Notable Alumni

Bio

Duane De Freese '82 M.S., '88 Ph.D. holds a B.S. degree in Zoology from the University of Rhode Island (1976) and M.S. (1982) & Ph.D. (1988) degrees in Marine Biology from Florida Institute of Technology.

Duane was instrumental in helping to secure the U.S. EPA National Estuary Program designation for the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) in 1990. In September 2015, his career came full circle when he was named Executive Director of a new special district of the state of Florida (Indian River Lagoon Council) that will serve as the host of a reorganized IRL National Estuary Program. In this new role, Duane is working with federal, state, and local government agencies, scientific research organizations, academic institutions, elected officials, industry, and the general public. The goal is to develop a restoration strategy for one of the nation's most threatened estuarine ecosystems.

De Freese served as the first program director for the acclaimed Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands Program (1991-1998). In that capacity, Duane spearheaded efforts to secure over $20 million in matching funds to acquire properties in the Indian River Lagoon Blueway, Atlantic Coastal Ridge Scrub, and southern barrier island Maritime Hammock initiatives. From 1998-2008, Duane served as the first Vice President of Florida Research for Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute. In 2008-2009, Dr. De Freese served a 1-year appointment with the Dean of the College of Sciences at the University of Central Florida. He provided leadership at UCF to create a long-range vision and plan for an expanded UCF coastal & sea turtle research center to be located within the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in partnership with USFWS. That vision is being implemented today. His most recent appointment was as Senior Vice President of Science & Business Development at AquaFiber Technologies Corporation. As an AquaFiber senior executive, Duane provided leadership and oversight for all scientific and intellectual property activities associated with the company.

Duane currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Florida Ocean Alliance (Vice-Chair) and was appointed by Governor Rick Scott to serve on the CareerSource Florida Inc. Board of Directors. Duane just completed a two-year term as the President of the Florida Tech Alumni Association Board.