Jaime Romany MS Candidate Marine Science The School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Stony Brook University, SUNY

The Hudson River Estuary is home to almost 20 million people. As such it represents one of the most densely populated areas surrounded by coastal waters in the world. Sewage from a significant proportion of these people is discharged into coastal water. It is extremely important to understand the impacts of sewage derived contaminants on indigenous aquatic organisms. Recent data from the laboratories of my advisor have shown that sewage is a source of hormones and hormone mimics that in some cases are persistent in organic-rich sediments.

There are two known groups of potent endocrine mimics in sewage effluent, natural and synthetic hormones and hormone metabolites, and a group of detergent breakdown products called nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPOEs) or nonylphenol ethoxylate metabolites. NPEOs are used in several consumer and personal-care products and occur as synthetic organic compounds in waste water and sewage sludge.  NPEOs are of toxicological interest in the aquatic environment because many of their compounds have been found to mimic, block, or in some way alter the activity of endogenous chemicals that are synthesized by the endocrine system and are thus considered to be endocrine disruptors. Therefore my interest is in examining the extent to which a local fish species, the winter flounder Pseudopleuronectes americanus is responding to these chemicals.

Professional Activities:

The School For Field Studies: Marine Protected Areas in Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). Assessing the advatages of coral reef ecology inside and outside MPAs. Fisheries Management in TCI - the future and current status of the conch and spiny lobster fisheries. Field studies in assisting with the collection of data on various sharks found in the Caribbean.

Current CV:

CURRICULUM VITAE

 Jaime Romany

Spring 2007                                                                           Fall 2007

Chemical Oceanography Biological                                       Oceanography

Geological Oceanography                                                      Physical Oceanography

Toxicology                                                                              Fisheries Management

Work Experience

Stony Brook University: Laboratory Instructor – present

                                        Fundamentals of Scientific Inquiry in the Biological Sciences II

                                        conducting labs, administering examinations, grading lab reports.

Stony Brook University: Teacher’s Assistant – Fall 2007

                                        Environment and Technology – grading student reports and

                                        examinations, assisting students with term projects.

Study Abroad Experience

School for Field Studies: Turks and Caicos – July 2005

                                         Field research on Marine Protected Areas

                                         Focus on Fisheries Management – Turks and Caicos conch and lobster industry.

Honors and Awards
Outstanding Student Scholarship. St. Francis College, 2006

Franciscan Spirit Award, 2005

Who’s Who in American Universities, 2005

Dean’s List Award, 2002 – 2006

St. Francis College Assisi Pilgrim participant, 2004

Student Organizations

Student Government Executive Officer, St. Francis College 2005-2006

Student Government Member, St. Francis College

e-mail:         jromany@ic.sunysb.edu