Professor Ed Houde named Vice President for Education

November 1, 2012

Professor Ed Houde, respected fisheries scientist at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, has been named Vice President for Education. In this critical new position at the University ofMaryland Center for Environmental Science, he will lead the accreditation process for joint graduate degrees and certificates, work with administrators at collaborating universities regarding joint degree programs, and develop an effective organization for the management of faculty and student participation in graduate education.

"Ed is one of our most respected faculty members," said University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science president Don Boesch. "While he had been  looking to wind down his long  career here, we were able to convince him to commit some time to make this capstone contribution to our Center."

An expert in the early life of fish, Dr. Houde was a pioneer in research focusing on forage fish—like bay anchovy and menhaden—that set the stage for recent developments in ecosystem-based management, an area in which he has also been influential.

He also been committed to teaching the next generation of scientists, mentoring 36 masters and Ph.D. students and several post-doctoral scientists over his 40-year career. Many have moved into careers as academic researchers, state and federal scientists, and fishery managers, and four of them currently work at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

This new position is part of an institutional commitment to attain accreditation for the awarding of graduate degrees jointly with the University of Maryland, College Park, and potentially with other USM institutions, and for the granting of course credits and certificates for professional education.