Oceanography: An Invitation to Marine Science
Tom Garrison (Ph.D., University of Southern California) is emeritus professor of Marine Science at Orange Coast College (OCC) in Costa Mesa, California, one of the largest undergraduate marine science departments in the United States. Dr. Garrison also holds an adjunct professorship at the University of Southern California. He has been named the country's Outstanding Marine Educator by the National Marine Technology Society, is a founding member of COSEE, writes a regular column for the journal Oceanography, and has written for National Geographic magazine. He was a winner of the prestigious Salgo-Noren Foundation Award for Excellence in College Teaching. Dr. Garrison was an Emmy Award team participant as writer and science advisor for the PBS syndicated Oceanus television series, and writer and science advisor for The Endless Voyage, a set of television programs in oceanography completed in 2003. His widely used textbooks in oceanography and marine science are the college market's best sellers. In 2009, the faculty of OCC selected Dr. Garrison as the institution's first Distinguished Professor, and in 2010, he was honored by the Association of Community College Trustees as the outstanding community college professor in western North America. His interest in the ocean dates from his earliest memories. As he grew up with a U.S. Navy admiral as a dad, the subject was hard to avoid! He had the good fortune to meet great teachers who supported and encouraged this interest. Years as a midshipman and commissioned naval officer continued the marine emphasis; graduate school and 421 years of teaching has allowed him to pass his oceanic enthusiasm to more than 65,000 students. Although he retired from full-time professoring in 2011, he continues to bother OCC staff and students on a regular basis.