes and storms, coastal erosion, and sea level rise.

Ocean Processes Subprogram

• The Consortium's objectives under the Coastal Processes Subprogram are to:
  
  
• Characterize the coastal boundary layer in the SAB with respect to dynamic processes which lead to its stability and role in materials transport and cycling.
  
  
• Determine the influence of the deep North Atlantic Ocean, particularly the Gulf Stream, on hydrography in the SAB.
  
  
• Define and assess the pathways and mechanisms for cross-shelf and along-shore transport of chemicals, particulates, pollutants, and organisms within the SAB.
  
  
• Examine and model biogeochemical pathways for carbon and other pertinent elements within the SAB.
  
  
• Develop models of the interactions among hydrography, primary and secondary productivity, and sediment transport in estuaries and the coastal zone, and the dynamics of living and non-living resources in the SAB.
  
  
• Examine the role of the ocean with respect to long-term global climate change, with particular emphasis on understanding the impacts of climate change on the coastal zone of the southeastern United States.
  
  
• Translate and extend resultant information for users, resource managers, and policy-makers.

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Strategic Issue – Ecosystem Dynamics

Continued interest in the marine and coastal environment is based primarily on its natural resource potential and economic value. Exploitation of the various resources available along the coast has led to increasing demand and competition for the right and access to those resources. Coupled with increased use—suburbanization, industrial development, agriculture, shipping, fishing, and recreation—impacts on the marine environment are inevitable. Encouraging harmony and fostering consensus among all users of the coastal and marine environment must be among the goals of managers responsible for ensuring the wise use and controlled development of the state’s natural resources.

Program Area Goal

The Consortium is committed to providing information and data to natural resource agencies and users for use towards minimizing and mitigating environmental effects resulting from these increasing pressures. A major area of concern has been identified by the Consortium— the study of estuarine systems—which for the last decade has formed the basis for Consortium ecosystem research. The Consortium’s goal in this program area is to enhance the availability and quality of marine, estuarine, and freshwater resources that can support the economic and quality-of-life needs of the public and private sectors in South Carolina.

Program Area Objectives

To meet this goal, the Consortium has identified the following objectives for its Estuarine Studies sub-program:

• Generate information on the effects of land uses and point and non-point source pollution on watersheds (coastal rivers, wetlands, estuaries) to improve the availability and application of such information among government decision makers, community organizations, and homeowners.
  
  
• Develop and extend wetlands management (e.g., impoundments) strategies to encourage multi-species use and enhance water quality.
  
  
• Develop information on the chronic and more subtle effects of pollutants on marine and estuarine resources.
  
  
• Extend information management strategies to ameliorate impacts on water quality from non-point sources.
  
  
• Examine the relationships between fisheries production in estuaries and the quality of habitat areas with particular emphasis on the relationships between the availability and utilization of food and vegetative cover and subsequent growth and mortality of the stock.
  
  
• Determine the relationships between upland ecosystems and estuarine productivity.
  
  
• Identify species or suites of species that are indicative of specific levels of estuarine productivity or habitat quality.

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Strategic Issue – Climate and Hazards

Most coastal residents have chosen to move to the coastal zone within the last three decades and thus are not experienced with rapid or subtle changes in climate and the resultant hazards. Coastal hazards range from short-term (six to 12 hours) storm surges which can exceed six meters in elevation to the slow but pervasive rise in sea level and resultant shoreline retreat over a period of decades.

South Carolina has exposure to most known natural hazards. These hazards, including hurricanes, flooding, and earthquakes, have the potential to cause substantial damage. Even a modest increase in the rate of sea level rise will have profound impacts on low-lying coastal areas along South Carolina. These areas are presently subject to short-term processes that significantly affect natural systems. When global phenomena are superimposed, the range of possible impacts is augmented and includes increased risk of hurricanes, more frequent and severe flooding, accelerated erosion of ocean and waterfront areas, saltwater intrusion of surface and groundwater supplies, marsh destruction and habitat alteration. While their occurrence cannot be prevented, there is much that can be done to minimize exposure to these damages and facilitate recovery processes. However, response is constrained by many factors; most important among these are:

• The lack of access to baseline information from which accurate projections can be made as to when and how physical impacts are likely to be manifested;
  
  
• Recognition that geological time scales vary significantly from the useful lives of structures and infrastructures, and the political tenure of decision makers at the local level; and
  
  
• The fact that local responses will be dictated by financial considerations in allocating scarce resources to deal with pervasive impacts.

The Consortium's Climate and Hazards program is geared toward developing and delivering information and technology useful to decision-makers, planners, emergency preparedness officials and the general public in preparing for and recovering from such natural events.

Sustainable economic development of the coastal zone requires protection of both the natural and built environments. When hurricanes or severe wind storms destroy large portions of the built environment, severe social and economic dislocation occurs to individuals, families and communities, and the wide-spread destruction frequently results in severe impacts to the natural environment through the creation of mountains of debris and the release of toxic materials.

Recent long-range predictions indicate that we are now entering a period, similar to that of the 1950’s and early 60’s, in which a greater number of high intensity tropical storms are expected to occur. As coastal populations continue to grow, new residents, with no direct experience of coastal storms, build homes and accumulate property unaware of the extent of the risks they face.

Program Goal

To provide technical and educational programs that examine the forces of climate and hazards and provide information to the public and private sectors on the nature of hazards and how to plan for them.

Program Objectives

To meet this goal, the Consortium has identified the following objectives:

• Develop and evaluate innovative construction techniques to enable residential and commercial structures to better withstand a variety of coastal hazards, including wind, waves, and earthquakes.
  
  
• Develop and deliver informational materials for coastal residents and businesses that address beach and water safety, coastal storm planning and preparedness, coastal construction techniques, and coastal hazard mitigation.
  
  
• Develop educational and awareness programs for the state's citizens, business, and industry on how to better anticipate and plan for short-term and long-term climate variability and hazardous events.

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Strategic Issue – Emerging Technologies

In an increasingly competitive environment, industry spends billions of dollars each year on the research and development of new and better products, with increased attention given to “environmentally friendly” products, as well as “natural products.” This attention includes a growing focus on marine sources for these products. Such explorations have been enhanced by the development of a new field of scientific activity called biotechnology.

Arising out of new developments in molecular biology and biochemical engineering, advances in biotechnology have allowed scientists to study biological phenomena as they apply to the manufacturing and service industries. Biotechnology research within the marine environment has focused on the effect of technological processes upon marine organisms and the effect of these organisms and their metabolites upon marine technologies. Marine biotechnology has already made significant contributions to the energy, food, pharmaceutical, biomaterial, and pollution control industries.

Program Area Goal

To foster the development of emerging marine technologies, the Consortium’s goal in this program area is to “develop techniques, technologies, and new products based on marine systems for use in commercial and industrial applications, and to continue to apply low-cost technologies to coastal and marine resource problems.”

Several of the Consortium’s member institutions are uniquely positioned to address this goal owing to the research capabilities of these institutions and the diverse marine environment of South Carolina’s coast.

Program Area Objectives

To meet this goal, the Consortium has identified the following objectives:

• To develop effective and biodegradable substances and materials that can be used to control biofouling in the marine environment and mineralization in medicine and dentistry.
  
  
• To develop effective and biodegradable superabsorbant substances that can be used in the home, at work, and in industry.
  
  
• To develop and apply new technologies toward:
  • Improvements in the development and genetic structure of commercially important marine animals
  • Protection of marine animals from disease
  • Production of vaccines and the use of monoclonal antibodies
    
    
• To develop low-cost technological applications to coastal resource opportunities such as aquaculture, erosion control, and soil and water remediation.

Strategic Issue – Sustainable Economic Development

Coastal resource management and economic development issues in South Carolina continue to overwhelm coastal zone planners, resource managers, developers, and those involved in commerce, industry, recreation and tourism. The state has an approved Coastal Zone Management Program, administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management in the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, to encourage the preservation and wise development of coastal and marine resources while providing for orderly economic development. While certain forms of development tend to conflict with federal and state resource protection programs, sustainable economic development, which treats natural resources as an integral component of development plans, is being encouraged. This approach also provides for opportunities in rural areas, where natural resources may be the only available "raw material." The Consortium's role is to develop and extend information and data to support decision-making processes at the state and local level.

The Consortium plans to continue examining coastal management issues and exploring sustainable economic development opportunities in cooperation with state and local management agencies and coastal resource users. Research, education and extension projects dealing with production and resource economics, policy, law, regulation, preservation and development of coastal resources will provide the basis for the generation of future Consortium efforts. Needs of the state and region will thus be served simultaneously in terms of decision-making, planning, and assessment related to coastal development.

Program Goal

To establish and enhance economically viable business and municipal opportunities which are compatible with the long-term conservation of natural and cultural resources of the South Carolina and southeastern coast.

Program Objectives

Aquaculture and Seafood Production Subprogram

The objectives for this subprogram are to:

• Enhance the development of viable and sustainable aquaculture industries in South Carolina.
  
  
• Assist the S.C. commercial fishing and aquaculture industries as they cope with rapidly changing economic and regulatory environments.
  
  
• Promote the safe handling, processing, transportation, sale and storage of seafood by harvesters, processors, truckers, wholesale and retail vendors, and consumers.

Coastal Business and Community Development Subprogram
The Consortium has identified the following objectives for this subprogram:

• Define alternative strategies for economic development that are compatible with long-term conservation of natural and cultural resources.
  
  
• Assist coastal communities with identification of growth management and sustainable economic development objectives, and with the definition and implementation of strategies to achieve these objectives.
  
  
• Develop and implement activities to assist small coastal and marine businesses as they cope with changing demographic, economic, and regulatory environments.
  
  
• Assist local communities in dealing with increased pressures on human, fiscal, infrastructure, and natural resources due to population growth and development.
  
  
• Assist local communities and small businesses in planning and developing coastal recreation and tourism activities and enterprises which contribute to a vigorous economy and healthy natural resources.
  
  
• Promote the avoidance and resolution of environmental, natural resource, growth management, and other conflicts in the public and private sectors through the use of consensus-building, negotiation, and mediation techniques.
  
  
• Support the initiation of resource-related small businesses and other economic development opportunities that include provisions for coastal resource conservation.
  
  
• Translate information on sustainable economic development opportunities to businesses, municipalities, students, and the public.

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Strategic Issue – Marine Education

The Marine Education Program at the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium has undergone considerable metamorphosis during the last fifteen years (1984-1999). In the 1980s, efforts focused on development of information products targeted at the general public and K-12 teachers. Educational products were generated through contracts with some of South Carolina's leading marine science educators. In the early 1990's these early efforts served as the foundation for development of marine science educational programs and the first funded Consortium biennial proposals for education. These programs have continued since 1992, and have spawned numerous additional products and projects available to all educators. Throughout the past fifteen years, Sea Grant-funded research has also provided research opportunities for college and graduate students.

Program Area Goal

The goal of the Consortium's marine education initiative is to:

Provide an effective mechanism for exchanging information required to address both long- and short-term issues and opportunities related to the conservation of marine and coastal resources.

Program Area Objectives

To achieve this goal, the Consortium’s objectives are to:

• Improve the capability and opportunity of teachers to deliver marine science education to South Carolina elementary, middle, and high school students.
  
  
• Support the development of model curricula and projects that are inquiry based, interdisciplinary, and adhere to the state science standards.
  
  
• Provide South Carolina K-12 pre-service and in-service teachers with the professional development needed to effectively improve their students’ understanding and stewardship of the marine environment.
  
  
• Provide exposure to and experience in coastal and marine research to graduate and undergraduate students in South Carolina's colleges and universities.
  
  
• Enhance the knowledge and awareness of adult coastal residents and visitors on the importance of coastal resources and means for their effective management.

Strategic Issue – Management and Administration

Maintaining and fostering a relevant, timely, and integrated coastal education, research, and extension program is necessary for the long-term conservation of the state's coastal and
marine resources. The Consortium continuously seeks opportunities to enhance its mission though partnerships with other state, federal, and private organizations and individuals. By
leveraging its available state and federal Sea Grant funding, the Consortium is able to bring the considerable talents and expertise of its member institutions to bear on a variety of coastal
and marine resource issues.

Program Area Goal

Through research, education, and extension programs, the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium ensures that coastal and marine issues and opportunities are rigorously researched and understood,
and that the resulting information is communicated to those who use and manage these resources.

Program Area Objectives

To achieve this goal, the Consortium’s objectives are to:

• Increase the level of non-state financial support to further the Consortium's program goals.
  
  
• Increase the number of faculty, professionals, and students supported through sponsored programs and activities.
  
  
• Increase the number of K-12 science teachers and students exposed to and/or using marine education materials.
  
  
• Service requests for information and/or assistance on coastal and marine resource issues and opportunities.
  
  
• Deliver information through conferences, workshops, and special programs.