The UW–ASC is the home of two federal–state partnership programs, the UW Sea Grant Institute and the UW Water Resources Institute. Each institute supports multidisciplinary research, education and outreach for the protection and sustainable use of Wisconsin’s water resources and operates as strong regional and national networks. Hurley holds a M.S. and Ph.D. in Water Chemistry (1988) from UW–Madison and has conducted water resources research, with a focus on mercury cycling, through positions both at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and UW–Madison. He currently serves as co–chair of the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts (WICCI) Science Advisory Board, and was recently named president–elect of the national Sea Grant Association.