Jesse Reiblich never intended on becoming a professor, but in September 2022, he decided to step away from the field of law and pursue his passion in marine affairs at the University of Rhode Island.
Born in Tucson, Arizona, Reiblich spent most of his school and work career in Miami, Florida. Reiblich gained an interest in marine affairs after reading surfing magazines – finding his area of interest in science and environmental protection.
Reiblich earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and English with a minor in environmental studies at the University of Florida in 2006. After spending time working in the field, Reiblich decided in 2008 to head back to UF – this time to study law.
Focused on environmental law, Reiblich earned his Juris Doctor degree and became certified in environmental and land use in 2011. Reiblich then earned his master’s degree in environmental and land use law in 2013.
Reiblich used his degrees in a variety of different forms of work.
“I have done everything from working in the private sectors of law firms and then at previous institutions similar to URI [that are] research academic institutions,” said Reiblich. “I also served on the legal issues team for the Surf Rider Foundation, so that’s a voluntary position where I volunteer my time to help with any other legal issues.”
One notable job Reiblich worked for was his time spent in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“I did things like judicial clerkships in the U.S. Virgin Islands for the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands,” Reiblich said. “We worked on what’s called the Coastal Master Plan for the state as well as the state’s first ocean plan.”
After working in the field since 2006, Reiblich decided it was time for a change within his career.
“It kinda didn’t make sense to do anything else, because I had published a bunch of articles and then I had also been at institutions where I had been teaching,” Reiblich said.
The soon-to-be professor set his sights on a place to teach and landed a position in the Ocean State.
“Several people had sent me the job posting for this position because it kinda fit well with my background,” Reiblich said. “There weren’t many other people in the country with the legal aspect or background related to marine affairs, so it’s kinda why I ended up here.”
Reiblich has worked for the college since September 2022 as a professor in the Department of Marine Affairs.
Reiblich has taught classes like marine and coastal law to students at the undergraduate and graduate level.
“I try to implement law school teaching, like a law style class, and that can be challenging at times,” Reiblich said. “I am much more understanding [and] less strict than a lot of law professors are.”
Reiblich has students learn through active class discussions. This method gets students thinking of topics they might not have thought of before, Reiblich said.
“I also understand that’s almost like a confrontational way of teaching,” Reiblich said. “So I try to be more understanding if students don’t want to participate, in that I don’t push.”
What matters most to Reiblich is that students walk away learning something that they are passionate about.
“What I like the most is that there are so many people that are passionate about it,” Reiblich said. “That’s what drives our students to major in marine affairs.”
Reiblich said he is also very grateful for the Department of Marine Affairs team.
“I think the college and the department have been very supportive,” Reiblich said. “I’ve been given a lot of resources. I have a teaching assistant, whereas if I were teaching a 100-student law class, I wouldn’t [that].”
To learn more about ocean research and Reiblich’s department go to the marine affairs department website .