Tom Garrison Orange Coast College, University of Southern California, Brooks-Cole Publishing Company
COSEE Role:
Scientist
Primary COSEE Affiliation:
Other affiliations:
- Gulf of Mexico
Interaction with COSEE Network:
Tom Garrison (Ph.D., University of Southern California) is a professor in the Marine Science Department at Orange Coast College 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 Outstanding Marine Educator by the National Marine Technology Society, is a member of the COSEE staff, writes a regular column for the journal Oceanography, and was a winner of the prestigious Salgo-Noren Foundation Award for Excellence in College Teaching. 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. 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 40 years of teaching has allowed him to pass his oceanic enthusiasm to more than 75,000 students. Dr. Garrison travels extensively, and most recently served as a guest lecturer at the University of Hong Kong and the University of Auckland (New Zealand). He has been married to an astonishingly patient lady for 40 years, has a daughter who teaches fourth grade, a son-in-law, two truly cute granddaughters, and a son who works in international trade. He and most of his family reside in Newport Beach, California.
