Data Management Specialist

NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY • Kihei, HI

1d • $70,000 - $78,000

About The Position

The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that is a leading voice for U.S. protected waters, is seeking a Data Management Specialist, a position responsible for serving as a vital link between active marine research and the long-term stewardship of federal data assets. Working within the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, the employee will ensure that scientific and environmental data from the Pacific Islands Region (PIR)—ranging from oceanographic and acoustic monitoring to biological surveys— are documented, archived, and made accessible to the public and policymakers in accordance with NOAA’s Data Management Directives and federal law (e.g., the Evidence Act).

This is a 15-month term position with the possibility of an extension.

The Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) manages “underwater parks” that protect the nation’s most iconic marine resources. The person in this role will ensure that the data collected within these sanctuaries is safely and securely managed, legally compliant and available to the public and policymakers to help protect our oceans for generations.

In this role, the employee will be responsible for moving data through the following phases to ensure it remains a “living” resource for the community:

1. Plan: Creating a Data Management Plan (DMP) for each Sanctuary

2. Inventory: Developing an inventory of data assets for each site. 

3. Collect/Ingest: Organizing raw data from surveys and sensors. 

4. Document: Writing the ISO 19115 metadata and publishing records in InPort

5. Preserve: Submitting validated packages to data repositories.

6. Discover: Enabling access via the ONMS Data Atlas or national catalogs.

The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation is committed to a culture of inclusion, equity, and belonging. We are dedicated to attracting and retaining a diverse staff. We honor experiences, perspectives, and unique identities, and welcome the contributions that you can bring to the dedicated team. With a diverse team of employees, we can grow and learn better together and achieve our mission to protect the health of the ocean, coasts and Great Lakes for current and future generations.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree or higher in Marine Science, Environmental Science, Information Management, or related field. 
• Familiarity with the NOAA Information and Data Management Handbook, ISO 19115 metadata standards, and the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data principles. 
• Experience or ability to learn NOAA-specific tools like InPort, ATRAC (for archive tracking), and ERDDAP data servers. Experience working in coding environments such as R, Python and/or Matlab.
• Understanding of biological, acoustic and oceanographic data types collected in the PIR (e.g., photo and video imagery, acoustic data, biologging data, survey data and GIS shapefiles).
• Strong technical writing skills and the ability to bridge the gap between "science-speak" and "data-governance-speak."

Nice To Haves

• Master’s Degree in related field.
• At least two years of related experience.

Responsibilities

• NAO 212-15B compliance: Develop and maintain a data management workflow for PIR data in compliance with NOAA Administrative Order (NAO) 212-15B.
• Data Management Planning: Work with PIR scientists and staff to develop and update Data Management Plans (DMPs) using established templates. . Ensure plans account for the full data lifecycle, from collection to public dissemination.
• Data Management: Organize, inventory and document new and historical datasets for PIR sanctuaries, including Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Sanctuary, Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, and National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa that still need archiving and metadata development. 
• Archiving Liaison: Support the technical transfer of datasets to approved permanent repositories, such as the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). Facilitate "submission-to-archive" workflows, ensuring data meet format requirements (e.g., netCDF, CSV, GeoTIFF).
• Cross-Sanctuary Strategy: Help implement a unified data strategy across the Pacific Island Region sanctuaries, including Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Sanctuary, Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, and National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa. This includes standardizing vocabulary using keywords and ensuring compliance with the NOAA Information and Data Management Handbook.
• Compliance Monitoring: Track timelines for data publication (typically within two years of collection per NOAA policy) and assist in addressing "Freedom of Information Act" (FOIA) or internal data requests.
• Data products: Help staff develop analytical data products that support the PIR mission.

Benefits

• Dedicated and passionate staff committed to marine and Great Lakes Conservation
• Generous leave policy, plus paid time off the week between December 25 and January 1; and 12 paid holidays
• Health benefits: medical, dental, and vision
• Foundation paid Life and Disability Insurance
• Preparing for the Future: 403(B) with employer contribution after one year of service

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees