Ocean Institute Leadership
Dr. Wendy Leavell
CEO and President
Riley Russell
Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer
Robyn Takeshita
Director of Education
Kaitlyn Davidson
Director of Development and Marketing
Jessica Brasher
Senior Director of Husbandry and Facilities
Reina Myers
Husbandry Operations Manager
Connor Ito
Husbandry Life Support Manager
Isabela Farinella
Growth Marketing Manager
Joshua Burns
Facilities Manager
Jack Parker
Port Captain
Logan Siemens
Public Programs Assistant Manager
Sofia Terry
Senior Coordinator, Volunteer and Teen Programs
Sara Russell
Guest Services Coordinator
Sarah Zonis
Husbandry Coordinator
Jodi Parker
Booking Coordinator
Sophia Carter-Peters
Development Coordinator
Kathy Jones
Gift Store Buyer
Michael Gago
School Programs Coordinator
Lindsey Bruno
Event and Facility Rental Coordinator
Marlo Gray
Staff Accountant
Brittany Loust
R/V Sea Explorer Captain
Peter Heistand
R/V Sea Explorer Captain
John Kraus
Spirit of Dana Point Captain and Restoration Manager
Azael Mazun
Outreach Specialist
Miranda Lentz
Communication Specialist
Dr. Wendy Leavell
CEO and President
Dr. Wendy Leavell serves as CEO and President. She joined the Ocean Institute in 2017 as Vice President of Education and brings leadership experience in education organizations in for-profit and non-profit sectors, including USC, Houghton Mifflin, College Board, and the Discovery Cube. Wendy has a doctorate in education from USC, where she earned the Dissertation of the Year award for her research in 2012.