Looking to match local impact with global reputation

FULLY ENGAGED: URI Graduate School of Oceanography Dean Bruce Corliss has done research around the world, but he is determined to broaden the GSO’s reach in Rhode Island. / COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF  RHODE ISLAND
FULLY ENGAGED: URI Graduate School of Oceanography Dean Bruce Corliss has done research around the world, but he is determined to broaden the GSO’s reach in Rhode Island. / COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND

The escalating international concern about climate change puts the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography square in the middle of the discussion. Bruce Corliss was named dean of the school after an international search and was heralded as having just the right combination of an outstanding record in research and education in oceanography, as well as highly regarded management experience in academia. Corliss began as GSO’s dean in September 2012 and discusses what he’s discovered so far and his vision for the future.

PBN: What are you most excited about, coming back to lead URI’s Graduate School of Oceanography after finishing your Ph.D. at the school in 1978?
CORLISS: GSO has high visibility now nationally and internationally as an oceanographic institution. I would like to reach out and have it gain a higher visibility in the state. I just don’t think it’s as well-known as I expected, given the prominence of GSO in oceanography. So we’re doing things like reaching out to the marine-trades industry. We’re also planning a workshop that we’re hosting in January on “green vessels.” The idea is to consider how to make vessels more environmentally sustainable. I’ve done one of these as a part of a national organization called UNOLS – the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System – that deals with academic research vessels. We had a workshop in which we invited the private sector and federal agencies – the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, NOAA – and operators of research vessels to talk about how we can make these vessels more environmentally sustainable. After the workshop, we found some of the private companies were partnering with some of the academic institutions, putting together proposals and considering work together. It was very encouraging.

PBN: Is the state’s financial situation a concern to GSO?
CORLISS: It is. I think that GSO and URI are great resources to the state, but due to financial constraints that the state has, there are always questions about the level of support the state can provide to the university. My sense is that investment in GSO and URI is very important for the state for economic development, for issues relating to coastal sustainability, and, in general, for educating the population about issues that are important to the future of the state.

PBN: Do you see GSO as a factor in economic development for the state?
CORLISS: I see it as a factor in that it can serve as a resource to support the state and the private sector in economic development. I’m putting the emphasis on “as a resource.” I’ll give you an example. I met with the executive officer of the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association, and we discussed the idea of having a number of workshops here at GSO in which we invite some of the Rhode Island marine-trade companies to discuss what their needs are, what their interests are, what GSO is doing in terms of research and what our capabilities are. We want to see if we can partner with some of these companies to help them with some of the issues or challenges they’re facing. So it goes back to GSO being a resource in which we can provide research and input to problems that are directly affecting some of these companies in Rhode Island.

PBN: You’ve come to lead the GSO at a time when climate change and sea-level rise are on everybody’s mind. How do those issues guide your planning and your vision for the school? CORLISS: A theme we have here at GSO is ocean sustainability and coastal resilience. So this whole question of the effect of climate change on the coastal region in particular – sea-level rise is one example – is very central to the sorts of things that we’re doing here. There’s been research that’s been going on for quite a long time, both the academic research and the outreach activities, at the Coastal Resources Center, for example. So it’s something that we think we have addressed in the past and we’re very interested in continuing to deal with those issues and act as a resource for the state. One of the things I’ve been struck by is how many stakeholders have an interest in coastal sustainability, but oftentimes they’re not closely coordinated – there are nonprofits and state agencies and URI. So one of the roles I see for GSO in the future is to be a facilitator to these stakeholders on issues dealing with the coastal environment. It really is a pressing issue and it really needs to have a neutral view that we in the university can provide.

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PBN: Will you be doing any research, considering your responsibilities as dean of the Graduate School of Oceanography?
CORLISS: I’m an oceanographer. I’ve done work in deep-sea sediments all over the world – in the Atlantic, the North Sea, the southern ocean, the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, the Mediterranean. I began winding down my expeditions about 15 years ago, when I did my last deep-sea cruise. … I began doing some coastal work, as well as university administration. I do have one research project I’m continuing with, but at this point I worry about the vessel management and the finances. I’m fully engaged in my position as dean. •

INTERVIEW
Bruce Corliss
POSITION: Dean of the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography
BACKGROUND: A Vermont native, Corliss did research on Lake Champlain while he was a student at the University of Vermont. Corliss was director of the Duke/University of North Carolina Oceanographic Consortium, which consists of five universities in North Carolina that operate the R/V Cape Hatteras research vessel. He’s a former chair of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, which deals with academic research vessels. Corliss has also been on the scientific staff at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
EDUCATION: B.S. in geology from University of Vermont, 1971; M.S. from URI Graduate School of Oceanography, 1974; Ph.D. from URI Graduate School of Oceanography, 1978
RESIDENCE: Charlestown
AGE: 64

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