Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory, Ohio State’s island campus on Lake Erie, said a heartfelt “Thank you” to Jeffrey Reutter, who retired from his position as Ohio Sea Grant director on March 31.
“I feel like I’ve had the best job at the university for about 40 years, but this is good timing for my retirement,” Reutter said.
With accomplishments like the creation of a STEM youth program that reaches 8,000 people every year, more than $1.3 million in endowments for scholarships and research equipment, and partnerships ranging from local communities to international collaborations, he leaves behind a legacy of successes that will benefit Ohio Sea Grant for years to come.
Reutter first joined Ohio Sea Grant in November 1972 to take over management of a project related to the construction of the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station near Port Clinton on Lake Erie. In 1977, he wrote the successful grant proposal that brought the NOAA Sea Grant College Program to Ohio State and was instrumental in its designation as the 24th state Sea Grant College in the U.S. in 1988.
Reutter had previously attended graduate classes at Stone Lab in 1971 and immediately caught the bug.