A collaborative research and outreach effort led by Oregon State University to protect whales and sustain Oregon’s commercial Dungeness crab fishery has been named the C. Peter Magrath Community Engagement Scholarship Award winner. The award goes to the Oregon whale entanglement project, a transdisciplinary team led by Leigh Torres of OSU’s Marine Mammal Institute and Oregon Sea Grant Extension.
The award was presented by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities at its annual meeting Nov. 9-11 in Philadelphia, and is named for C. Peter Magrath, a former APLU president and leading advocate for public universities embracing the concept of outreach and community engagement. Recipients of the Magrath Award receive a sculpture and cash prize of $20,000.
OSU Provost and Executive Vice President Roy Haggerty accepted the award on behalf of the project team.
“This recognition is not just about a project. It’s about demonstrating that rigorous academic standards and authentic community partnerships aren't competing values — they're complementary strengths,” Haggerty said in his acceptance speech. “We are grateful to the APLU for this honor, and even more grateful for the lasting partnerships and impact this work represents. It is proof of what’s possible when universities show up, listen and follow through.”
In August, the Oregon whale entanglement project was recognized as one of four regional winners of the 2025 W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Engagement Scholarship Award, a precursor to the national Magrath award.
The project began when Oregon’s largest commercial fishery faced a threat: rising reports of whale entanglements in fishing gear. Entanglement can drown whales, cause injury and impair their ability to swim or feed. Since 2016, OSU scientists have worked alongside the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), commercial fishing industry members and environmental organizations to identify high-risk areas and seasons for entanglement and develop strategies to reduce them.
The Oregon whale entanglement project team includes:
- Torres, associate professor, Marine Mammal Institute, the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences and Oregon Sea Grant.
- Amanda Gladics, associate professor of practice, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Oregon Sea Grant and OSU Extension Service.
- Solène Derville, post-doctoral researcher, Marine Mammal Institute and the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences.
- Lindsay Wickman, post-doctoral researcher, Marine Mammal Institute and the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences.
- Craig Hayslip, faculty research assistant, Marine Mammal Institute and the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences.
- Scott Baker, professor, Marine Mammal Institute and the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences.
- Troy Buell, state fishery management program leader, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
- Kelly Corbett, shellfish program leader, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
- Brittany Harrington, marine life entanglement project leader, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
- Members of the Oregon Entanglement Advisory Committee.
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