Institute of Marine Studies/School of Marine Affairs: A Brief History

The Institute for Marine Studies was established as a graduate program by the Board of Regents in September 1972. Its purpose was to provide teaching, research, and public service on contemporary problems in ocean and coastal management. The Director and faculty were appointed starting in 1974 and classes were offered shortly thereafter. Initially, IMS students received degrees through the College of Fisheries or the Graduate School of Public Affairs, but the MMA degree was authorized in 1978. Since then, 334 degrees have been awarded. The educational program is a two-year masters program; currently 20-25 students are admitted annually, with about 50 in residence at any time.

IMS became part of the new College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences (COFS) in 1981, along with the Schools of Fisheries and of Oceanography, the Applied Physics Laboratory, and the Washington Sea Grant Program. Donald McKernan was the first director, from 1974 until his death in 1979. Warren Wooster served as interim director until 1982 when Edward Miles became director. The next year, the Institute moved to a new building, the Marine Studies Facility. The Institute was renamed the School of Marine Affairs in 1990. The current director, Thomas Leschine, was appointed in 2003. The SMA faculty is multidisciplinary, including specialists in law, political science, economics, ecology, oceanography, geography, anthropology, and applied mathematics. There are strong links with faculties in other schools of COFS and elsewhere in the University, as in the Jackson School of International Studies, the Quantitative Ecology and Resources Management program, the Conservation Biology program, the Global Trade, Transportation and Logistics program, and the Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean.

The School is one of few such programs in the United States. Since its focus is on the intersection of natural and social sciences with public policy, location at the UW and in Seattle is particularly beneficial. This enables and facilitates study and research into the major influences that shape marine policy. Seattle is home to major fishing and other maritime industry and to important federal offices and marine laboratories such as the NOAA facilities at Sand Point.

The School is known for its interdisciplinary research as well as its educational program. These efforts have had particular impact on development of the international Law of the Sea, on fishery management and marine environmental policy, on the impact of climate variability and change and on coastal zone management theory and practices. Faculty of the School play an active role in public service, for example, on regional fishery management councils, on committees of the National Research Council, and on "blue ribbon" commissions. Other areas of study by faculty include coastal ecosystem management, marine tourism and recreation, the problems posed by invasive species in the marine environment, and salmon recovery efforts in the Pacific Northwest. SMA students are active participants in these activities and after receiving their degrees find employment in federal, state, and municipal government as well as in the private sector.

UW School of Marine Affairs 3707 Brooklyn Ave. NE Seattle, WA 98105-6715 uwsma@u.washington.edu