Dr. Kenneth Sherman

Kenneth Sherman of Peace Dale, RI was a foundational figure at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). He started his government career in 1956 with the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries (the predecessor to NMFS) advocating for science-based multi-species management; an early champion of ecosystem based management with the U.S. MARMAP program, adopted by the United States, it continues to serve as a model for international science and diplomacy. His tireless efforts ensured science-based assessments were standardized and applied for all 63 of the World’s Large Marine Ecosystems (LME). Born in 1932, he spent time as a boy with his father at the Boston Fish Pier, watching the fishermen bringing in their catch, he escaped an ordinary working-class life in the public libraries of Boston and Dorchester to glimpse the wider World at the Museum of Comparative Zoology of Harvard University and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He taught science in elementary schools and worked for the Audubon Society, taking live animals from school to school. After a long and extraordinary life as laborer, husband, father, professor, author, lecturer, director, chair, explorer, adventurer and scientist, he is generally recognized as the (great-grand) father of contemporary U.S. marine science, a legacy cemented by one of his many mentor’s, Henry Bigelow, when that torch was passed and upon Kenneth Sherman's passing this week at the age of 93, over 20,000 students will carry on that legacy globally. He died this week, content with that extraordinary life-well-lived, and a mostly written biography that reads like an adventure novel.

Dr. Sherman, a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, was trained at Suffolk University and the University of RI as a biological oceanographer and over his career authored 200+ publications, 20 book volumes and as editor of reports, chair of committees, convener of meetings, he advanced the LME framework for the management, sustainable use and preservation of living marine resources globally. He was recognized as the pioneer in promoting cooperative multi-national stewardship within the World’s oceans. He served as Director of the Narragansett Laboratory and the Office of Marine Ecosystem Studies, in the National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, (NEFSC) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (1975 - 2012). From 1960 to 1975 he served as a NOAA ocean researcher in laboratories located in Honolulu, Hawaii, BoothBay Harbor, Maine, and Narragansett, Rhode Island. He had a passion for learning and teaching, freely offering his time as mentor, advisor and adjunct Professor of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, with its affiliated Coastal Resources Center, and was the founding Director of NOAA’s Large Marine Ecosystem's Program (2012-2019). As a representative of the United States, he served as Chairman of the Biological Oceanography Committee of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, served on committees of the International Oceanographic Commission, was chief scientist of the Antarctic Program of the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, and as U.S. Project Officer established a joint U.S.-Polish institute for marine ecology during the Cold-War. Always recognized, he was buoyed by Bronze, Silver and Gold medals from U.S. Dept. of Commerce (for service, creativity, leadership). American Fisheries Society (excellence in Biology 2006). In 2010 he was co-recipient of the Göteborg Award for Sustainable Development. Other Göteborg Laureates include former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland (2002), Vice President Al Gore (2007), and former UN Secretary General Kofi Anon (2013). Dr. Sherman’s most recent recognition came during the 32nd IOC-UNESCO Assembly in 2023 where he received N.K Panikkar Medal and delivered a lecture on preserving, assessing and better managing Large Marine Ecosystems and coastal ocean goods and services extensively in the U.S., throughout Canada, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He reflected on his experience as scientific adviser to several UN organizations and the Global Environment Facility on projects throughout the World.

Son of non-English speaking American immigrants, Bessie (Shuster) and Benjamin Sherman, Kenneth (B.S, M.S., D Sc.) ensured his descendants would all have "American Dream" opportunities by earning their degrees and continuing their education. He was the loving husband of Roberta Sherman (B.S.MS.MSed), beloved father of Benjamin H. Sherman (B.S, M.S, Ph.D.), Teaneck, NJ. He was grandfather to Max (B.S, M.S.), Samuel (B.Sci) and Rachel Sherman (B.S.); father to Nancy (B.S., Ed cert) and son-in-law Ken Donnelly(B.S.) and their children, Kevin (B.S., M.S.) and Pip (B.S). He was father to Karen (B.S.) and son-in-law, Bill Riggs (B.S.), parents of Katelyn (A.A.S) and Amy Riggs (B.S, M.S.), and great-grandfather to Ivy and Lily Riggs. He took great pride in making that legacy possible.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a Graveside Service on Sunday, April 12, 2026, at 1:45 PM at Sharon Memorial Park, 40 Dedham Street, Sharon, MA. Please follow signs to Graveside Service which will lead you to the back of the administration building to line up for the burial. In lieu of flowers and donations in Kenneth’s name, he would have asked only that you audit his legacy online course at https://www.coursera.org/learn/large-marine-ecosystems or watch his N.K.Panikkar lecture at www.monitoringecosystems.com or perhaps read a transcript of an oral history: https://www.noaa.gov/digital-collections/noaa-voices/kenneth-sherman