National Board of DirectorsThe American Cetacean Society’s National Board of Directors consists of individuals with diverse professional backgrounds and affiliations who bring to the governance of the organization knowledge of conservation science, whale watching, business, finance, education, the arts, and public policy. These eclectic interests are united by their passion for cetacean protection and their desire to advance a new paradigm in marine education, research, and conservation. Meet The ACS National Board of Directors!
Email: [email protected] Born in Amhem, Netherlands, Uko was a professional ballet dancer for 17 years, and is currently a scientific and natural history illustrator, specializing in marine mammal illustration. Uko's illustrations are featured in museum exhibits, interpretive signs, magazines and many publications like the Marine Mammals of the World, A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification, 2nd Edition (Jefferson et al., 2015). Samples of his work can be found on his website, Uko Gorter – Natural History Illustration (www.ukogorter.com). Uko is the President of the Puget Sound Chapter and has provided nearly all of the illustrations for the ACS’s national website, as well as numerous Whalewatcher and Spyhopper publications. He currently lives in Kirkland, WA, with his wife, Susan.
 Diane Glim Secretary and Past ACS National President Email: [email protected] Although raised far from the ocean, Diane became interested in cetaceans at the first Save the Whales symposium held at Indiana University in the 70s. Within the first month of her move to Pacific Grove, California in 1988, Diane discovered the Monterey Bay Chapter of the American Cetacean Society. She became very involved with the chapter in various capacities, and served two terms as Monterey Bay Chapter President and as ACS National President from 2012-2014. Diane is currently Secretary of ACS National. Diane is extremely concerned with the highly endangered status of the vaquita porpoise and helped establish ¡Viva Vaquita! to raise awareness and funds to help save the species. Highlights of her whale life included visiting the gray whale calving lagoons at San Ignacio, Mexico and kayaking among a superpod of orcas off the San Juan Islands. Diane lives in Pacific Grove with her husband and is a certified California Naturalist. She is employed by the Monterey County Weekly newspaper and is a long-time volunteer with the Sea Otter Research and Conservation (SORAC) program at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Ric Matthews Treasurer, Past ACS/SD President and Past ACS National President Ric has taught biology for local community colleges for almost 40 years. First as a professor at San Diego Mirimar College (1982-2002), then served as Dean of MiraCosta College (2002-2011). More recently as an Adjunct Faculty member at San Diego Community College District, and part time adjunct Professor of Biological Sciences. Ric has served as the ACS-San Diego Chapter president from 1972-1976 and then served for two years as the founding National ACS president. As a biologist he has studied various marine mammals. Ric now serves as the ACS National Treasurer.
Anne-Marie Batchelor-Rivers Board Member, President ACS San Francisco Bay Chapter Anne-Marie is a senior human resources executive in the Bay Area. She has been in the field of human resources for the past 15+ years, and has a passion for teaming up with non-profits that support a social justice and socially responsible mission and value statement. She has had a longstanding passion for marine mammals and fish. This passion led her to complete a graduate degree with a focus on marine mammals, specifically pinnipeds. She has volunteered with the California Academy of Sciences, and continues to nurture her love of all things marine by volunteering with the San Francisco Bay Chapter of the American Cetacean Society as their current President, as well as with other local and regional marine-focused organizations.
Joy Primrose Board Member and President of the ACS Oregon Chapter Email: [email protected] Joy is the Founder and President of the American Cetacean Society Oregon Chapter. She brings her passion for public education about whales and conservation to the ACS. In this capacity, Joy has developed the ACS volunteer handbook as well as developed and teaches the ACS Oregon Chapter naturalist training course. Joy developed an interest in cetaceans during her teenage years living in Ohio. After moving to Arizona in 1986 she was able to travel to California and Mexico to go whale watching and explore marine life. After moving to Eugene, Oregon in 1992 she began exploring the Oregon Coast. Joy has been a nurse since 1987, as well as owned and operated a construction company for seven years. She brings her business experience to the ACS National Board of Directors. Joy is a Certified Marine Naturalist (The Whale Museum, Friday Harbor, WA) and a CIG, Certified Interpretive Guide (National Association for Interpretation). She has volunteered with Oregon State Parks Whale Watching Spoken Here Program since 2004 and Oregon State University Hatfield Marine Science Center since 2014 as an interpreter. She previously volunteered as an interpreter at the Oregon Coast Aquarium from 2007-2015. She lives on the Oregon Coast and has two daughters.
Sabena’s experience in both nonprofit leadership and research reflects her passion for cetacean conservation. She has over a decade of experience as a board member of the ACS. Since she founded the ACS Student Coalition in 2011, she has served as the student chair which allows her to recruit new student leaders and support students in campuses across the countryl. Her efforts on the ACS board include serving as the International Whaling Commission representative for ACS and leading the organization's efforts to broaden the scope of cetacean conservation and science outreach beyond the typical ethnic and socioeconomic groups.To promote gender diversity and inclusion in the field, she served as lead editor of the first publication highlighting women cetacean scientists through the ACS Whalewatcher journal titled "Breaking the Surface: women of Cetology". Sabena is currently a PhD student at Oregon State University investigating same-sex behavior in cetaceans. Previously she earned her masters at University of Hawaii conducting humpback whale behavior and acoustics research. She has participated in projects involving cognition, communication, and species distribution in locations such as Egypt, The Bahamas, Hawaii, Florida and the North Atlantic.
Jayne Vanderhagen Board Member and President of the ACS San Diego Chapter Email: [email protected] Jayne is currently the President of the American Cetacean Society San Diego Chapter and a Naturalist on board the Hornblower Whale Watching tours for the San Diego Natural History Museum. Both of these positions allow her to share her joy and passion for marine life while generating awareness and education through lectures, programs, field trips and community events. Her love of the ocean and marine life started as a young child with continuous family visits to the beach watching the dolphins in the surf. As a young adult it was her adventures in sailing and boating that deepened her passion by being able to more closely observe the marine life but it was her trip to San Ignacio in 1999 that captured her heart after looking eye to eye with a gray whale. Although her career life took her to the world of real estate, her passion for the ocean and marine life stayed safe in her heart.
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