Jeanette Davis

Jeanette Davis
Born	Wilmington, Delaware
Alma mater	Hampton University, University of Maryland
Scientific career
Fields	Marine Biology, Microbiology
Institutions	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Thesis	“Characterization of the bacterial communities associated with two tropical sacoglossan mollusks Elysia rufescens and Elysia crispate”
Website	https://drjeanettedavis /

Jeanette Davisis a marinemicrobiologist,Policy Analyst forNOAAand children's book author.

Early life and education

Jeanette Davis was born inWilmington, Delaware,in 1985. Davis discovered her passion for science at an early age.Unlike her siblings, who preferred video games and athletics, Davis loved spending time outside and experimenting.Her parents and school teachers encouraged her natural curiosity and inquisitiveness.By the time she got to high school, she knew that she wanted to pursue science and applied to colleges as pre-med as well as pre-law. However, when she began undergrad atHampton Universityin Virginia as acriminologymajor, she quickly discovered her interest inmarine science,though her interest in policy and advocacy remained.

Davis was first exposed to marine research during her first undergraduate summer internship, Multicultural Students at Sea Together. During this research experience Davis spent one month sailing aroundChesapeake Bayon a 53-foot sailboat. As an undergraduate student, Davis's favorite courses includedmeteorology,followed bybotany,microbiology,zoologyandgeology.She graduated from Hampton University in 2008 with a B.S. in Marine andEnvironmental Science.The Marine Sciences Department at Hampton University equipped Davis with a strong foundation in marine biology.

Davis went on to receive her PhD in marinemicrobiologyfrom theUniversity of Marylandin 2014, at the Center for Environmental Science's Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology.Davis had initially come to IMET as an intern withNOAA’s Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center (LMRCSC), which also helped fund her studies at IMET.Her dissertation, “Characterization of the bacterial communities associated with two tropicalsacoglossanmollusksElysia rufescensandElysia crispate”,advised by Russell Hill, focused on tracing ananticancercompound back to its production by a bacterium associated with Hawaiian sea slugs.

Career

Davis lives inWashington, D.C.and works as a Policy Analyst andInvasive SpeciesCoordinator for theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA).As a policy analyst, Davis conducts research, writes reports and helps guide ocean resource policies. Some of her work is onOmicstechnologies, which are methods used to analyzeDNA,RNA,proteinsandmetabolites,and creating strategies to integrate them into achieving NOAA’s goals.Additionally, Davis serves as the United States representative for two intergovernmental panels, helping promote and create scientific cooperation between different countries and their governments, and has advised theWhite Houseon ocean science and technology for the coming decade.

Davis has been working at NOAA since she was paired with the organization’sNational Marine Fisheries Servicefor herSea Grantfellowship in 2015. During this fellowship she helped withsea turtleresearch andconservation,co-authoring a NationalBycatchReport.After she completed her fellowship, she became a Research Associate with the NOAA Fisheries Office of Science and Technology.

Public engagement

Davis has visited more than a dozen countries and many colleges to talk about ocean science. She has been featured in magazines such asEbony,Essence,andBlack Enterprise,dubbed as the “next great marine scientist”.Davis is a strong advocate for community involvement and empowering young people.She has mentored many students in elementary school through college and continues to mentor younger scientists at NOAA.To give back to youth in her hometown of Wilmington, where there are high rates ofpovertyandhomicide,she founded the Marquis Pressey Scholarship. The Marquis Pressey Scholarship honors her cousin who was murdered several years ago and helps African American men through college.

Davis also works to empower and diversify the next generation of scientists, with her children’s book,“Science is Everywhere, Science is for Everyone”.Her book was featured as the #1 Hot New Release in Children’s School Issues onAmazon,and is the first in a series Davis plans to publish.

Awards and honors

• Sea GrantJohn A. KnaussMarine Policy Fellowship beginning in 2015
• 2020 Technology Rising Star Award from NOAA at the annualWomen of ColorinSTEMconference

Selected publications

• Zan, J., Li, Z., Dianery Tianero, M.,Davis, J.,Hill, R.T., and M.S. Donia. (2019). A microbial factory for defensive kahalalides in a tripartite marine symbiosis. Science 364:eaaw6732.doi:10.1126/science.aaw6732
• Montalvo, N.F.,Davis, J.,Vincente, J., Pittiglio, R., Ravel, J., and R.T. (2014). Integration of Culture-Based and Molecular Analysis of a Complex Sponge-Associated Bacterial Community. PLOS ONE 9(3): e90517. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0090517
• Davis, J.,Fricke, F., Hamann, M.T., Esquenazi, E., Dorrestein, P.C., and R.T. Hill. (2013). Characterization of the Bacterial Community of the Chemically Defended Hawaiian Sacoglossan Elysia rufescens. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 79 (22) 7073-7081;doi:10.1128/AEM.01568-13
• Davis, J.(2020). Science is Everywhere, Science is for Everyone. Atlanta, Georgia: Mynd Matters Publishing.ISBN978-1948145671
• Goodwin, K., Certner, R., Strom, M., Arzayus, F., Bohan, M., Busch, S., Canonico, G., Cross, S.,Davis, J.,Egan, K., Grieg, T., Kearns, E., Koss, J., Larsen, K., Layton, D., Nichols, K., O’Neil, J., Parks, D., Poussard, L., and C. Werner. (2020). NOAA ‘Omics White Paper: Informing the NOAA ‘Omics Strategy and Implementation Plan. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.doi:10.25923/bd7z-zb37
• Goodwin, K.,Davis, J.,Strom, M., and C. Werner. (2020). NOAA ’Omics Strategy: Strategic Application of Transformational Tools. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, National Marine Fisheries Service.https://nrc.noaa.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=RReWVFNjr5I%3d&tabid=92&portalid=0