Professor Josh Kohut.
Announcement from Laura Lawson, Executive Dean and Executive Director, SEBS/NJAES
I’m delighted to announce that Dr. Josh Kohut, Professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences, has accepted the position of SEBS Dean of Research/NJAES Director of Research, effective January 1, 2025. Please join me in congratulating him on this new role and giving him a warm welcome.
Josh came to Rutgers more than 27 years ago as a graduate student and has experienced the university in many capacities: student, staff, faculty, and administrator. Working to advance the complimentary missions of SEBS and NJAES, his scholarship focuses on translating science-based research in a way that informs applications, decision-making, and management of ocean resources. His research explores the use of ocean observing technologies – radar, sensors, gliders, etc. – to model ocean systems, enabling multidisciplinary process studies of the dynamics of the coastal ocean. He has been an active member of the Center for Ocean Observing Leadership (COOL) since its inception. His teaching responsibilities include contributing to first-year courses for students interested in Marine and Coastal Science research through the Oceanography House learning community and a research focused class that is currently undertaking an undergraduate student-led project to conduct the first circumnavigation of an autonomous underwater robot around the world.
Josh contributes to our land grant mission through his cooperative extension responsibilities that have resulted in significant dissemination and impact of his research across multiple stakeholder groups, including the fishing industry, US Coast Guard, NJDEP, shore communities, and the offshore wind industry. He helped found and serves as co-chair of the Rutgers University Offshore Wind Collaborative, which engages over 70 faculty from Rutgers New Brunswick, Newark, and Camden, as well as faculty from other universities and colleges in New Jersey and adjacent states and industry partners.
As Dean of Research/Director of Research, Josh will work closely and collaboratively with faculty, chairs, staff, and administration to support the land grant mission and research excellence as an R1 institution. He will oversee all aspects of our research enterprise, including federal capacity funds and compliance, assuring all research follows appropriate ethical standards, financial sustainability, and academic excellence. He will be an active member of the Executive Dean’s leadership team and will also represent SEBS/NJAES on the Deans of Research council of the Vice Provost for Research.
We look forward to working with Josh as he develops his vision to expand research collaborations within SEBS/NJAES and beyond.
Please join me in welcoming Josh to this new role.
