Annis Water Research Institute names new Executive Director to take office in January

Grand Valley State University recently announced that Stuart Jones has been named to the executive director position at the school’s Annis Water Resources Institute (or AWRI). Prior to this new position, Jones had been a faculty member in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame as well as a former associate director at the University of Notre Dame’s Environmental Research Center.

In an article posted on Grand Valley State University’s website, the school’s acting provost Jennifer Drake was quoted about Jones’ appointment, saying, “Stuart is a highly accomplished aquatic ecologist who is deeply committed to all three pillars of AWRI’s mission — research, education and outreach. He is a strong teacher and scholar, a collaborative and curious leader and a very effective science communicator. I am excited about AWRI’s future.”

Throughout his career, Jones has focused his research on environmental biology and ecology, as well as genomics and genetics. He earned his bachelor degree in biology before going on to earn his doctorate in limnology and marine sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He then went on to become a postdoctoral fellow at Michigan State University’s W.K. Kellogg Biological Station at Gull Lake.

Jones expressed his excitement heading into this new position at AWRI, saying, “It’s a dream job for several reasons. The group that's there at the AWRI is outstanding, and I can't wait to get started collaborating with them and with those who think about aquatic ecology on the main campus. Here’s a long history of aquatic research at the AWRI, and, obviously, there’s been a really great foundation that’s been set over the last 20 years by (Allen and Helen Hunting Research Professor) Al Steinman. It's a launching pad for great research and community engagement that I hope to facilitate over my time there.”

He also noted that one of the main reasons for his desire to join AWRI was the prioritization the Institute places on engaging with the community, saying, “There are a lot of really good existing connections, for example, with folks who live around the Lakeshore area or with the Native American tribes in the region. So, that’s some existing engagement that I want to foster and continue to grow.”

Jones went on to note that he aims to take that attitude moving forward: “I want to be open as a listener so that we can find other partners in the community that would benefit from the work at AWRI, or if we can facilitate connections with people on the main campus,” he said.

Jones will start his position at AWRI in January; until then, Mark Luttenton will continue on as acting director.

More information about the Annis Water Research Institute can be found at the Institute’s website.

More information about Grand Valley State University can be found at the school’s website.