Visitors to FHL get to know the key personnel who make a field station run, such as the staff in the office, waterfront, dining, IT, and maintenance departments. But many don’t necessarily know the group of diverse people who collaborate quietly, behind the scenes, with our Advancement staff member to raise funds and friends for FHL. This Tide Bite shares a brief history of the FHL Advancement Board and touches on some of the many ways their efforts are critical for our operations, most notably helping to raise funding for our course scholarships and research fellowships. We are so grateful for the many ways they help to advance the mission of FHL.
The Friday Harbor Labs’ Advancement Board: Supporting FHL’s Mission Since 1997
by Dr. Flo McAlary
It was a sunny Friday afternoon in 1998 on the FHL Dining Hall deck with students, staff, and researchers engrossed in conversation over popcorn and refreshments, when then-FHL Director Dennis Willows proposed that my husband William “Mac” McFarland and I join a new Advancement Board (AB) he had created. We were researchers recently transplanted from Southern California. We already understood the value of Friday Harbor Labs to the broader marine scientific and educational community. Our response was an enthusiastic “Yes!”
The formation of the AB grew out of Dennis’ recognition of a predicament facing the Labs: traditional sources of support for students and programs were diminishing, including federal, state, and university funds that had historically supported FHL’s research and educational opportunities. In his mind, it was essential to figure out how to raise money to continue attracting “high-quality researchers in fields that matter to the ‘discovery of new knowledge’ and support the training and independent work of young scientists at FHL.”
Dennis’ solution was a fundraising board which includes scientists, FHL alums, and others with experience and connections to more extensive funding sources (private and corporate foundations). In 1997, he recruited some sage individuals who offered to sign onto this new board. Dennis especially credits Robert Lundeen, Barbara and Tom Cable, Robbie Macfarlane, and Don Peek with crucial roles in the early years that “set the new trajectory.”
One of the board’s first major accomplishments (1998-99) was securing funding to establish an FHL Research Apprenticeship Program: an opportunity for students to engage in intense, focused research mentored by experts at the leading edge of scientific knowledge. In support of the project, Tom Cable facilitated a successful presentation to the Washington Research Foundation Board, with additional backing from the UW Mary Gates Fund and the Research division of Microsoft. A generous AB member’s matching challenge to the Board secured the remaining funds. Two visionary researchers in cell biology offered to lead one of these early Apprenticeship teams, ultimately leading to a $14M FHL Center for Cell Dynamics being built, funded with NIH and UW support. Other FHL Research Apprenticeships have included hot topics in visual ecology, neurobiology, crustacean morphogenesis, molecular genomics, and marine ecology. Students and researchers have produced a range of scholarly publications in conjunction with these programs. The program continues to this day, and now celebrates 20 years of crucial data from the longest-running FHL Research Apprenticeship, Pelagic Ecosystem Function.
Over the years the FHL Advancement Board’s membership has grown, with an ever-expanding impact on Labs initiatives. The AB’s mission remains the same: The Advancement Board (AB) for Friday Harbor Laboratories (FHL) promotes excellence in marine science education and research. The AB strives to achieve this goal by obtaining support for FHL that helps strengthen its work, identity, recognition, and distinctive international character as part of the University of Washington College of the Environment. The board currently consists of 28 members which include scientists, educators, artists, business leaders, lawyers and other professionals. We convene twice a year at FHL with regular focus committee meetings in between, to follow up on funding priorities set by the Director and strategize on how to increase FHL support. Knowing that every board member plays a vital role in supporting our successes, I will highlight some of our accomplishments.
AB members have been the main drivers in establishing the majority of FHL’s current endowments. Current and former AB members – including Megumi and Richard Strathmann, Dennis Willows, Gretchen Lambert, John Blinks, Drew Harvell, Chuck Greene, Gordon Robilliard, Steve Wainwright, Trish Morse, Rachel Anderson and myself – have been influential in providing long-term funding for basic disciplines in marine science, undergraduate and graduate students, and marine facilities. Likewise, AB members have been instrumental in most of FHL’s current-use funds for scholarships, K-12 science outreach, and research support.
The Helen R. Whiteley Center was the gift of AB member Arthur Whiteley. This forward-thinking endeavor brings a diverse array of scholars and artists to the FHL campus as they carry out their creative work. Robbie Macfarlane’s support via an artist studio and an Artist in Residence Endowment complements the Whiteley Center’s purpose.
Term fellowships created by AB members William Calvin and Katherine Graubard have provided critical incentives to develop a cohort of outstanding FHL postdocs which host young scientists at the beginning of their careers, and brought UW PhD students and faculty to work at FHL.
In 2001, the AB collaborated to present Jazz at the Labs to raise community support for FHL’s K-12 Science Outreach Program, which serves San Juan Island students from kindergarten through high school. AB member Carolyn Haugen is a long-time mentor, strategist, and supporter of the K-12 Program. The AB also established an annual Beach Walk and the FHL Sea Star Society, to honor major FHL donors.
In 2005, the AB established its Adopt-A-Student Program, which sponsors students with tuition, housing, food and travel costs. For 19 years, this fund has helped ensure that the best and brightest students worldwide can access FHL courses.
When FHL needed University assistance to help with donor engagement and stewardship, the AB secured support from main campus. UW’s Office of Advancement engaged Rachel Anderson as an FHL representative, and she skillfully guided the AB in many of its philanthropic ventures. Upon her retirement, Rachel now graciously serves as a member of the AB.
In 2012, Trish Morse pioneered the E.S. Morse Institute, which supports an international exchange program for students and researchers between FHL and marine labs in Japan. That same year, AB member Laura long expanded FHL’s outreach by introducing the first FHL e-newsletter.
Board members Jim Truman and Lynn Riddiford not only brought their research talents to FHL but also pivotally funded a UW-Endowed Chair in Biology resident at FHL. Beginning in 2025, a new top notch biologist will join the resident FHL faculty.
A research vessel has always been an essential piece of FHL infrastructure for exploring the region’s biodiversity. Thanks to Gordon Robilliard and Kevin Schofield especially, the AB has been there to help with vessel maintenance and the purchase of marine equipment.
AB member Chuck Greene has helped hugely with FHL’s recent strategic planning effort. He is a champion of fundraising for “greening” the FHL campus, vehicles, and vessels and making FHL a locus for research and education on climate change.
Through all this, Dennis Willows, now Director Emeritus (1972-2005) and AB Emeritus (2005-2023), has provided his wisdom, guidance, and generous support for FHL. During the 27 years of the AB’s existence, the priorities of succeeding Directors including FHL’s current Director Megan Dethier, continue Willows’ tradition. Dennis recognized the fundamental importance of quality leadership by initiating an Endowed FHL Director’s Professorship. Funding this endowment and supporting FHL’s Strategic Plan into the future remain among the AB’s ongoing priorities. I’ve had the pleasure of leading this remarkable FHL Advancement Board for the past eight years. Incoming AB Chair Drew Harvell – internationally recognized for her research on marine infectious diseases – will lend her proven leadership skills to further our tradition of success.
We are grateful to all of our Advancement Board members who contribute in a variety of ways to advance the mission of FHL.
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