“Not all treasure’s silver and gold, mate.”

If you find yourself wondering why we are quoting Pirate Captain Jack Sparrow, then you might not know this honoree very well. In November, USC Sea Grant’s longest-standing employee, Executive Director Phyllis Grifman, moved on from our program to a new chapter in her career after 38 years of dedicated service to the Sea Grant mission. We believe she may also hold the record for one of the longest Sea Grant terms within the entire national Sea Grant network’s 50-plus-year history! 

Although we are sad to say farewell to Phyllis, we would like to send her off on her next voyage with pirate-laced humor (as she requested) and with the utmost respect and gratitude for all she has done for USC Sea Grant, for the national Sea Grant network, and for the California coast and ocean.
 

 

The cut of her jib

 
Phyllis started with USC Sea Grant in 1988, hired by Director Robert Friedheim as a part-time writer. “Because I’m me…meaning I was not quiet,” says Phyllis, “I quickly went from a writer to the Communications Manager.” But we can’t simply attribute Phyllis’ rise in the ranks to her volume. Phyllis actually was one of a smaller group of colleagues in the Sea Grant network in the 1990s who had a broader vision for the role of communications alongside the traditional Sea Grant foci of extension and research. 

One of the drivers for giving communications a larger, more important role in the network was the arrival of the internet and websites for Sea Grant programs. At the time, Phyllis was the Chair of the National Sea Grant Communications Network, and along with other colleagues, Phyllis helped make the first guidance for the structure and content of Sea Grant websites. “I always believed that Communications shouldn’t just be a function but a real arm of the program,” says Phyllis. “This was critical for disseminating results to the public.” 

After helping propel communications forward within the network, Phyllis says she then set her sights on “clawing her way to middle management to gain control of the universe.” Although this may be her memory, we believe she was promoted to Assistant Director of USC Sea Grant in the early 2000s because of her ability to weave her talents in science communications into decisions about research funding and program strategy. 

Lesley Ewing, who was a coastal engineer for the California Coastal Commission between 1988 and 2022, remembers that Phyllis “had an amazing ability to spot information gaps and leverage points where USC Sea Grant could make a noticeable difference.” Lesley remembers, for example, in advance of the 1997-98 El Niño event, USC Sea Grant pulled together a program for coastal managers on climate science and key El Niño concerns to inform local preparedness plans. “In hindsight, it seems obvious that research and outreach on these topics benefit the coastal management community,” says Lesley. “Phyllis had the foresight and knowledge to recognize this early on.”

No landlubbers here

 
As Phyllis took on leadership roles at USC Sea Grant through the years, including Associate Director and eventually Executive Director in 2022, she truly embodied Sea Grant’s goal to bring together many groups to solve urban ocean issues in ways that served both the coast and people. Through her role at USC Sea Grant, Phyllis actively engaged in numerous federal, state, regional, and local organizations. 

Some notable hats she has worn have been: Founder and Co-Chair of the Los Angeles Marine Protected Area Collaborative; longtime member of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission; Vice President of the Board of Directors of the California Shore and Beach Preservation Association; Executive Committee Member of the Alliance of Regional Collaboratives on Climate Adaptation; Leadership Council of the Los Angeles Regional Climate Collaborative; and a member of the Steering Committee for People on the Move in a Changing Climate.

However, one of Phyllis’ most notable roles has been her leadership position on the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council since 2008, including serving on the executive committee from 2018 to the present. Phyllis received a Leadership Award from Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary in 2020 and the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation Volunteer of the Year Award in 2021.

“As she wraps up her distinguished career with USC Sea Grant, I could not be more grateful to Phyllis Grifman for the 20 years of strong support she’s given to NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary System,” says Mike Murray, Deputy Superintendent for Programs for the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary. “She has mentored me and many others through her open approach to leadership that is people-centered, caring, inclusive, solution-focused, creative, resourceful, and effective.”

Phyllis’s reach has gone far beyond Southern California, especially in her integral work on the development, monitoring, and collaborative management of the first statewide network of marine protected areas in the nation.

“Phyllis Grifman has been an incredible partner in the state’s efforts to protect California’s coast and ocean,” said Jenn Eckerle, Deputy Secretary for Ocean and Coastal Policy at the California Natural Resources Agency and Executive Director of the Ocean Protection Council. “From her leadership at USC Sea Grant to ensure community priorities and cutting-edge science are informing policy, to her steadfast commitment to the creation and effective management of California’s marine protected areas, Phyllis has helped shape a more resilient future for our coastal ecosystems and communities. We are deeply grateful for her many years of dedicated service, thoughtful collaboration, and unwavering advocacy for our ocean.”

All hands on deck

 
When asked what she has enjoyed the most about her 38 years with Sea Grant, Phyllis says, “the people…always the people.” And the people feel the same way.

“In her over 38 years with Sea Grant, Phyllis made an impact not only in California but also in the national Sea Grant network!” said Nikola Garber, Ph.D., who is currently performing the duties of director of the National Sea Grant College Program. “She has held a variety of leadership roles and has served as a collaborator on national teams. Phyllis is a dedicated colleague and friend who will be missed. I greatly appreciated all her help over 25 years ago when I first joined the Sea Grant family.”

USC Sea Grant shares this sentiment. “Phyllis leaves a legacy of service, collaboration, and kindness,” says Dr. Karla Heidelberg, USC Sea Grant’s Director. “Phyllis’s ability to bring people together around complex coastal issues has strengthened our program and our region and has helped to shape the program that we have today.”

After Sea Grant, Phyllis plans to continue to do the work she sees as her avocation and mission.  “I will use my experience and ability to connect people,” she says. “And I will continue public service through various boards and advisory bodies.”  

Although USC Sea Grant is sad that we will no longer be working with Phyllis on a daily basis, we know that our ships will still cross paths out here in the proverbial ocean (and maybe the real ocean too!) We are all still working for the same things: facilitating new science by a variety of different institutions and programs, linking science to communities, especially those who have been stewards of the coast and ocean for thousands of years; encouraging healthy coastal ecosystems that include humans; forward-thinking coastal resilience efforts; and, perhaps, most importantly, providing ample opportunity and support to the next generation of scientists and coastal stewards.  

As Captain Sparrow reminds us, not all treasure is gold and silver. Phyllis was a treasure to USC Sea Grant, and we will be forever grateful. We’ll keep an eye out for her Jolly Roger on the horizon and look forward to future shared skirmishes and port calls alike.

Ahoy, Phyllis!