Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium

Overview The National Sea Grant College Program, administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is a federal/state partnership that matches NOAA Sea Grant expertise and resources with state academic institutions. The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium (MASGC), created in 1972, is one of 34 Sea Grant programs. Consortium members include Auburn University, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Jackson State University, Mississippi State University, The University of Alabama, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, The University of Mississippi, The University of Southern Mississippi and the University of South Alabama. MASGC provides integrated university- and college-based research, education and engagement (communications, extension and legal) programs to coastal communities that lead to the responsible use of ocean and coastal resources in Alabama and Mississippi through informed personal, policy and management decisions. To fulfill this mission, MASGC commits to interdisciplinary environmental scholarship and community-based natural-resource management. The tools available in support of the MASGC mission are applied interdisciplinary research, outreach, education and legal services using both targeted and cross-cutting approaches. These tools are utilized in local, state, regional, national and international arenas. The bi-state resources include nearly 3,200 square miles of inland water and 966 miles of estuarine shoreline and support more than 7 million residents. MASGC operates through its strategic plan with guidance from a board of directors and advisory council.