The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium Board of Directors has named Steve Sempier as the consortium’s next director. He will step into the position Jan. 1, 2026.
“We are excited to have Dr. Sempier assuming the leadership role for the consortium,” said Steve Taylor, Auburn University’s senior vice president for research and economic development and chair of the consortium’s board of directors. “He has a proven track record of research, outreach, strategic planning and program management in the Sea Grant program that positions him well to provide outstanding leadership to our consortium.”
Sempier, Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant’s deputy director and outreach director, joined the program in 2007. Over the years, he has served in several Sea Grant roles including regional research planning coordinator, hydrological restoration project manager, oil spill science outreach manager, outreach director and deputy director.
“Thank you to the board of directors for this exciting opportunity,” Sempier said. “It is a great honor to serve as the next director of the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium and work with an incredible team of administrative, communications, education, engagement and research professionals.”
Throughout the Sea Grant network, he has led several regional and national collaborations including the award-winning Gulf-wide oil spill science outreach program, the Gulf Research Plan, the Gulf-wide hydrological project inventory and restoration program, and the national effort to identify needs and improve socioeconomic outcomes after oil spills.
His leadership spans 22 funding awards that address the Sea Grant focus areas: healthy coastal ecosystems; sustainable fisheries and aquaculture; resilient communities and economies; and environmental literacy and workforce development.
“I look forward to fostering our program’s continued success through collaborating with and leveraging the strengths of our consortium member institutions to implement our non-advocacy, science service mission throughout Alabama, Mississippi and beyond,” he said.
Sempier holds a Ph.D. in coastal science from The University of Southern Mississippi, a master's degree from Oregon State University and a bachelor’s degree from Eckerd College, Florida. Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant supported his dissertation research, which identified Gulf priority research needs and implemented strategies to address them.
He will replace the current director, LaDon Swann, who will retire Dec. 31.
The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium is one of 34 Sea Grant programs supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in coastal and Great Lakes states. Sea Grant programs encourage the wise stewardship of marine resources through research, education, engagement and technology transfer.
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. Its administrative office is located at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Lab in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Meet the author
Melissa Schneider
Communications Coordinator
Melissa Schneider coordinates public information, educational media and communication services for Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant. Some of MASGC's communications projects include our website, social... Read more
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