Meet: Douglas Scheidt
Aquatics Program Lead
Kennedy Space Center
Webcast Archives
Who I am and what I do for KSC
Hi my name is Douglas Scheidt and I am the lead for
the Aquatics Program here at the Kennedy Space Center. My responsibilities
are to monitor the natural resources of over 30 thousand acres of wetlands
and estuarine waters surrounding Kennedy Space center. This includes Mosquito
Lagoon, Banana River and Indian River Lagoon. These estuaries surrounding
KSC are some of the most diverse water systems in the United States, if
not the World. In cooperation with local, state and federal agencies,
we monitor the overall health of the ecosystem, which includes habitat
quality as well as water quality. We also monitor the health of aquatic
animals such as manatees, sea turtles and other endangered species in
the area.
Academic Journey
I graduated from high school in Orlando Florida, and
then went on to receive my degree in Zoology from the University of Central
Florida. After UCF I continued my education by going to other universities
in the area. I spent 9 1/2 years studying marsh and fish biology at the
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Fort Pierce, Florida. I started
working for Kennedy Space Center in 1992, conducting research in wetlands
biology, which led me to my current position as a lead in the Aquatics
Program at KSC.
Personal
I was born in Indiana, but I have lived in Florida
since the early 1970's. I am married with three daughters ages 8, 7, 4.
My interests are family outings and keeping my kids interested in the
sciences and nature.
Advice
If you are interested in this field you should have
a strong background in science and math and have a good understanding
of computers. But the most important thing is being able to take the information
from your research and apply it to the real world.
Webcast Archives
|
