Sean Grace

Sean Grace is Professor and Chair of the Biology Department at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) in New Haven, Connecticut, and Co-Director of the Werth Center for Coastal and Marine Studies. A marine ecologist by training, he has built a research program centered on nearshore temperate reefs, kelp forests, and coral communities of southern New England.

Education & Academic Posts

• Current: Professor and Chair, Department of Biology, Southern Connecticut State University
• Co-Director, Werth Center for Coastal and Marine Studies, SCSU

Research Focus
Grace’s scholarship addresses the ecology of shallow-water marine communities, with an emphasis on how environmental change re-shapes benthic systems. Core themes include:

• Mechanisms driving the decline of kelp at its southern range margin, especially during marine heatwaves
• Bio-fouling and community development on offshore renewable-energy infrastructure (Block Island Wind Farm)
• Multi-species interactions among temperate corals, sponges, urchins, and turf-forming algae
• Physiological and ecological consequences of winter quiescence in the northern star coral Astrangia poculata

These projects integrate field experiments, physiological assays, and collaborative genomics to forecast how temperate reefs will respond to continued warming and human activity.

Publication Trends
Over the past decade Grace has published extensively on kelp forest collapse, climate-driven shifts in macroalgal assemblages, and the ecology of the temperate coral Astrangia poculata. His work repeatedly appears in high-impact journals such as PLOS Biology, Global Change Biology, Scientific Reports, and Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology. A clear trajectory emerges: early studies on biomechanics and feeding ecology have evolved into large-scale collaborative investigations of climate impacts, carbon cycling, and ecosystem regime shifts.

Grants & Funding

• NOAA/Connecticut Sea Grant: “Restoration of kelp forests and associated ecosystem services in Long Island Sound” (2022–2024, co-PI)
• Werth Family Foundation: Endowment for the Werth Center for Coastal and Marine Studies (2014–2023, $750k, Co-PI)
• U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management: Multiple awards evaluating biofouling and benthic communities at the Block Island Wind Farm (2018–2020, PI & Co-PI)
• CSU-AAUP & Faculty Development Grants: Kelp farming, documented phase-shifts, and seminar series (2012–present)

Laboratory & Mentorship
Grace’s research lab is a hub for both undergraduate and graduate students exploring topics ranging from horseshoe crab ecology to mercury bioaccumulation in macroalgae. Fieldwork regularly takes students into the intertidal and subtidal zones of Long Island Sound aboard small boats and SCUBA operations, providing hands-on training in experimental design, physiological techniques, and ecological statistics.