Bigelow Laboratory For Ocean Sciences

Category: Education
Year of Last Grant Award:2022

The Harold Alfond Foundation has supported the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, a premier marine research center in East Boothbay, Maine, in its efforts to attract world-class talent, through the building of state of the art facilities. The Foundation’s funding has supported the construction of a combined student and visiting scientist residence, the hiring of a Senior Research Scientist, and the Laboratory’s partnership with Colby College.


More information as provided by our partner:

The Harold Alfond Foundation has partnered with Bigelow Laboratory in recent years, helping us achieve some of our institute’s most significant strategic goals:

Since receiving the HAF award that made her hire possible in 2014, Senior Research Scientist Dr. Nichole Price quickly became deeply embedded in strategic plans for Bigelow. She serves as Director of our Center for Seafood Solutions, designed to apply Bigelow’s cutting-edge science to better serve the growing but delicate seafood industry in Maine and beyond. Dr. Price’s accomplishments include proving that co-farming seaweed and shellfish can help fight the effects of ocean acidification, and co-developing a complex study to use Maine seaweed and microalgae as a livestock feed additive that can reduce methane emissions from cows. Dr. Price also mentors students and teaches Colby College courses, further cementing Bigelow’s educational goals. This hiring of this brilliant Maine pioneer in ocean research and science education was made possible by the Harold Alfond Foundation.

Bigelow Laboratory experienced exponential growth in recent years, with the building of a world-class campus in East Boothbay and educational programming expansion. HAF was keenly aware of housing needs in our area and helped to fulfill a matching gift challenge to construct the Graham B. Shimmield Residence Hall. Opened in 2017, Shimmield Hall provides 32 beds in a flexible dormitory-style accommodation, plus four visiting scientist apartments. It has transformed how we serve our students. Thanks to HAF’s thoughtful advice, we established an endowment to care for the building and designed the facility to serve diverse age groups and meet a high duty-of-care standard.

HAF took the time to gain an appreciation for the complicated global ocean research we do and the contributions we make to Maine. Their diligent and forward-thinking approach to philanthropy has made Bigelow a stronger, more impactful organization for Maine.

  • Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences