Abby Newman joined the O’Neill Sea Odyssey (OSO) team in 2015 as an Instructor/Deckhand and transitioned into the Program Manager role in 2021. For over ten years, Abby has worked at the intersection of environmental justice, advocacy, and climate resiliency with the U.S. District Courts, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and a number of University of California (UC) campuses. Abby holds a master’s in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and a Master of Social Work from San Jose State University. Her trauma-informed lens helps her develop programming that empowers and uplifts students to take actionable steps towards tackling the climate crisis.

Prior to serving as Program Manager, Abby was a California Sea Grant Science Policy Fellow at the CA State Lands Commission where she was instrumental in crafting the Commission’s environmental justice policy and leading statewide outreach with Tribal Nations and environmental justice communities. Abby headed the Commission’s AB 691 working group to assist ports, harbor districts, and local jurisdictions with developing their sea-level rise adaptation assessments. She was also critical to the Commission’s efforts of opposing BOEM’s 2019-2024 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas leasing program.  

Outside of work, Abby enjoys trail running, rock climbing, and spending time with her son, Charlie.

Born and raised in Fresno, California, Mike’s connection to the ocean began while spending time at his family’s summer home in Santa Cruz. He has lived on the Central Coast since 1982. Mike attended Bullard High in Fresno, and Orange Coast College near Newport Beach, California, where he raced sailboats. Mike worked for O’Neill Yacht Center for five years, holds a 100 ton skippers license, and has been skipper of the Team O’Neill Catamaran for 27 years. He is married to his wife Jill and has two grown children, Ashley and Zachary. An avid fitness enthusiast, Mike runs marathons and participates in Spartan races in his free time.

Liz arrived at OSO after working as a deckhand on the Team O’Neill catamaran. She is an avid sailor and in the middle of a journey to learn all things boats. She’s passionate about the stewardship of the land and the ocean. She has a BA in literature from UCSC and a professional background in HR, finance, and development.

Darci Bogdan was born in Santa Cruz, CA, was raised on a sailboat, and as a teenager, sailed from the west to the east coast of the United States. This upbringing inspired her to pursue a maritime career and she has been working as a captain for a little over a decade. Not only does Darci have a passion for captaining boats, but she also has a degree in Illustration from Savannah College of Art and Design and creates handmade cloisonné jewelry inspired by nature and conservation.

Joey was born and raised in central California. He holds a B.S. in Kinesiology from California State University Monterey Bay with a subdiscipline in outdoor recreation, education and administration. He is an American Canoe Association certified Level 4 Coastal Kayaking Skill Instructor and has over a decade of professional water experience. His connection to the sea was cultivated at a young age, inspiring Joey to pursue a life as involved with the ocean as possible. His infatuation with the sea has led him to introduce and educate the general public about the wonders that have molded his personal connection with our mother ocean. Joey currently resides in Moss Landing on his sailboat with his dog-friend Merle and is excited to be a part of O’Neill Sea Odyssey.

Breanne is a lover of all things ocean-related; when not working on boats she can be found surfing, kayaking, swimming, or just relaxing on the local Santa Cruz beaches. Breanne holds a 100-ton Masters Captains’ license and has an Able Body Special endorsement with the USCG. Growing up on the water, she has made a career of working on a variety of boats in Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, Baja, Costa Rica, Panama, and Belize. From heaving lines in the Panama Canal to kayaking glacial fjords, or assisting in leading tours in Magdalena Bay for the annual Gray Whale migration, Breanne has always encouraged people to explore the oceans and waterways around them. She is beyond excited to join the O’Neill Sea Odyssey program and share her love and knowledge of the ocean with a new generation of ocean explorers!

Shannon was born and raised in the Bay Area and is excited to be a part of the O’Neill Sea
Odyssey team. She received her B.S. in Biology from Saint Mary’s College of California where
she played on the Division 1 softball team. She continued on to get her M.S. in Marine Biology
from James Cook University in Australia. After completing her master’s degree, she returned
back to California to pursue her passion for marine science. Shannon is an avid animal lover,
especially sea otters, and loves going on outdoor adventures. In her spare time, Shannon can
be found scuba diving, backpacking, rock climbing, and skiing.

Anisa attended UC Santa Cruz and graduated in 2020 with a BS in marine biology and an
AAUS scientific diver certificate. Since then she has used her degree to teach at the Catalina
Island Marine Institute. She always knew that she wanted to pursue a life that revolved around
the ocean, and is grateful to be here! In her free time she enjoys hiking, surfing, diving, and
keeping busy with crafts. She look forward to watching students have their ‘lightbulb moments’
when learning cool new things about marine life!

Jessica loves exploring the natural world.  Always curious, she wants to know all about what she is seeing and enjoys sharing what she has learned with others.  Jessica holds the ocean in awe and is passionate about healthy seas and watersheds.   She feels fortunate to work on the Sea Odyssey to spread this message.  She is a proud mother to two adventurous daughters.

Emily is from the Bay Area and attended a marine science magnet school as a kid. She grew up coming to the Santa Cruz beaches in the summer and duck hunting with her father in the San Francisco Bay. She is a Level 2 Coastal Kayaking Instructor with the American Canoe Association and previously spent winters teaching water sports at an eco-resort in Belize. Emily holds a master’s degree in Marine Affairs from the University of Washington, where she wrote her thesis on ocean literacy and inclusion in marine science education. She currently volunteers as a school programs instructor at the Seymour Marine Discovery Center and is endlessly fascinated with everything about the ocean. She lives in Santa Cruz with her dog Arrow, who is afraid of waves and loves eating kelp.

Gracie was born and raised in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and grew up as an outdoor enthusiast, athlete, and conservationist. Her passion for marine biology started while traveling and scuba diving with her family throughout the Caribbean, Central America, and the Hawaiian Islands. Before graduating high school she was a PADI Divemaster. She has a degree in Secondary Education-General Science with an emphasis in Marine Biology from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. While living in Hawaii she worked as a scuba instructor, was a middle school science teacher and co-founded a non-profit focused on conservation through participation in underwater cleanups. She was introduced to sailing through her husband Jacques. They have two young daughters. You can find them visiting tidepools, beachcombing, paddle boarding, surfing, freediving, hiking, biking, or skiing in their spare time.

While Abby has lived and worked in 7 countries and 2 US states, she has always had a love for the Central Coast, where she has previously worked as a kayak guide. She obtained her PhD from Scripps Institution of Oceanography studying Caribbean seagrass beds and has since studied seagrass ecology on the California Coast and in the Tropical Eastern Pacific. In addition to seagrasses, she has also previously researched marine mammals, seabirds, coral reefs, and seaweed farms. She is very excited to share what she has learned and to continue learning from her colleagues and OSO students. When not teaching for OSO she enjoys surfing, SCUBA diving, hiking, and arguing with her cat.

Katie graduated from UCSC with a B.S in Marine Biology in 2022. While at UCSC, she participated in marine science field research as well as competed on the varsity sailing team. Katie served as the Captain of the Women’s Sailing Team at UCSC and is passionate about promoting equality and diversity in sailing. She has been working as a deckhand at O’Neill Yacht Charters since 2021. She also volunteers with a marine mammal rescue center where she assists with rescuing sick and injured marine mammals. In her free time she loves hiking, surfing, and making art. 

Carol loves the ocean and teaching children. She taught in the regular classroom and special education for 32 years. She taught at Ohlone, H.A. Hyde, and Hall District Elementary Schools as well as in Gilroy. Most of her teaching experience is with second language learners, and she speaks Spanish. She has been on more than ten O’Neill Sea Odyssey field trips during her career. Carol has sailing experience, loves to be in or near the ocean, hike, snowshoe and do ceramics. She has a husband and a grown daughter. She is delighted to return to the O’Neill Sea Odyssey and share the joy of learning about the ocean again.