The Tybee Island Marine Science Center has announced that local writer and community advocate Jessica Leigh Lebos will serve as its Communications and Marketing Director, a position that has not been filled since its move to the North End of the island in 2021. 

According to Chantal Audran, Executive Director of the Tybee Island Marine Science Center, “We have been waiting for the perfect individual to fill this position and the stars aligned with Jessica—she is our dream candidate! The science center will benefit immensely from her communications expertise and strong community engagement. Our Foundation Board of Trustees & Advisors, directors, and staff are elated and look forward to the magic that we will create together.”

Jessica Leigh Lebos has been a member of TIMSC since she and her husband, Savannah native Mark Lebos, moved to the Savannah area in 2006 with their children, who wanted to go to the touch tank and see the turtles at least twice a week. Her media career is long and varied; she has penned articles for local, regional, and national publications and served as Community Editor for Connect Savannah from 2011 to 2018. The author of two books, Savannah Sideways and The Camellia Thief & Other Tales, Lebos focuses on issues and stories affecting the city where she lives, the Georgia coast, and its people. She plans to continue to publish her weekly column, Savannah Sideways, on Substack. 

“The Marine Science Center is such a treasure in the way it brings the environment and its creatures into context—there is real, live science happening here on Tybee Island every day,” says Lebos. “I’m thrilled to lend my skills and voice to share the stories, events, and mission of this inspiring organization as well as the larger narrative of the importance of our local ecosystems.”