Irene Agnes McCulloch (13 September 1885 - 30 May 1987) was a marine biologist and USC biological sciences professor.[1] McCulloch started at the University of Southern California in 1924 where the marine biology research department lacked funding and resources.[1] To better the research being done, McCulloch convinced George Allan Hancock to fund the G. Allan Hancock Foundation for Marine Research, which was then renamed the Hancock Institute for Marine Studies.[2] McCulloch was given her own foundation in 1969 at USC to continue marine biology research. McCulloch studied microbes within the Pacific Ocean with her main focus being foraminifera.