Promoting Interest in
Ocean Sciences Through
Partnerships Between
a College, Aquarium, and
Nonprofit Organization
The current Marine Science course offerings at Suffolk
County Community College (SCCC) include:
• Introduction to Oceanography
• Marine Biology
• Marine Habitat Ecology
All of these courses are for non-majors. The faculty at
SCCC have developed a variety of activities to engage
these students and recruit them into the field of Marine
Science. Many of the activities involve partnerships with
a local aquarium: The Long Island Aquarium &
Exhibition Center, a local nonprofit organization: The
Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and
Preservation, and a four year university: The State
University of New York at Stony Brook.
Methods
We engage students and encourage their interest in Marine
Science through a variety of activities:
•Marine Science Club
•Invited Guest Speakers
•Field Trips
•Internships
We would like to thank the Riverhead Foundation
for Marine Research and Preservation, the Long
Island Aquarium and Stony Brook University for all
of their support.
Jean R. Anastasia1 and Marianne McNamara
Suffolk County Community College
Selden, NY
Background
Results
Future Plans
Acknowledgements
•Increase our post-graduation contact with alumni to
track their progress in pursuit of a career in Marine
Science and monitor the success of our efforts.
•Increase participation in our internship programs
and develop an internship course specific to Marine
Science Interns
•Develop a research internship with Stony Brook
University faculty.
•Develop a Marine Science Major at SCCC
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We sent out surveys to approximately 15 students that
participated in the Marine Science Club and our
internship programs.
• Only 4 alumni responded but all respondents said
that the internships, club participation, seminar
series and field trips were positive experiences.
• One of the students that interned at the Riverhead
foundation said the following:
“having the opportunity to work with the
Riverhead Foundation has helped me make the
decision to get a Masters in Marine Science”
Internships
Invited Guest Speakers
Field trips
Marine Science
Club
For students who want to be even more immersed in
the field of Marine Science, we offer internship
opportunities at the Riverhead Foundation and the
Long Island Aquarium.
Field trips are run either through the courses at SCCC
or through the Marine Science Club. The goals of
these trips are to expose students to a variety of local
marine habitats & organisms and provide experiences
related to careers in the marine sciences.
The Marine Science Club is advised by Dr. Marianne
McNamara and is a student run organization. The
club allows students with an interest in Marine
Science to meet like-minded students and get more
involved. This club has hosted guest speakers and led
field trips on research vessels and to perform a dolphin
necropsy.
Every semester, the Biology Department at SCCC
hosts an Outreach Program consisting of a series of
guest speakers. We have had speakers from the
Riverhead Foundation, Stony Brook University and
the Blue Ocean Institute, among others. We have also
had alumni return to talk to students. The lectures are
very well attended and students are exposed to various
jobs and fields of study within the Marine Sciences.
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2c
2d
From Left to Right: Tom Wilson from Stony Brook University discusses research
vessels; SCCC Alumni Marco Ponzo, AJ Fiske & Kevin Gandhi talk to SCCC
students about life at Stony Brook University; Dr Joseph Warren from Stony Brook
University discusses whale feeding behaviors
Students from the Oceanography and Marine Biology classes visit the Long Island
Aquarium and explore the Peconic Bay and its beaches on the Aquarium’s Explorer
Tour Boat
Steve Abrams from Stony Brook University shows students the catch of the day from
the Long Island Sound on the RV Seawolf (left); students explore Moriches Bay on a
cruise from Stony Brook University’s Southampton Campus (center and right).
Students from the Marine Science Club participate in a dolphin necropsy at the
Riverhead Foundation and get to actually see the counter-current heat exchange
system.
Ocean Science Meetings
Honolulu, Hawaii
2014
1 contact person email: [email protected]
Interns working with sea turtles and seals at the Riverhead Foundation (left and
center) and helping students seine in the Peconic Bay during a trip run by the
Long Island Aquarium (right).