Contact: Jeanne Kouhestani,       FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
         Public Affairs           9/17/96
         Judy Sohl, 
         Teacher at Sea Program                    

TEACHERS TAKE HANDS-ON OCEAN RESEARCH EXPERIENCE BACK TO CLASSROOMS THIS FALL

Students across the country may learn about marine science in an exciting new way this school year, through the eyes and perceptions of teachers who have participated in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Teacher at Sea program.

"You don't just tell us about it from a book. You've actually done it," said a student to Todd Tarrant, a teacher at Beaverton High School in Midland, Mich., during a lesson in which Tarrant applied his experiences aboard the NOAA fisheries research ship David Starr Jordan to his classroom curriculum and made science come alive.

The enthusiasm for learning generated between teachers and students is the biggest payoff of NOAA's Teacher at Sea program, where teachers from kindergarten through college go aboard NOAA hydrographic, oceanographic and fisheries research vessels to work under the tutelage of scientists and NOAA Corps commissioned officers and crew. Now in its sixth year, the program has enabled 180 teachers -- 44 in 1996 -- to gain first hand experience in science at sea. Teachers can enrich their classroom curricula with a depth of understanding made possible by living and working side-by-side, day and night, with those who contribute to the world's body of scientific knowledge.

"I cannot imagine any other experience that could equal the Teacher at Sea program for learning how marine scientists work and how people live aboard working ships. Living on the ocean while studying it carries an impact that will direct you to share with others exactly how and why these studies need to be done," said Betty Moellenberg, an elementary school teacher in Idalia, Colo. "Being able to share real life experiences with your students is second best to their being there. I remember best those teachers who taught us about things they had seen or done first hand. I trusted their information and shared in their excitement, sometimes experiences they had had years before."

To participate in the program, teachers must be willing to submit a detailed report of the cruise and ideas for implementation in the classroom, including a mini-unit of lessons based on experiences at sea and data collected. They must also submit an article for publication or conduct a presentation at an educators' conference for colleagues. And although the program itself is free of charge, teachers are responsible for paying their own transportation to the ships' departure points. Sometimes a teacher's school board or administration will pick up the costs.

Todd Tarrant went on one cruise last year and two cruises this year -- covering two types of fisheries research and hydrographic surveying and charting. During the past school year, he used slides taken during his 1995 cruise aboard the David Starr Jordan not only to illustrate the science he was teaching and to pass along cruise research data, but to get his students thinking about future careers. "The slides helped my students understand what kinds of jobs are available at sea. I told them what they had to do to prepare for those kinds of jobs, and how to go after summer jobs that would give them the experience needed to make good career choices," he said. "Some potential oceanographers may discover that they get very seasick, and decide to pursue a different career. Others may discover the joy of a life's vocation."

Teacher at Sea is coordinated by Judy Sohl through the Office of NOAA Corps Operations at the Pacific Marine Center in Seattle, Wash. According to ONCO Director Rear Admiral William Stubblefield, the program offers a "win-win situation where teachers gain valuable field experience and research skills, and the ships gain eager volunteers who, through their enthusiasm for learning, boost the morale of everyone on board."

Teachers can request applications for 1997 from Judy Sohl at (206) 553-2633 or write to her at Teacher at Sea Program, 1801 Fairview Ave. E., Seattle, WA 98102. Applications are due between Jan. 1 and March 8, 1997. Applicants are rated by a review panel on how they intend to incorporate their experiences into their classroom curricula. Successful applicants can choose from several research missions ranging from one to three weeks on the East, West or Gulf coasts, and only have to pay for their transportation to and from the ship. The program costs taxpayers nothing, but ultimately many people, including students, gain a greater awareness of the need to understand and protect the ocean and its resources.

"I went into this project with a lot of hesitation and fears, and came out with a deep feeling for the sea and a sense of commitment to share with my kids and other teachers -- respect and awe, and the knowledge we must learn what we can in order to save both the sea and its inhabitants," Moellenberg said.

     
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NOTE: Further information about the NOAA Corps, the commissioned service that sponsors the Teacher at Sea program and operates and manages the NOAA fleet, can be found on the Internet at http://www.noaa.gov/nchome.

A list of participating teachers and their home towns is attached.

1996 TEACHER AT SEA PARTICIPANTS

Alaska
- Patrick Krepel, Bristol Bay Borough (middle/high), 907/246-4265, Naknek 
  NOAA Ship Whiting (hydrography) 
Arizona
- Joel Blutfield, Alice Vail Middle, 520/512-3480, Tucson
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography) 
- Kenneth R. Harkey, Jr., Flagstaff High School, 520/773-8100, Flagstaff
  NOAA Ship Discoverer (oceanographic- VENTS) 
California
- Edith (Morri) Spang, Wildwood School (elementary), 310/397-3134, x719, Los Angeles
  NOAA Ship Oregon II (shark assessment) 
- JoAnne B. Sims, Victoria Avenue School (elementary), 213/567-1261, South Gate
  NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell (swordfish)
- Jim McDonald, Monte Gardens Elementary,  510/685-3834, Concord 
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (shark abundance)
- William Stephenson, Diablo Valley College, 510/685-1230, x401, Pleasant Hill
  NOAA Ship Whiting (hydrography)
Colorado
- Betty Moellenberg, Idalia School (elementary), 970/354-7298, Idalia
  NOAA Ship McArthur (Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary)
Florida
- Mary Carp, Martin County High, 407/287-0710, x423, Stuart
  NOAA Ship Chapman (reef fish)
Illinois
- Doug Drexler, Batavia Middle School, 708/879-4620, Batavia
  NOAA Ship Whiting (hydrography)
- Steven Johnson, Frazier School (elementary), 217/662-2102, Georgetown
  NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell (protected species investigation camps)
Kansas
- Sandy Tauer, Derby Middle School, 316/788-8580, Derby
  NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell (protected species investigation camps)
Massachusetts
- Kimberly Hoffman, Doherty Memorial (high), 508/799-3270, Worcester
  NOAA Ship Chapman (reef fish)
- Jennifer Kelly, Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High, 508/692-6907, x267, Bridgewater
  NOAA Ship Albatross IV (sea scallop survey)
Maryland
- Sarah Clemmitt, Montgomery Blair (high), 301/650-6676/6688, Silver Spring
  NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell (protected species investigations)
- Greg Anderson, Gettysburg College (K-12), 717/337-6150, Gettysburg
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography).  NOTE: lives in Maryland
Maine
- Richard Glueck, Orono Middle School, 207/866-4916, Orono
  NOAA Ship Whiting (hydrography)
Michigan
- Todd Tarrant, Beaverton High School (also college classes), 517/435-7783, Beaverton
  NOAA Ships Oregon II (groundfish) and Rainier (hydrography)
- Timothy Lutes, Cooke Middle School, 810/349-3400, Northville
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography)
- Gary Dewey, Holland Christian (middle), 616/396-5231, Holland
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (shark abundance)
Missouri
- Thomas Allen, O'Neal Elementary, 573/785-3037, Poplar Bluff
  NOAA Ship Albatross IV (autumn bottom trawl)
- Cathleen Carleton, Nixa High School, 417/725-7450, Nixa
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (rockfish)
New Jersey
- Nancy Krause, Mannington Township (middle), 609/935-1078, Salem
  NOAA Ship Miller Freeman (Bering Sea pollack)
New York
- Steven Kaye, James Madison High, 718/377-1184, Brooklyn
  NOAA Ship Discoverer (oceanography-VENTS)
- Karen Pakkala, Trumansburg Elementary, 607/387-7551, Trumansburg
  NOAA Ship Albatross IV (sea scallop survey)
Ohio
- Carolyn Nybell, Boardman Center Middle School, 216/726-3400, Youngstown
  NOAA Ship Chapman (reef fish)
- Marilyn Parkes, LaCroft Elementary, 330/386-8770, East Liverpool 
  NOAA Ship Townsend Cromwell (swordfish)
Oregon
- Jeff Auvinen, McNary High School, 503/399-3233, Keizer
  NOAA Ship Oregon II (southeast Atlantic marine assessment)
- Billie Jo Smith, Toledo High School, 541/336-5104, Toledo 
  NOAA Ship Albatross IV (sea scallop survey)
- Wayne Brown, Hidden Valley High, 503/862-2124, Grants Pass
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography)
Pennsylvania
- Dr. Ann Throckmorton, Westminster College, 412/946-7209, New Wilmington
  NOAA Ship Miller Freeman (Bering Sea pollack)
- Sister Jeremy Mahla, S.C., The DePaul Institute, 412/561-4848, Pittsburgh
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (rockfish)
Tennessee
- Michael Dalton, St. Andrew's-Sewanee School (middle/high), 615/598-5651, St. Andrews
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography)
- Becky Ashe, West High School, 423/594-4477, Knoxville
   NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography)
Texas
- Lisa Reid, May I.S.D. (middle/high), 817/259-2131, May
  NOAA Ship Miller Freeman (oceanography/fisheries)
- Philip Dodson, Los Fresnos High, 210/233-3300, Los Fresnos
  NOAA Ship Rainier (hydrography)
Virginia
- Marvin Hedgepeth, Menchville High School, 804/886-7722, Newport News
  NOAA Ship Chapman (reef fish)
- Marianne Riddile, Robinson Secondary School, 703/978-5901, Fairfax
  NOAA Ship Chapman (reef fish)
Washington state
- Brad Jernberg, Centennial Middle, 360/563-2500, Snohomish
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (juvenile rockfish)
- Linda Gillespie, substitute teacher (K-12), 206/542-6055, Seattle
  NOAA Ship David Starr Jordan (rockfish)
- Timothy Schmidt, Stanwood Middle School, 360/629-6510, Stanwood
  NOAA Ship Oregon II (shark assessment)
- Beverly Schultz, Chase Lake Elementary, 206/670-7311, x230, Edmonds
  NOAA Ship McArthur (Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary)
- Larry Finnestad, Kalles Junior High, 206/841-8664, Puyallup
  NOAA Ship Miller Freeman (oceanography, fisheries)
Wisconsin
- Scott Fleischmann, West Bend West High, 414/335-5588, West Bend
  NOAA Ship Oregon II (southeast Atlantic marine assessment, groundfish)