The Foundation
The Foundation was established to carry on Kurt Grinnell’s legacy by providing financial assistance for any enrolled member of a United States-recognized Tribe or Canada First Nation citizen who is pursuing or wishes to pursue studies in aquaculture or aquaculture technology. The scholarship may be used at any recognized university, community college, technical college, trade school, or other recognized institution or program.
“Kurt embodied the belief of his culture that it is important to plan seven generations ahead. He understood that the culture of finfish, shellfish, and aquatic plants was an important solution to the decline in harvest of traditional wild species, and a way for Pacific Northwest Tribes to harvest seafood in their usual and accustomed areas as guaranteed under Federal Treaties.” Parsons added, “Kurt’s vision was to help other Northwest Tribes see aquaculture as a key to food sovereignty and security—not a threat.” – Jim Parsons, Foundation Board member, and longtime friend and business partner of Kurt Grinnell.
Statement of Purpose
The Kurt Grinnell Aquaculture Scholarship Foundation (KGASF) is established for the purpose of providing financial assistance for any enrolled member of a United States-recognized Tribe who is pursuing or wishes to pursue studies in aquaculture or aquaculture technology at a recognized university, community college, technical college, or trade school, or other recognized institution or program. It is the Foundation’s goal to allocate scholarship funds to individuals who reflect the desire to grow in the field of aquaculture and who reflect the values that characterized Kurt Grinnell.
Board of Directors
Jeanne McKnight has worked all aspects of the global aquaculture industry for more than 25 years–where she has earned a reputation as a strong advocate for the commercial wild harvest sector as well as the responsible fish farming sector worldwide. She is a frequent contributor to trade magazines and has spoken extensively on the benefits of aquaculture at various conferences.
Jeanne McKnight, Ph.D.
John Dentler
Paul Zajicek
Cyr has received numerous awards for contributions to regional and national aquaculture and farming organizations. He is most proud of his former students / mentees from across Canada and the world who now lead in various capacities in aquaculture research, policy, and production. Over the past 25 years he has provided over 50 scholarships to deserving students for academia, for attendance at international aquaculture meetings, and for livelihood. He looks forward to working with aquaculture leaders in Canada and the USA to raise the profile of the Kurt Grinnell Foundation to allow more indigenous peoples with opportunities to participate in aquaculture in their ancestral lands.
Cyr Couturier
James E. (Jim) Parsons assumed the role of CEO of Jamestown Seafood in late August 2021. Jamestown Seafood raises and harvests seafood from the cold clean waters along the Strait of Juan de Fuca at the entrance of Puget Sound.
The company operates from tribal lands within Sequim Bay, offering several varieties of oysters, geoduck clams, and oyster seed.
Jim Parsons
Wally Pereyra
Levana Mastrangelo
Dick Jones is the CEO of Blue Ocean Mariculture, currently the only open-ocean finfish aquaculture company in the United States.
His passion for the ocean started very early in life, leading him to his first full-time job working at his family’s seafood processing business on the Boston Fish Pier in 1986. His diverse career includes 14 years overseeing seafood operations at Whole Foods Market and HEB Grocery.
Dick Jones
Jaiden Grinnell Bosick
In recognition of Wally’s accomplishments, GSA’s Lifetime Achievement Award is today known as the Wallace R. Stevens Lifetime Achievement Award. Among his other contributions to the industry, Wally served chair of the National Fisheries Institute, where, in 1998, he founded NFI’s Future Leaders Program. He also played a key role in the founding of NFI’s Seafood Industry Research Fund, also known as SIRF.
Wally recently retired from his position as one of the 29 Trustees of the University System of New Hampshire, where he served for 11 years alongside the Governor, President of the Senate, Speaker of the House, and Chancellor of the University System.
Prior to his retirement from industry, Wally was COO of Slade Gorton Fish Company in Boston and holds the distinction of founding one of the first U.S.-based salmon farms, Ocean Products.