Elizabeth Venrick
Elizabeth Venrick, a research oceanographer
and lecturer in the Marine Life Research
Group (MLRG), has worked at Scripps since earning her Ph.D. in marine
ecology here in 1969. Working toward a Ph.D. was not her initial goal.
"I applied for a master's and when I was accepted, they told me they didn't offer a master's in marine ecology, only a Ph.D. I hadn't really planned on it but fate ganged up on me."
Within MLRG, Venrick studies the distribution and ecology of oceanic phytoplankton (microscopic plant life), which are at the base of the marine food chain. She pursued a career in marine ecology because it encompasses many aspects of scientific study, including biology, chemistry, and physics. Most of her past research has taken place in the central Pacific Ocean, but now that research is being extended to the California Current, which runs southward along the United States' western coast to northern Baja California.
Venrick has served as chief scientist on Scripps expeditions and participated in cruises to the north, south and central Pacific. Earlier in her career, she went to sea one, two, or three times each year with each trip lasting one to two months.
Today, women commonly work on research cruises, and even lead them. When Venrick was a graduate student, women did go to sea, but never without another woman along. When she was scheduled on her first research expedition as the only female, everyone experienced initial discomfort, but by the end of the cruise she had earned the respect and relaxation of the crew-consisting mostly of ex-Navy sailors and Portuguese fisherman. One of her fondest memories of life at sea was when she and a ship's cook won the table shuffleboard championship in Kodiak, Alaska.
Venrick cannot recall a time when she did not want to be a scientist. "In general, I always knew I wanted to work in a field science, as opposed to a lab science. I tried geology in college, but all the geologists were 6'2" and could jump over huge geologic formations. At 5'4", I knew I couldn't keep up, so I majored in plant ecology."
From 1976 to the beginning of 1982, Venrick served on the five-member California Fish and Game Commission. Appointed by Governor Jerry Brown, she was the first woman, the first Ph.D., and the first expert in marine science to serve on the commission during its more than 100-year history.
She has also served on the Scientific and Statistical Committee of the Pacific Fishery Management Council and the Marine Fisheries Advisory Commission. At Scripps, her affiliations have included the UCSD bicycle planning committee, the Scripps Committee for Academic Personnel, and the UCSD Sexual Harassment Complaint Resolution Panel. For several years, she has chaired the Scripps Editorial and Publications Committee.
In addition to spending much of her working time outdoors, Venrick also enjoys spending her free time outside, often bike riding, gardening, or practicing the art and science of photography.
© 1995