2012–2013 - College of Arts and Sciences - Nova Southeastern ...

Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences
3301 College Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33314-7796
I n
M e m o r i a m
Edward O.
Keith, Ph.D.
As an associate professor at the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, Edward O. Keith, Ph.D.,
shared with students his lifelong passion for marine mammals and manatee preservation. His valuable biological
research included almost a decade of field studies in Veracruz, Mexico, where his expeditions often included
colleagues and students.
Keith, 60, who taught as a joint faculty member at the college and NSU’s Oceanographic Center, died of cancer
on September 14, 2012, in Miami, Florida, as he prepared to begin chemotherapy treatment.
“Ed has had a profound impact on many people and much of our community,” said Don Rosenblum, Ph.D., dean
of the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences. “He has been with NSU since 1986 and was an esteemed and
valued member of our faculty. He will be dearly missed.”
Keith’s principal interests included conservation, ecology, evolution, and the physiology of marine mammals such
as whales, dolphins, and manatees. His research of marine mammals and vertebrate ecology focused on long-term
studies of Florida’s manatees, including efforts to find a technological solution to prevent boating-related manatee
deaths. He also collaborated on conservation projects for Antillean manatees in Mexico and Panama.