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SCDRP Staff
Heather McCarthy
SCDRP Executive Director
Heather P. McCarthy has been the Executive Director of SCDRP since August 2022 and brings to the Partnership more than two decades of experience in coastal zone management, environmental writing and education, and marine and estuarine research. Heather earned her Bachelor of Science degree (summa cum laude) from the University of Central Florida (1995), and her Master of Environmental Management degree from Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment (1998). Heather specializes in environmental communication – including scientific writing, facilitating meetings, public speaking, and building consensus among diverse stakeholders. Heather’s professional background includes work within the private, governmental, non-profit, and academic sectors. Within the private sector, Heather developed habitat conservation plans for endangered species as Senior Scientist with Ecological Associates, Inc. (Jensen Beach, FL). With ties to the governmental and non-profit sectors, Heather has enjoyed teaching and conducting research within the field of coastal ecology through programs at the Environmental Learning Center (Vero Beach, FL), Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (Fort Pierce, FL), the former Caribbean Marine Research Center (Lee Stocking Island, Bahamas), the Smithsonian Marine Station (Fort Pierce, FL), and the NOAA-NMFS Laboratory (Beaufort, NC). As the Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Heather taught workshops for teachers, developed curricula for students, pursued funding sources, and presented environmental education programs at public outreach events. Within the academic sector, Heather has served Jacksonville University in several capacities since 2007, including Research Associate, Biology Lab Manager, and Adjunct Professor of Biology. Heather published the book Sandhills, Swamps & Sea Islands: Environmental Guidebook to Northeast Florida (276 pp). Heather lives fulltime onboard her sailboat with her family in Jacksonville, FL, and sails seasonally throughout the eastern U.S. and Caribbean.
Claire McGrath
SCDRP Program Coordinator
Claire McGrath earned a B.S. in Biology from Mount St. Mary’s University and brings 9 years of nonprofit experience to the SCDRP team. Claire’s passion for environmental justice stems from her experience working with vulnerable populations and her personal commitment to climate resilience. Claire has served as Outreach Coordinator, Community Life Director, and Project Manager with L’Arche Jacksonville, a nonprofit that empowers and supports people with disabilities. Claire oversaw L’Arche Jacksonville’s Emergency and Disaster Response Plan, which underscored to her the importance of building resiliency plans that protect the most vulnerable members of our communities. Claire has also worked with the Student Conservation Association to provide high school students in urban areas with opportunities to gain conservation work experience, and as an adaptive kayak guide with Environmental Traveling Companions to provide people with disabilities and youth from under-resourced backgrounds with environmental education and outdoor experience.
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Claire lives in Atlantic Beach, Florida with her husband and pets. She enjoys anything that gets her outdoors, especially surfing, kayaking, and backpacking.
Advisory Board Members
State of North Carolina
Brian Byfield
North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resilience (NCORR)
Brian Byfield is currently the Resilient Communities Program Manager for the North Carolina Office of Recovery & Resiliency (NCORR). He is an Urban and Regional Planner with more than 28 years of experience across sustainability and resiliency planning, transportation infrastructure development, and land use optimization. Brian has worked for national government bodies, stage agencies, nonprofit organizations and consulting firms. His clients have included municipalities, regional development organizations and State Departments of Transportation across nine States but primarily in North Carolina. Brian is an avid football fan (yes, the one where only feet are used) who ardently supports Arsenal FC. He completed his Masters in City and Regional Planning at UNC-Chapel Hill. His Bachelors in Environmental Resource Development & Regional Planning is from the University of Technology in Jamaica. He and his wife are now empty nesters residing in Durham NC. He strongly advocates that the typically underrepresented get an effective seat at the table before discussions begin.
State of South Carolina
Amanda Guthrie
South Carolina SeaGrant
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Amanda Guthrie is the Coastal Climate and Resilience Specialist at the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium. She provides science-based guidance to help communities address current and future resilience priorities while taking into consideration community interests and values. Amanda engages with municipalities and community leaders about their vulnerability and resilience concerns.
Amanda earned a B.S. in marine science and biology from the University of Miami, a M.S. in fisheries management from Michigan State University, and a Ph.D. in coastal resources ecology and management from the William & Mary, Virginia Institute of Marine Science. Prior to joining South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, Amanda had fellowships with the National Academy of Sciences’ Gulf Research Program, where she researched the intersection of community health and green infrastructure, and with the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center, where she led a team of researchers evaluating the social and ecological feasibility of offshore aquaculture for the Gulf coast of Florida.
State of Georgia
VICE-CHAIR OF 2024
ADVISORY BOARD
Kait Morano
Georgia Tech
Kait Morano is a Research Scientist II at the Institute for People and Technology (IPaT) at Georgia Tech. Her interests include urban planning, climate change, and spatial analysis, and her work focuses on designing innovative, equitable strategies to build community resilience. At IPaT, she serves as the Resilience Planning Director of the Coastal Equity and Resilience (CEAR) Hub. Kait holds a bachelor’s in Geography from Virginia Tech and a master’s of City and Regional Planning from Georgia Tech, where she specialized in Geographic Information Systems. Prior to joining Georgia Tech, Kait worked as a senior urban planner for a local government on the Georgia coast, as a research assistant at the Center for Spatial Planning Analytics and Visualization at Georgia Tech, and as an ORISE Fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
State of Florida
AT-LARGE REPRESENTATIVE ON 2024 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Duane De Freese
Indian River Lagoon Council
Duane De Freese earned his MS and PhD in marine biology from Florida Institute of Technology and completed his post-doctoral research with University of Florida working on the Indian River Lagoon. During his career, he has held leadership positions in academia, non-profit organizations, and industry. Since 2015, Duane has served as Executive Director of the IRL Council, an independent special district of the State of Florida, and host agency for the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program. Duane is an active volunteer at local, state and national levels. Over his career Duane has been appointed by three Florida Governors to serve on statewide advisory boards: Florida Harmful Algal Bloom Task Force (appointment by Governor Ron DeSantis, 2019 – present); CareerSource Florida Inc. (appointment by Governor Rick Scott, 2013-2022); and the Nature and Heritage Tourism Committee of Florida Tourism Commission (appointed by Governor Jeb Bush, 2001-2005). Duane has published numerous scientific articles. He is an avid public speaker, surfer, and waterman.
Puerto Rico
TBA
U.S. Virgin Islands
Hilary Lohmann
USVI Division of Coastal Zone Management
Hilary Lohmann has worked in small island resilience around the Caribbean for almost ten years, including work in the Dominican Republic, Barbados, Belize and the US Virgin Islands. She studied Animal Behavior and Spanish at Bucknell University, received a Masters in Marine Affairs from the University of Rhode Island, and completed a Fulbright scholarship with the University of the West Indies. Hilary has been working in the USVI since 2016 and has been the Coastal Resilience Coordinator since 2019. With a background in natural and social sciences and a unique position in the territory, Hilary works on a diverse set of projects that improve the planning, mitigation, and adaptation to changes that face the natural and built environment, communities and systems of the US Virgin Islands.
Non-profit Organization
Patrick Howell
Institute for Building Technology & Safety (IBTS)
Patrick Howell has over fifteen years domestic experience spanning the public, private, non-profit and civilian-military sectors, and seven years of experience in international development in Latin America and the Caribbean. He works closely with IBTS’s Board of Directors to strengthen institutional partnerships and develop areas of mutual cooperation, and leads efforts to develop and implement state and local strategies for resilience to natural and man-made disasters.
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Patrick is co-founder and president of Hispañola Health Partners, Inc., an international, non-profit, health services organization designed to improve health care services to low resource communities on the island of Hispañola in partnership with local community groups and existing healthcare structures. Patrick holds a BA in international affairs from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and an MA in international relations from American University.
CHAIR OF 2024
ADVISORY BOARD
Additional Nonprofit Seat TBA
Academic Institution
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Asli Aslan
Institute for Water and Health at Georgia Southern University
Dr. Asli Aslan is a biological oceanographer by training and her research is at the intersection of
coastal water quality, climate change, and public health. She is currently a Professor of
Environmental Health Sciences and Director of the Institute for Water and Health at Georgia
Southern University. She has over 20 years of academic experience in water and health
research and served as a principal investigator in several national and international projects. Dr.
Aslan has been serving in various state and federal agencies and organizations as an advisor,
reviewer, scientific committee member, and affiliated faculty. She is the co-founder of the
Water and Health Committee at American Public Health Association. She recently served as a
member of the USEPA Science Advisory Board Augmented Committee for Contaminant
Candidate List.
Meagan Jones
University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant
Meagan Jones is the Coastal Resilience Specialist at the University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant. She spent the first 15 years of her professional career working in environmental consulting on projects across the U.S. She then worked for the State of South Carolina as the States Coastal Planner assisting communities with their local beach plans and working on CRS tools. Later she moved to local government managing dunes and beaches in Nueces County, Texas where she secured over 9 million in grants for coastal resiliency projects in two years. Meagan had the opportunity to work on all four coasts and experience the varying pressures and hazards they face. Ms. Jones is a certified floodplain manager with experience in disaster resilience and emergency management as well. During her years working on coastal resilience, she has turned her focus toward policy as it relates to coastal management to help coastal communities promote and create sustainable best practices. Meagan got her bachelor’s degree in environmental science and later completed her master’s in environmental management – law and policy.
Local Government
Patricia Gomez
Miami-Dade County
Dr. Patricia Gómez has more than 20 years of direct experience working on engineering, resilience and sustainability-related opportunities in both the public sector and private industries.
Dr. Gómez serves in the dual roles of Interim Chief Resilience Officer and Director of Energy in Miami-Dade County’s Office of Resilience. During her County career, Dr. Gómez has successfully implemented multiple projects that have improved the sustainability and resilience of County facilities and operations while also reducing energy and water consumption and increasing efficiency throughout the community through initiatives such incorporation of enterprise-wide utility billing management software, the Building Efficiency 305 (BE305) program, the Climate Action Strategy and on-site solar installations at County facilities.
Dr. Gómez began her career with Miami-Dade County as an Engineer with the Department of Environmental Resources Management working on the County’s Climate Action Plan. Dr. Gómez is a LEED AP BD+C accredited professional, a Certified Energy Manager and a Professional Engineer in the State of Florida. Dr. Gómez holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from University of Miami.
Randall Mathews
Chatham Emergency Management Agency
Randall Mathews, Assistant Director, has more than 15 years of combined experience in emergency management and military operations. During his tenure at Chatham Emergency Management Agency (CEMA), Randall has assumed multiple responsibilities to include overseeing all planning, hazard mitigation and operational functions for CEMA as well as the Chatham County Emergency Operations Center (EOC). During EOC activations, Randall acts as the EOC Manager and ensures that all EOC coordination and operational functions are carried out timely and competently. Prior to joining CEMA in 2014, Randall served in the Marine Corps Infantry from 2006-2010. Randall went on to earn his Bachelor's Degree in Homeland Security and Emergency Management at Savannah State University a Master’s of Public Administration from the University of West Georgia.
Federal Government
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Allyssa Zebrowski
NOAA
Allyssa received her Bachelor’s in Biology from the University of Virginia’s College at Wise where she also played softball. She was then accepted into the Peace Corps Masters International Program, where she served as an Environmental Educator in Peace Corps Paraguay while concurrently completing her Masters in Environmental Studies degree. Upon her return to the states, she moved back to Charleston, SC where she still resides, enjoying the Lowcountry with her partner, dog and kitties. She now works with NOAA’s Disaster Preparedness Program within the National Ocean Service, where she helps NOAA staff and partners better prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.
Private Sector
Hollie Janson Schmidt
Jacobs
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Hollie Janson Schmidt is a Principal and the Global Solutions Director of Sustainability, Resilience & Climate Response for the Americas Region at Jacobs. She provides consulting and advisory services to a wide range of public, private, and federal clientele. She is also the Director of the Sustainability, Resilience & Climate Response Business Advisory as a trusted business partner for internal project delivery and growth as well as external client services. In her 28 years of practice, Hollie has honed an integrated planning and delivery approach, with a particular focus on large-scale, complex projects. She is a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for Strategic and Master Plans, Feasibility Studies, Business Case Analysis and Site Selection. Serving all market and client types at Jacobs, she is a consultant and advisor who leads large, diverse teams of planners, designers and the full spectrum of engineers and technical experts to collaborate with decision-making leaders, scenario evaluations, implementation plans and highly resilient and sustainable solutions. Hollie is known for utilizing an inter-disciplinary approach by assembling a diverse team of SME’s that are customized to specific client needs. Hollie provides resilient solutions either as a preventative or recovery service for large-scale clients who are experiencing vulnerabilities to natural and man-made shocks and stressors. She addresses ESG and climate response while holistically considering the physical, human, and business aspects of the challenge.
​Jeff Morris
Moffatt & Nichol
Jeff Morris currently serves as a Senior Planning and Economics Consultant for Moffatt & Nichol. He currently advises Miami-Dade County in partnership with the USACE on the MDC Back Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management Study. Prior to working with M&N, he worked for the USACE. His roles included project and program management, planning, economics, public involvement, and policy development for water resources projects. He has experience leading multi-disciplinary teams in flood risk management and mitigation, ecosystem restoration, coastal storm risk management and resilience, shoreline and riverbank protection and restoration, watershed management, recreation, and hurricane evacuation preparedness and response. He participated in recovery efforts of Hurricane Andrew and the 1993 Storm of the Century. He has led three Georgia Hurricane Evacuation studies in coordination with FEMA, NOAA, GEMA, and County EMAs since 2000, participated as the USACE hurricane liaison at the Georgia State Operation Center, and in collaboration with the emergency management community of practice, funded, prepared, and distributed to 105 counties 208,000 copies of The Official Georgia Hurricane Guide.
Ex-officio (Fiscal Agent)
Debra Hernandez
SECOORA
Debra Hernandez currently serves as Executive Director of the Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association (SECOORA). SECOORA, a nonprofit operating in the states of NC, SC, GA and FL, is one of eleven regional partners in the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System. SECOORA’s mission is to catalyze and integrate the efforts of multiple ocean and coastal monitoring interests to deliver user defined products that save lives, conserve the marine environment and support the economy of our coastal regions. Debra is a civil engineer with extensive experience in coastal and ocean engineering, management and policy. She served on the National Academies’ Ocean Studies Board and the Ocean Research and Resources Advisory Panel, currently serves on the SC Sea Grant Consortium Program Advisory Board, The Citadel’s Near Center for Climate Studies and is past-Chair of the IOOS Association. She graduated from Clemson University and is a native of Charleston, SC.
2024 SCDRP Members Include:
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AHAM Education Inc.
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Nassau County, Florida
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Miami-Dade County, Florida
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SC Office of Resilience
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NC Office of Recovery & Resiliency
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SWCA Environmental Consultants
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Georgia Tech
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IRL Council/Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program
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Southeast Sustainability Directors Network
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Seahorse Coastal Consulting, LLC
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Jacobs
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AtkinsRealis
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Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center
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Center For Sustainable Communities
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Hamilton Advisors LLC
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University of Florida Historic Preservation Program
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NOAA OCM
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SC Sea Grant Consortium
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Moffatt and Nichol
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Ogeechee Riverkeeper
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PuroClean of San Juan
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Atlanta Regional Commission
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North Carolina Sea Grant
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UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant
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AshBritt, Inc.
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SC Dept of Health & Environmental Control
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South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium
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TetraTech
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Mount Pleasant Waterworks
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AWR Strategic Consulting
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Jacobs
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Black and Veatch
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NC Council of Churches Eco-Justice Connection
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University of the Virgin Islands
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Duke University, Nicholas Institute
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Atlanta Regional Commission
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Augusta University
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North Carolina State University
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Rollins School of Public Health
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U.S. EPA
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GA DNR Coastal Resources Division
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University of Georgia
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Michael Baker International
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Georgia State University