The Oregon State University Sesquicentennial Oral History Project

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Bob Schoning Oral History Interview. November 5, 2014

Bob Schoning Oral History Interview

Life history interview conducted by Mike Dicianna.

November 5, 2014

Location:  Schoning residence, Corvallis, Oregon.

Bob Schoning (b. 1923) spent over fifty years working as a fisheries biologist and policymaker at various levels of government. A nationally ranked handball player for much of his life, Schoning also served his country as a Marine during World War II and the Korean War, and was honored with the Bronze Star for his courage on the battlefield. As director of the National Marine Fisheries Service, Schoning was heavily involved with the crafting of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, an important piece of legislation which established a 200-mile fishery conservation zone buffering the shorelines of the United States. Schoning spent four years as a visiting professor with OSU's Fisheries and Wildlife Department and another sixteen years on the advisory board of the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station. His interview focuses on his military service; his work as a fisheries policymaker; and his multiple associations with OSU.