MERI immerses ocean-loving high school students in the world of marine science
Lucky high school students selected to be MERI Junior Interns survey intertidal species diversity, contribute field-collected data to an international marine life census, monitor and analyze water quality, seed a clam flat, investigate invasive species, and talk informally about careers with MERI scientists, college interns and invited guests.
Fifteen 14-18 year olds possibly interested in practicing or teaching marine science experience two weeks at MERI rich with chances to “learn what it’s all about” says MERI’s Education Director Martha Bell. Scientists and educators participating in the program, begun last year, range from recent graduates to outstanding professionals.
Junior interns enjoy classroom briefings on basic science and field techniques, brainstorming on ocean acidification, oil spills and other current events, lab demonstrations on tissue samples and marine mammal necropsy, and hands on activities indoors and in the field, all designed to give students a window on real world science. The crop of seven Junior Interns welcomed to MERI July 18 hailed from as far as CA and as near as “down the street.”
MERI researchers teaching the student interns serve as personal and professional mentors. They include Blue Hill Bay Monitoring Project Coordinator Meggan Dwyer, assisted by Monitoring Intern Erin Soucy, and recent Fulbright Scholar and Research Intern Sarah Fann, on statistics and Marine protected Areas. Three MERI Education Interns, Marianne Cataldo, Julia Puzak , and Jessica Steve offer training in intertidal species transects, water quality and eelgrass, and marine mammal stranding and rehabilitation, respectively. Assistant Education Coordinator Abby Barrows helps Martha Bell lead the program.
The teens can talk informally with respected professionals and learn about their career paths. Among them, David Gallo, the oceanographer who led the search for the wreckage of Air France flight 447 and helped find the Titanic and the battleship Bismarck, once sold shoes. Anne Cleveland chairs the Corning School of Ocean Studies and is Associate Professor of Marine Biology at Marine Maritime Academy. Sustainable fishery advocate Ginny Olsen knows the business from the inside as a clammer and seafood purveyor. A College of the Atlantic student explains her ocean micro-plastics study in which the average water sample contained 111 pieces of plastic debris. And there’s more.
The program blends the fun of being on the water, including near shore kayaking, with long field days and the hard work of science. Students learn to use equipment at diverse nearby sites, record and input data, create graphs and species lists, and talk about science among peers and ocean mentors.
Students keep journals to sharpen observations in the field and record personal perspectives on their own time. All Junior Interns are invited to attend the Teen Summit in Boston in October, where they can compare notes with eight other student groups surveying New England ocean sites further south this summer.
Planning for next year includes work to expand the program to accommodate 12 students in each of two sessions for a total of 24, pending funding. The modestly priced program costs much more to offer than the fee charged, but is more affordable than other comparable programs. If funding is forthcoming, next year’s program will be more explicitly designed to challenge students to become ocean champions able to contribute to conversations about science and effect positive change via online networking.
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