Mote welcomes Rogan Donelly to its Board of Trustees
Mote Marine Laboratory is proud to welcome new Trustee Rogan Donelly, a Sarasota resident and business leader who became the Lab’s first volunteer to be named a volunteer “citizen scientist” in May 2015.
Donelly enhances Mote’s Board of Trustees with his enthusiasm and passion for the community and the health of the oceans from balanced fish populations to coral reef restoration.
He grew up in the Sarasota area and has known Mote since childhood. This year, he was promoted to President of Tervis Tumbler, the company that has been making quality drinkware products in America since 1946.
As an avid supporter for Mote, he will also serve on Mote’s Education & Outreach Committee, helping the Lab engage the next generation in marine science, ocean literacy, and ocean stewardship.
"Growing up here instilled a deep appreciation for organizations like Mote that are protecting what makes this such a special place to live and visit," Donelly said. "As an avid water-lover, I feel it’s important for all of us to do our part to protect our coastal lifestyle, whether that’s choosing reusable drinkware versus single-use disposable options, volunteering for beach clean-ups or making a donation to marine research organizations like Mote."
Donelly toured Mote’s Sarasota campus in November 2014 and immediately became a supporter of Mote’s mission to conduct world-class marine science dedicated to the conservation and sustainable use of our marine resources.
He soon became interested in getting more involved with the institution, and took a research cruise in Charlotte Harbor, the deepest natural pass in Florida and the site of the world’s largest known aggregation of tarpon. The research trip’s goal with Mote’s President & CEO Dr. Michael P. Crosby and Dr. James Locascio, Fisheries Habitat Ecology Program Manager, was to learn more about how Mote is increasing our understanding of what habitats tarpon need to survive and how they respond to changes in fishing pressure, which will help protect the tarpon fisheries for future generations to enjoy.
Following this research cruise, and due to his passion for anything “in or on the water,” he applied to Mote as a volunteer and became Mote’s first official volunteer “citizen scientist” in order to not only support Mote’s important research, but to become a hands-on participant.
Donelly’s passion for the sea didn’t stop there. He soon sought certification to dive and met Dr. Crosby and Dr. David Vaughan, Executive Director of Mote’s Summerland Key facility, to dive in the coral reefs off the Florida Keys, where Mote scientists have already pioneered groundbreaking methods to restore reef-building corals at accelerated rates and begun to genetically identify staghorn coral strains for potential resilience against threats.
“Mote is pleased to welcome Rogan to our Board, where we know he will help us reach our goals outlined in our 2020 Vision & Strategic Plan,” Crosby said. “Rogan’s enthusiasm for supporting his community and the oceans is inspiring and will help us transfer and translate Mote’s research to the public in an effort to create worldwide ocean literacy. We cannot thank Rogan enough for his support and we’re happy to welcome him to the Mote family.”
Donelly is in the process of earning his Master of Business Administration from the University of South Florida Muma College of Business. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College.