COURTESY OF WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION
Mark Abbott
WOODS HOLE – The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has a new president and director.
The Board of Trustees has announced that Dr. Mark Abbott will serve in the new position.
A biological oceanographer whose research focuses on the interaction of biological and physical processes in the upper ocean, Abbott joins WHOI from Oregon State University where he served as dean and professor in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences.
Over a career spanning 35 years, Abbott has served on numerous professional committees for federal science funding agencies, scientific societies and laboratories, and has advised the Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation (NSF) on ocean information infrastructure.
Abbott is the 10th director in WHOI’s 85-year history.
“I am delighted that Mark Abbott will be joining Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,” said Newton P.S. Merrill, chairman of the WHOI Board of Trustees.
“Mark is an experienced and innovative leader with exceptional insight into the scientific and funding challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. He understands WHOI and its community and shares a commitment to excellence that is part of the fabric of this institution.”
Abbott was selected after a six-month search, which was overseen by a search committee that included five members of the WHOI Board of Trustees and five members of the WHOI scientific and engineering staff.
Abbott will assume the office October 1, succeeding Susan Avery, who served from 2008 to 2015.
