About Us

When we're not in the field, you can find us at our office located in the Coastal Institute at URI.

University of Rhode Island

The Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network is one of 32 National Park Service Inventory & Monitoring Networks across the country established to conduct baseline resource inventories and implement sustained natural resource monitoring.

Our office is co-located with members of the National Park Service Northeast Regional Stewardship and Science personnel on the campus of The University of Rhode Island within the Department of Natural Resources Science.

Our office mailing address is:

Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network - NPS
University of Rhode Island
Dept. Natural Resources Science
Coastal Institute, Room 105
1 Greenhouse Road
Kingston, RI 02881

Meet Our Team

The network consists of seven year-round National Park Service personnel, as well as several interns and seasonal personnel each year.

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Sara Stevens

Network Program Manager | Contact: [phone]

Sara is our Network Program Manager. From the University of Rhode Island, she received her M.S. in Natural Resources in 1995 and B.A. in Anthropology in 1990. Sara’s graduate research took her to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest of Sergipe, where she studied the effects of forest edge and landscape dynamics on mammal populations. Before joining NCBN in 2001, she was an ecologist for the State of Massachusetts and a wetland ecologist for a Rhode Island consulting firm. Sara is particularly passionate about conserving mammal, bird, and amphibian populations around the world, and often spends her vacation time in Vietnam with her two daughters.

Holly Plaisted

Biologist, Estuarine Water Quality and Seagrass | Contact: [phone]

Holly is a Biologist and Project Lead for NCBN's estuarine water quality and seagrass monitoring. She has a B.S. in Environmental Conservation and an M.S. in Natural Resources from the University of New Hampshire and worked at Cape Cod National Seashore for over 10 years as a Biotech and most recently a Biologist and Data Manager. Her experience includes leading field and laboratory teams in monitoring coastal ecosystems including salt marsh (vegetation, nekton, and breeding birds), estuary (water quality and seagrass), freshwater lake and wetland (water quality and vegetation), and ocean beach in support of natural resource management decision-making. In her previous position with the park, Holly also acted as the park’s state-listed breeding and migrating shorebirds program coordinator. Holly lives on Cape Cod.

Laura Feher

Biologist & Data Manager | Contact: [phone]

Laura is our Data Manager and one of our staff Biologists. She has an M.S. in Biology from the University of Louisiana, a B.S. in Marine Biology from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and a second B.S. in Biology from Salisbury University in MD. Laura previously worked as a research biologist for the USGS, at the Wetland & Aquatic Research Center, in Lafayette, LA. Her field work has included measuring surface elevation tables (SETs), real-time kinematic (RTK) elevation surveys, vegetation community parameters, tree populations, collecting soil samples, and installing water loggers.

Kaitlyn (Katie) Button

Biological Science Technician | Contact: [phone]

Katie is a Biological Science Technician at NCBN. She has a B.S. in Biology from Alfred University and a M.S. in Natural Resource Conservation of Aquatic Resources at Paul Smith’s College. Prior to NCBN, Katie worked as a Biological Science Technician at Cape Cod National Seashore (CACO) to monitor coastal aquatic resources and completed her final Masters project on the impact of saltwater intrusion on freshwater macroinvertebrates in the Herring River, Wellfleet, MA. In addition to her time at CACO, Katie worked as a Biological Science Technician with U.S Fish and Wildlife Service on Long Island, NY to collect post-monitoring data on Hurricane Sandy coastal resiliency projects. Her interest to work with the federal government began as a Conservation Legacy Natural Resource Intern at Fire Island National Seashore, NY. These positions have given her experience with monitoring salt marsh, estuary, and freshwater kettle pond systems throughout the Northeast coast.

Want to join us?

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We regularly host interns through the Scientists in Parks program, with roles ranging from field biology to science communication.
Keep an eye out for new openings on the Scientists-in-Parks website, and check out other opportunities to get involved.

Get to Know Our Work!

See how we conduct ecological inventory and monitoring. Don't forget to also meet our parks and partners.