Owner

Taylor is the owner of EMA. He has been in love with the ocean his whole life.

When he isn't surfing, he is swimming, snorkeling, SCUBA diving, eating ice cream, speaking some espanol, playing guitar or just running around on the beach like a big, crazy kid. To him, life revolves around the ocean and he wouldn't have it any other way. His spirit animal is an opossum, but he really loves sharks. All of them, but especially the wobbegong. 

Owner

Ling is our EMA "mom". She is the epitome of fun.

Sometimes we wonder where she gets her wild energy, it never runs out. She is a "whale" of knowledge and can answer any question that you have about EMA. If she's not in the lab teaching, dissecting or playing with Tad Cooper, you can catch her on the beach doing yoga, playing in the sand with Indy and Vai, or singing karaoke. (Not really the singing karaoke part, thank goodness.) If she were a sea animal, she would want to be a whale shark, or a seahorse, or an sea turtle, or a black tip reef shark… Or anything, really.

Director of Education

As a military kid, Molly has had the adventures of growing up all over the county, but Surf City is where her heart is. Her love for the ocean blossomed during the days spent exploring beaches from coast to coast. She is passionate about scuba diving, shark tooth hunting, and crafting which allows her to express her creativity while connecting with the sea. Her favorite ocean animal is the Giant Pacific Octopus- it never ceases to amaze her! She cant wait to share her enthusiasm for marine life and inspire others to learn, love, and protect our beautiful oceans.

Assistant Director of Education

Director of Toddler Education

Mikayla has been fortunate to live by the ocean her whole life, and has always been fascinated by its mysteries. Her passion for the ocean began when she was a little girl, and she knew she wanted to study it, though she wasn’t sure exactly how. She attended UNCW, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in marine biology. After graduating, she realized she wanted to teach kids about the ocean. She absolutely loves sharing her knowledge because once people learn more about the ocean, they’re bound to fall in love with it too! She is passionate about sea turtle rehabilitation, marine mammals, and scuba diving. Her favorite ocean animal is the green sea turtle—despite their feisty personalities, they are beautiful creatures!

Director of Operations

Morgan grew up in New Jersey and spent her summers going to the beach, crabbing, and hiking! She moved to North Carolina in 2019 with her husband after graduating college.

She started working at EMA in 2020 as our SUP & Science director where she fell in love with all things ecological marine adventures. Her favorite place to be is the marsh, where she can find her favorite ocean animal: Crabs! If you have been on a ghost crab hunt with us on the beach, chances are Mrs. Morgan has made you dance the YMCA. In 2024, Morgan made the jump from elementary teacher to director of EMA. She will not be out in the field much, but she will jump in on classes any change she gets!

In her free time, she likes finding shark teeth, hanging out with her dogs & husband, helping stray dogs, going to concerts, and singing karaoke.

Assistant Instructor

Ms. Maeve may be one of the youngest in the EMA family, she has gone full circle! She began at EMA almost 10 years ago as a student herself! So, she have been on both sides of the classroom— and she loved her time then and is loving it now! Her favorite animal is a Peacock Mantis Shrimp! They are beautiful, colorful, graceful and they pack a punch! she loves running- the further, the better! She likes to challenge herself to try new things and set new goals! She also loves helping our EMA students do the same inside the classroom! In addition to her time in class, she is responsible for the EMA rodents and classroom animals! (All 9+ of them!) She is a scuba diver, a marathon runner, an animal lover and beach obsessed! She thinks there is nothing better than a salty beach swim! She is excited to share all of her passions with your family!

Lead Instructor

Aloha, this is Laurel! She grew up in land locked states, Nevada and Utah, but she always admired the ocean and felt a pull to it. It wasn’t until she went to college in Hawaii where the ocean became one of her greatest passions! There is this saying, “Malama i ke kai a e malama ke kai iã'oe” which means “the better we care for the Ocean, the better the Ocean will care for us.” She loves being at EMA and teaching our students the importance of being a steward of the ocean and how to love and enjoy the ocean! When she’s not at EMA you can find her hunting for shark teeth and collecting shells at the beach, hiking, hanging out with friends, traveling, photography, and pretty much anything else outdoors! And last but not least, her favorite ocean animals are orcas with sea cucumbers as a close second!

Lead Instructor

Giana is from Raleigh, North Carolina and am an upcoming graduate from UNCW, double majoring in Marine Biology and Environmental Science. 

She’s known that she has wanted to be a marine biologist for as long as she can remember. The ocean makes her happy, and if she’s happy while at work, she’ll never truly work a day in her life! She hopes she can bring her passion for marine biology to future generations, which is why she loves working here at EMA.

When she’s not at EMA, she loves taking her dog for walks, baking, comics/videogames, and anything horror related! 

Her favorite marine animal is the Peacock Mantis shrimp! They have 12 color cones while humans have 3, meaning they can see colors we can’t even imagine! How cool is that?!?

Assistant Instructor