Lindsey Christ, Executive Director of IFS, Farewell Message

After 9 seasons with IFS and Forfar Field Station, I am moving on from the organization.  It has been an honor to take over for Dr. Ben Bohl and help move the organization forward.  I am very proud of what we were able to accomplish during my time which includes upgrading all the electrical wiring on the field station, adding a septic tank, remodeling all the guest cabins, replacing the vehicles and boat engines, and purchasing a new boat.

In the Bahamas, we established Forfar Field Station as a nonprofit, strengthened our relationships and partnerships with BAMSI, BNT, & the Reef Rescue Network, and continued to work within our local settlements on Andros as a valued member of the community.  In the office, we created a website, social media presence, digitized all the files and forms and refreshed the logo.  Each year, we had balanced budgets and created a financial safety net that allowed us to weather the literal storms such as Hurricane Matthew and the figurative storm of COVID-19 which shut down the operations for over 6 months and impacted our programs for nearly 2 years.

 We worked tirelessly to improve processes and safety at the field station and significantly increased the pay of the local and educational staff.  As a former student in 1996 and 1998, it was a dream job to become the 2nd Executive Director of International Field Studies, Inc.  I will miss my staff at the field station and in the office who have come to be known to me as family.  I will value the relationships I have fostered on Andros with businesses, organizations, and individuals.  Thank you for a great run and wish nothing but the best for IFS for the future!

I am also proud to introduce my replacement, Mike England.  As a former intern and Station Director, Mike comes back to IFS with a true passion and love for the organization and the people who make the organization run.  I have spent the last few months working with Mike to get him up to speed and I feel good about leaving the organization in his hands with the direction of our Board of Trustees.  The future for IFS remains bright!

Lindsey Christ
Executive Director (Nov ‘15-July ‘24)