TEAM
CoastX Team
CoastX is led by an experienced team of educators, entrepreneurs, and blue economy professionals.
Susan Johnson
Co-Founder
Executive Director
Susan has over 35 years of experience as a Maine educator and designer of powerful and innovative learning environments that put students at the helm of their learning.
She has worked as a classroom teacher and led Promising Futures, a high school transformation grant program, for the Maine Department of Education.
She has spent the last 10 years as the Expanded Learning Opportunities Coordinator at Traip Academy building an internship program, wooden boat building program (4 boats completed and 2 on strongbacks!) and the Changemaker Innovation program supporting students’ innovative and entrepreneurial
investigations into the superpowers of seaweed and the blue economy.
Susan has raised and administered almost $6 million in federal, state, and private funds.
Ian Grant
Co-Founder
Innovation & Start-up Specialist
Ian brings over 25 years of start-up and innovation experience. He founded/co-founded 3 companies that were all acquired.
He launched and ran the University of New Hampshire's Entrepreneurship Center (ECenter) for over 7 years helping students bring their ideas to become launched companies. He coached students to many wins at UNH and National business plan competitions. The ECenter won multiple recognition awards for its programs. He raised $8 million in philanthropy for the UNH ECenter.
Ian's passion for the ocean started as a child when he summered with his family at MDIBL in Salisbury Cove, ME
Jim Case
Co-Founder
Ocean Engineer
Founded OCEANZUS™ and Case Ocean Services LLC, an innovative marine technology company dedicated to advancing ocean exploration and sustainability, in 2015. Competed in the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE competition (semifinalist) and remains focused on developing cutting-edge solutions for autonomous underwater data collection, marine renewable energy, and remote environmental monitoring.
Engaged in community outreach programs like MTS/MATE and CoastX to inspire the next generation of marine stewards to protect and preserve the oceans for future generations.
Matt Scheuer
Co-Founder
Ocean Engineer
Matt is an entrepreneur and engineer passionate about using technology to benefit the ocean.
He launched Electrona Robotics, a startup that developed a low-cost ROV platform for ocean exploration and education.
Matt has been involved in numerous environmental technology and education projects. He is currently working on subsea research gliders at Hefring Engineering in Gloucester.
Betsy
Wish
CoastX Artists-in-Residence
Betsy Wish is a multifaceted artist and community figure based in Kittery, Maine. After retiring from a career in education, she relocated to Kittery in 2007, where she immersed herself in the local arts scene and community initiatives. Known for her inventive mixed-media sculptures, Wish often incorporates recycled materials, reflecting her commitment to environmental sustainability. She has conducted various workshops at the Kittery Art Association, including sessions on eco-sculpture and mixed-media gift boxes, fostering creativity and environmental awareness among participants
Beyond her contributions to the arts, Wish is affectionately known in the community for her unique initiative dubbed "kayaking with cookies." For over a decade, she has paddled along the local waterways, accompanied by her dog Maggie, delivering homemade cookies to lobstermen as a gesture of goodwill and community building.
Scott Heisey
CoastX Artists-in-Residence
Scott Heisey is a trained artist, and third generation NH lobsterman with over 40 years experience fishing coastal waters. Scott is in a unique position to intimately observe both the amazing diversity within the Piscataqua River Basin as well as the ever increasing changes in the local fisheries due to disruptive environmental impacts.
Jiff Cornwell
CoastX Artists-in-Residence
Artist-Educator Jiff Cornwell has been teaching classes and workshops on the NH Seacoast, Western Mass, and Guatemala in a myriad of settings, including Alternative Schools for teens, Adult Education, Art Schools, International Travel Programs, as well as Vocational and NGO programs in Guatemala.
She is a firm believer in the power of imagery, creative energy, and art exploration to offer paths to deep insight and positive change for all who engage in art making.
Caroline Cirillo
Programming & Marketing Intern
Caroline Cirillo is a dedicated student at the University of New Hampshire, majoring in Environmental Conservation & Sustainability with a minor in Digital Marketing. Her diverse experience spans social media marketing, public outreach, and environmental education through leadership roles with the UNH Panhellenic Council, Order of Omega, Seacoast Science Center, and the UNH Sustainability Institute.
Caroline combines a passion for environmental science with a talent for digital communication, using creative strategies to make complex sustainability issues more accessible and engaging. Her work reflects a strong blend of innovation, purpose-driven messaging, and a deep-rooted commitment to positive environmental impact.
We need your consent to load the translations
We use a third-party service to translate the website content that may collect data about your activity. Please review the details in the privacy policy and accept the service to view the translations.