Our staff members represent a wide array of backgrounds and experiences, but we all share a passion for ocean conservation, education, and citizen science. Learn more about us below.

Alli Candelmo, PhD | Martha Klitzkie | Jill Kuehnert | Christy Pattengill-Semmens, PhD | Michaela Koessler Peterson

Sierra Barkdoll | Carolyn Corley | Stacey Henderson | Mead Krówka |Amy Lee | Jen Loch, PhD | Janna Nichols | Noa Parks | Hilary Penner | Shelby Thomas

Alli Candelmo, PhD is REEF’s Director of Conservation Science. Alli joined the REEF team in 2018 and brings a wealth of experience to the organization. She attended Rutgers University where she obtained a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution. She has studied the population dynamics and management strategies of invasive lionfish in the Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos, working with the local stakeholders and communities on both islands to help improve removal efforts and gain a better understanding of invasive lionfish. Her doctoral and postdoctoral research has examined a number of anthropogenic impacts on coastal ecosystems and early life history finfish, including; toxicants, ocean acidification and increased temperatures. She had the opportunity to collaborate with REEF on the Grouper Moon project in 2016 and 2017 examining survivorship of early life stages of Nassau and Tiger Grouper. She also has experience developing hands-on science activities. She is a strong advocate for conservation of coastal and marine ecosystems, regularly volunteering for local community programs. Alli served as Conservation Science Program Manager from 2018 to 2023, and joined the leadership team as Director of Conservation Science in 2024. Alli overseas a portfolio of projects, including the Invasive Species Program and Lionfish Derby Series, the Size Matters Innovative Length Estimates (SMILE) Project, GrouperSpotter, and is a member of the Grouper Moon Project research team. Alli was initially based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida, and now lives in New Jersey.

 

Martha Klitzkie is REEF's Co-Executive Director: Strategy & Operations. Martha’s passion for teaching people about the marine environment grew over ten years of leading residential science programs in California and Florida. Now a resident of Chicago, she focuses that passion on connecting people with the marine environment, and building a sense of community amongst ocean enthusiasts, regardless of their proximity to the coast. Martha graduated from Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina, with a degree in Environmental Education, then went on to complete her Masters in Educational Leadership and Administration at Argosy University in San Francisco. Martha joined the REEF team in 2011 and has been loving it ever since! She enjoys the diversity of tasks and seeing firsthand how small individual actions make big impacts. Like how a single fish survey, adds up to the world’s largest marine sighting database. Or how one education program can change the career path and worldview of a participant. She believes it’s the little things that change the world. Her executive leadership role centers on expanding REEF’s impact and capacity to support healthy oceans. She directly supervises the Explorers Education Program and operations of the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida. Her role is intersectional across REEF’s programs, developing communication strategies and plans for long-term growth.  In the day to day, she oversees the administration and business functions that help our members, volunteers, partners, and staff thrive.


Jill Kuehnert (‘KEY-nert’) is REEF's Campus Director. She joined the REEF team in early 2024 with extensive experience in building support for good causes. After earning degrees in international relations and public policy from the American University in Washington DC, Jill’s professional journey began at the World Bank. She then spent a decade in the private sector, including a regional leadership assignment in Singapore. From 2007 to 2023, Jill worked as a science communications consultant for public sector agriculture research projects. Jill began scuba diving for fun when she lived in Asia and has logged hundreds of dives around the world. Jill and her husband moved to Key Largo in 2017 and until 2023 spent most of their time running Lucky Fish Scuba, a top-rated private charter operation. She is a community leader, currently serving as volunteer President of the Upper Keys Business & Professional Women (BPW), the largest local chapter of BPW/Florida. Jill has been a member of REEF since 2017, attending REEF Fest every year with the t-shirts to prove it! She is an enthusiastic supporter of all kinds of cool science, especially when it empowers individuals and connects communities in protecting our oceans. In her role as Campus Director Jill is responsible for overseeing programs, staff, and operations of the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida and helping chart the course for the organization’s growing impact in the Florida Keys community.

 

Christy Pattengill-Semmens, PhD is REEF's Co-Executive Director: Science & Engagement. Christy started working with REEF as a Nature Conservancy intern during the early days of the organization in Key Largo in 1993, and officially joined REEF staff in 1998. Christy attended University of Southern California, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Marine Sciences. She then conducted her dissertation research on fish assemblages at the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico, and received her Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. She is based in San Diego, CA, where she also serves as a Visiting Scholar at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Christy’s role at REEF intersects citizen science, education, and conservation, engaging REEF’s members to advance the organization’s mission of protecting biodiversity and ocean life. She oversees all aspects of the Volunteer Fish Survey Project, facilitates the incorporation of REEF’s citizen science data into resource management policy and the scientific literature, manages the REEF.org website, and regularly leads expeditions as part of REEF’s Field Survey Trips program. She has directed REEF's survey project expansion through the years, moving the project from its roots in the tropical western Atlantic to tropical and temperate oceans world-wide. Christy regularly advises on developing scalable citizen science programs, and has worked with the South Atlantic Fisheries Management Council citizen science framework, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Government of the Azores, among others. In her executive leadership role, Christy provides strategy to support donor development, member cultivation, and long-term strategic planning. Christy and her husband, Brice Semmens, Ph.D., are the lead scientists for REEF’s Grouper Moon Project, studying one of the last and largest known spawning aggregations of the endangered Nassau Grouper. For their work on this project, Christy and Brice were named Sea Heroes by Scuba Diving Magazine in 2019. In 2021, Christy was inducted in to the Women Divers Hall of Fame (WDHOF). She currently serves as a Board of Trustee member for WDHOF, and previously served on the Board of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (GCFI).

 

Michaela Koessler Peterson is REEF's Director of Education. Michaela joined the REEF staff team in 2024 and is based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida. She is passionate about connecting people of all backgrounds to science and nature through place-based educational initiatives. Hailing originally from Montana where she earned a BFA at the University of Montana, she moved to Seattle in 1991, falling in love with the ocean and all things marine. She joined a (then smaller) coffee corporation, managing multiple units, helping to open new markets, and designing training materials. After her children were born, she returned to school, focusing on science (environment and genetics), and earned her Master’s in Education in Secondary Science (MIT) from University of Washington. Prior to joining the REEF team, she spent 13 years teaching science in Seattle Public Schools, acting as Department Head and working to open a new high school. Michaela has also been an active REEF member and surveyor since 2011, and she previously served on the REEF Educator Advisory Panel. While her pathway has been indirect, she is thrilled to be working with REEF to enhance the organization's educational initiatives. You can likely find her hanging out with family and friends in the mountains of Montana, underwater surveying fish, or paddleboarding whatever waters she happens to be near.

Sierra Barkdoll is REEF’s Operations Manager. Sierra joined the REEF staff team in May 2022. Growing up near the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, Sierra developed a deep passion for aquatic environments. In 2020, she earned her B.S. in Environmental Science and Geography from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, with a Biology minor and GIS certificate. Sierra’s journey with REEF began as a Marine Conservation Intern and Citizen Science Lead Intern in 2021, where she honed her skills and enthusiasm for marine conservation. On joining the REEF staff team, she served as Citizen Science Coordinator. In her current role as Operations Manager, Sierra focuses on optimizing operations, improving system processes, and engaging the public in marine conservation efforts, driven by her love for fish and ocean preservation. Sierra is based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida.



​​​​​​Carolyn Corley is a REEF Education Coordinator. Carolyn joined the REEF staff team in June 2024, after serving as a REEF Marine Conservation Fellow for Education & Outreach. Prior to that, she participated in the REEF Marine Conservation Internship program as the 2023 Dr. Jamie L. King REEF Marine Conservation Intern through Our World Underwater Scholarship Society. Carolyn graduated in May 2023 from the University of San Diego with a B.S. in Environmental and Ocean Sciences on the marine ecology pathway, and minors in Biology and Environmental Studies and Policy. While in college, she spent a summer in Utila, Honduras completing her PADI Divemaster certification and researching invasive lionfish and community involvement in invasive species education and removal. Carolyn supports the growing Ocean Explorers Education Program at the REEF Campus. She also is enhancing our college student engagement in the Volunteer Fish Survey Project, as well as provides member services through support of the REEF Store. Outside of REEF she is involved as the Volunteer Coordinator at Surfrider Florida Keys and enjoys competitive swimming, camping, reading, and traveling.



Stacey Henderson is REEF's Field Survey Trips Program Manager. He grew up in a small town in Vermont and graduated from Wheaton College in Massachusetts in 2015 earning a BA in Biology. Stacey first joined REEF as a Marine Conservation Intern in the summer of 2019 and stayed on after as the Volunteer Fish Survey Project Lead Intern. Stacey joined the staff team in April of 2020 as Program Services Coordinator. He was based at the REEF Campus for the first few years on the staff team, and now lives in North Carolina. Before joining REEF, Stacey worked as a PADI dive instructor in Honduras and in the Central Indo Pacific. He taught his students the importance of marine conservation while introducing them to the underwater world. He now works in support of REEF’s surveyors, donors, members, and the general public through management of business operation and support of marine conservation programming. He is enthusiastic about REEF and the future of its programs! He is an avid diver, surveyor, and underwater photographer.


Mead Krówka is a REEF Education Coordinator. He joined the REEF team based at the REEF Campus in early 2024 to assist with our growing Explorers Education Programs. Mead grew up in Pisgah Forest, North Carolina where he spent countless hours hiking, backpacking, and falling in love with the outdoors. This led to him getting his first PADI certification at age 13, leading to hundreds of dives around the world. In May 2021, Mead graduated from the University of North Carolina Wilmington with degrees in Environmental Science and Biological Anthropology. His time at UNCW led to volunteer work with the Alliance for Cape Fear Trees and the Surfrider Foundation, as well as a research publication in the American Association for Biological Anthropology. Prior to joining the REEF team, Mead was a Program Coordinator for residential marine science summer programs through Sea Turtle Camp and WB Surf Camp, where he developed educational curricula and taught marine science classes. In his free time, Mead enjoys traveling, reading, diving, surfing, long walks on the beach, and spending as much time outdoors as possible. Mead is excited to share his passion for education and conservation! 

 

Amy Lee is REEF’s Communications Manager. Her role serves as a link between REEF programs, surveyors, donors, members, and the general public. She works closely with REEF’s staff team and Directors to develop and lead communications strategies, while creating content to facilitate engagement. An avid fish surveyor, Amy also teaches Fishinars and leads REEF Field Survey Trips. She is a proud alumna of the University of South Carolina, where she earned two degrees, a B.A. in Public Relations and a B.S. in Marine Science. She got her start with REEF as a Marine Conservation Intern during the fall of 2014, and joined the staff in April 2015. In 2019 she received the Wave Makers Award from the Dive Equipment and Marketing Association (DEMA). Amy was based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo for several years and now lives in St. Augustine, Florida. Outside of REEF, Amy is a contributing writer for Alert Diver magazine, published by Divers Alert Network. In her spare time she enjoys diving, reading, and being with her dog, Pinecone.

 

Jen Loch, PhD is a REEF Research Associate. Jen joined the team in July 2023 and comes to us with an extensive background in fish ecology. She holds a B.S. in biology from Florida State University and an M.S. in marine biology through the Three Seas Program at Northeastern University, where she studied the impacts of predation on reef fish recruitment in Mo’orea, French Polynesia. Her diverse experience includes work as a biology professor at local community colleges in Orlando, an intern at Mote Marine Lab and Disney’s Epcot aquarium, and as a conservation lands biologist for a local county government. Jen received her Ph.D. from the University of Central Florida, where she was awarded Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation and Coastal Estuarine Research Federation scholarships for her research on the response of sportfish to coastal habitat restoration. She enjoys engaging with the public, anglers, and citizen scientists to better understand their knowledge of marine resources to ultimately further conservation through collaboration. Her favorite fish is the Snook. Jen is based in Orlando, Florida. Through her role at REEF, she works directly with REEF's Conservation Science program and oversees the field implementation of the SMILE project, an initiative to incorporate fish size estimates in to the Volunteer Fish Survey Project using camera technologies.

 

Janna Nichols is REEF's Citizen Science Program Manager, working extensively with the Volunteer Fish Survey Project database, training programs, and volunteer teams. She is the creator of the popular REEF Fishinar (webinar) program. Although Janna officially joined REEF staff in 2010, she has been conducting surveys, teaching Fish ID classes and giving REEF presentations as a volunteer since 2000, and is based in Vancouver, Washington. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Engineering Technology.  Janna loves underwater photography and marine life identification, and many of her photos appear in west coast marine life ID guides, publications, and online resources. Her efforts were integral to the design and photography on REEF's many laminated fish identification cards. She has personally completed over 1600 REEF surveys and is an expert level REEF surveyor in the Pacific Coast, Hawaii, Northeast US and Canada, and Tropical Western Atlantic regions. Janna is a PADI certified SCUBA instructor (retired), a past AAUS Scientific Diver and Dive Safety Officer, and the leader of REEF's Pacific Coast Advanced Assessment Team. In 2003, she received REEF's Volunteer of the Year award, in 2013 she received Dive News Network's Diver of the Year Award, and in 2015 she received the Golden Hamlet award from REEF. In her spare time she enjoys geocaching, bicycling, camping, and scuba diving.

 

Hilary Penner is REEF's Education Manager: Program Development. Hilary works to develop new partnerships with educators and the community, create new youth learning opportunities, and engage REEF members to support REEF’s ocean conservation mission. She supports formal and informal educators who are interested in incorporating REEF's programs and ocean science into their classrooms and activities and is the leader of REEF’s Educator Advisory Panel. Hilary joined the staff in 2021 but had previously been involved with REEF for over two decades as a volunteer. Her first REEF Field Survey Trip was to Bimini in 1996 and she has been engaged with REEF ever since. A previous South Florida resident, she worked at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton, Florida, with sea turtles and volunteered at REEF HQ in its early days. When she moved to Colorado to be closer to family, she started an inland ocean education business. Before joining REEF staff, she taught middle school science for 7 years and has a M.ED in Environmental Education and a Certificate in STEM Leadership from Teachers College of Columbia University and NASA Endeavor through U.S. Satellite Laboratory. She is passionate about marine conservation and science literacy.

 

​​​​​​Noa Parks is REEF’s Citizen Science Coordinator. Noa first joined the REEF team as a Marine Conservation Intern in the fall of 2023. She continued at REEF as a Marine Conservation Fellow, where she refined her skills and passion for ocean conservation before officially joining the staff team in September 2024. Noa is based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo. Noa grew up around the Memphis area and earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Mississippi College in 2023. While obtaining her degree, she was a student-athlete, a member of the TriBeta Biological Honor Society, and part of an ecology research team that focused on the social behaviors of certain reptilian species. As Citizen Science Coordinator, Noa is excited to support REEF’s cornerstone citizen science program, the Volunteer Fish Survey Project, as well as conservation science activities and education programs at the REEF campus in Key Largo. In her free time, Noa loves anything competitive, as well as hiking, traveling, rock/fossil hunting, scuba diving, and cooking.

 

Shelby Thomas is a REEF Education Coordinator. She joined the REEF team in 2024 and is based at the REEF Campus in Key Largo. Shelby grew up in Vienna, Virginia and spent every summer visiting the Outer Banks in North Carolina. Spending time at the beach made her love the ocean, and she wanted to learn all about it. Previously, Shelby worked at Walt Disney World in their Animals, Science, and Environment department as an educator, with a focus on informal education. She has also worked with Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History as an Ocean Education intern, and worked with Waterlust on their communication initiatives. In 2019, Shelby graduated with a degree in Marine Affairs from the University of Miami, and continued her education at Miami and received a Master of Professional Science degree in Marine Conservation in 2020. Shelby is passionate about making science accessible to the public and getting people excited about the things that they learn. She enjoys creating connections and building relationships with different people, and finding different tangible conservation actions that people can take and apply to their everyday lives. In her free time, Shelby likes to cook, read, hang out on the beach, and root for her favorite D.C. and Miami sports teams.