Meet Our Staff
Gulf of Mexico Alliance
1151 Robinson Street
Ocean Springs, MS 39564
Meet the Teams
Alliance Management Team
Florida (CHAIR)
Kevin Claridge
Director of Florida Coastal Office
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
3900 Commonwealth Blvd.
Tallahassee, FL 32399
(850) 245-2101
Kevin.Claridge@dep.state.fl.us
Gareth Leonard
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Carr Building
3800 Commonwealth Blvd., MS 7A5
Tallahassee, FL 32399
Gareth.Leonard@myfwc.com
Alabama
Hank Burch
Assistant Director
Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
31115 Five Rivers Blvd.
Spanish Fort, AL 36527
(251) 621-1216
Hank.Burch@dcnr.alabama.gov
Patti McCurdy
Director of State Lands
Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
64 North Union Street
Montgomery, AL 36130
(334) 242-3484
Patti.Powell@dcnr.alabama.gov
Mississippi (CHAIR-ELECT)
Joe Spraggins
Executive Director
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
1141 Bayview Avenue
Biloxi, MS 39564
(228) 374-5000
Joe.Spraggins@dmr.ms.gov
Gary Rikard
Executive Director
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 2261
Jackson, MS 39225
(601) 961-5000
Gary_Rikard@deq.state.ms.us
Louisiana
Chip Kline
Louisiana Governor’s Office of Coastal Activities
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
Bren Haase
Louisiana Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
Texas
Toby Baker
Commissioner
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 13087
Austin, TX 78711-3087
(512) 239-5515
Toby.Baker@tceq.texas.gov
Steve Schar
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 13087
Austin, TX 78711-3087
Priority Issues Teams
Coastal Resilience
Rhonda Price
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
(228) 523-4150
rhonda.price@dmr.ms.gov
Kristen Kapiotis (PIT Coordinator)
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
(228) 523-4025
Kristen.Kapiotis@dmr.ms.gov
Data & Monitoring
Stephanie Erickson (Co-Chair)
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Stephanie.Erickson@dep.state.fl.us
Dave Reed (Co-Chair)
Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission
dave.reed@myFWC.com
Katherine Wallace (PIT Coordinator)
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
850-245-2099
Katherine.M.Wallace@floridadep.gov
Education & Engagement
Angela Underwood (Co-Chair)
Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
State Lands Division, Coastal Section, Weeks Bay Reserve
Angela.Underwood@dcnr.alabama.gov
Ilka Porter (Co-chair)
Mobile Baykeeper
iporter@mobilebaykeeper.org
Lee Yokel (PIT Coordinator)
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
(251) 861-2141 ext. 7507
lyokel@disl.org
Habitat Resources
James Pahl (Co-Chair)
State of Louisiana, Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
(225) 342-2413
james.pahl@la.gov
Syed Khalil (Co-Chair)
State of Louisiana, Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
Syed.Khalil@La.Gov
Lauren Durr (PIT Coordinator)
Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
lauren.pourciau@la.gov
Water Resources
Kim Caviness
Water Quality Standards and Special Projects Branch
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
(601) 961-5390
kim_caviness@deq.state.ms.us
Jill Csekitz
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
Jill.csekitz@tceq.texas.gov
TBA (PIT Coordinator)
Wildlife & Fisheries
Robin Riechers (Chair)
Texas Parks and Wildlife
Robin.Riechers@tpwd.texas.gov
Mike Smith (PIT Coordinator)
Harte Research Institute
Mikell.Smith@tamucc.edu
Cross-Team Initiatives
Conservation, Restoration & Resilience Planning
Rhonda Price (Team Facilitator)
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
rhonda.price@dmr.ms.gov
Jim Pahl (Team Facilitator)
Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
james.pahl@la.gov
Ecosystem Services Assessment
Becky Allee, PhD (Team Facilitator)
Becky.Allee@noaa.gov
Marine Debris
Jennifer McGee (Chair)
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Jennifer McGee
Caitlin Wessel (Team Facilitator)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Caitlin.Wessel@noaa.gov
Doug Jacobson (Team Facilitator)
Environmental Protection Agency
Jacobson.doug@epa.gov