Professor Vlietstra has been a faculty member at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy since 2009, although she first joined the Academy as a postdoctoral teaching fellow in 2003.  Currently, she is a professor of Marine Science and serves as Associate Vice Provost for Research in the Office of Scholarship, Research and Innovation. Professor Vlietstra holds a Ph.D. from the University of California-Irvine and teaches courses in marine science, emergency management, and geospatial intelligence. She conducts research into long-term changes in the Arctic Ocean and implications for maritime traffic and marine ecosystems. Other interests include marine pollution and seabird conservation as well as the science of teaching and learning. In addition to teaching, Dr. Vlietstra coordinates research and internship opportunities for cadets interested in exploring problems at the interface between marine science and geospatial intelligence.

Education

• Ph.D., University of California – Irvine, 2003
• M.S., State University of New York – Syracuse, 1998
• B.S., University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, 1994

Selected Publications and Presentations

• Vlietstra, L.S., K.R. Hinrichs, E.R. Bernstein, A. Darden, and M. Martino. 2023. Polar class ship accessibility to Arctic seas north of the Bering Strait in a decade of variable sea ice conditions. Frontiers in Marine Science 10: 1171958, doi: 10.3389/fmars.2023.1171958
• Wainright, S.W., L.S. Vlietstra, H. Uber-Koch, and J.D. Paruk. 2022. Trophic position of wintering common loons (Gavia immer) in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Waterbirds 45(4): 17-28, doi: 10.1675/063.045.0104
• Vlietstra L.S. 2005. Spatial associations between seabirds and prey: effects of large-scale prey abundance on small-scale seabird distribution. Marine Ecology Progress Series 291:275-287.
• Vlietstra, L.S., and J.A. Parga. 2002. Long-term changes in the type, but not amount, of ingested plastic particles in short-tailed shearwaters in the southeastern Bering Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44: 935-945.