Who We Are
meet our team
Prassede Vella, Executive Director
Prassede Vella became Executive Director in 2026 after serving as the program scientist since joining the MassBays National Estuary Partnership in 2010. Prassede manages overall program direction and MassBays staff and works closely with the five regional service providers that bring the support of MassBays to local communities. She is responsible for fostering MassBays' strong local and agency partnerships, and implementing the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, the blueprint that directs MassBays' work to improve the estuaries and the wellbeing of the communities dependent on them. Prassede holds a B.Sc. in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Malta, a M.Sc. in Biology (Marine) from the University of Malta, and a M.S. in Environmental Science with a focus on Policy from the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Jill Carr, Habitat Program Manager
Jill Carr specializes in coordinating environmental monitoring and coastal habitat mapping projects. She provides technical assistance to nongovernmental organizations by assisting them with project planning, data analysis, and visualization, and getting their data to decision-makers. Jill enjoys interdisciplinary collaborations and research projects that influence natural resource management, and that aim to restore, inventory, and protect coastal habitats. Jill holds a B.S. in Coastal Studies from the University of Connecticut and a M.S. in Geo-information Science, Remote Sensing, from Salem State University.
Aaron Shavitz, Graduate Student Research Assistant
Margherita Pryor, NEP Coordinator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 1
Margherita Prior has served in several positions with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before reaching the Office of Marine and Estuarine Protection. Her experiences have included the review of guidelines and regulations for industrial discharges, defining the term “recycle” in order to establish guidance under RCRA (the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act), helping to launch GPRA (Government Performance and Results Act) as a special assistant in the Office of Science Policy , and as an editor in the Office of Public Affairs. Margherita has worked with the National Estuary Program from its beginning in 1987 and with various NEPs around the country. Since coming to EPA in Boston, she has been the regional NEP coordinator/project officer for the Narragansett Bay NEP and now for MassBays. Margherita currently serves as project officer for the RI beach program and the Southeast New England (SNEP) program with Restore America’s Estuaries.
The Pam DiBona MassBays Endowment Internship Fund
MassBays is honored to announce the establishment of the Pam DiBona MassBays Endowment Internship Fund, created to celebrate Pam's remarkable legacy and her enduring contributions to coastal conservation in Massachusetts. This endowment was initiated by the Association of the National Estuaries Programs (ANEP) and will live within UMass Boston.
