One of the most rewarding aspects of running a decades-long education program is following up with former students to learn where their experiences have taken them, both personally and professionally.

After years of collaborating on a variety of education programs, Dalhousie University and BIOS have taken a significant step in formalizing and expanding their partnership: the launch of new opportunities through the Dalhousie-BIOS Experiential Learning Fund. This fund, established in 2011, was designed to strengthen ties between these two leading ocean research institutions and create a continual flow of students from Dalhousie to BIOS. While many Dalhousie students have taken classes or conducted internships at BIOS over the years, there was no formal program supported by the Dalhousie-BIOS Experiential Learning Fund…until now.

Since 2006 Bermuda Sloop Foundation has been providing Bermuda’s youth with experiential learning and character development aboard their unique floating classroom: Sail Training Vessel (STV) Spirit of Bermuda. In that time, more than 3,000 students have stood upon the vessel’s deck, learning critical life skills including communication, teamwork, nutrition, and respect.

For the past nine years, a group of students from Princeton University has traveled to Bermuda each June to participate in a four-week marine biology course offered through a unique partnership between BIOS and the university. Co-taught by Dr. Samantha de Putron (Associate Scientist at BIOS and Visiting Lecturer at Princeton) and Dr. James Gould (Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton), the course is an intensive field program that covers all aspects of marine biology. Dr. Carol Gould (science writer) adds a unique perspective as a guest lecturer and—this year—Dr. Penelope Barnes (BIOS Education Director for University Programs) and Kaitlin Baird (BIOS Science Education Officer) also contributed as guest lecturers.

Earlier this month, the 2014 University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) Chief Scientist Training Cruise wrapped up, with the R/V Atlantic Explorer returning to her berth at BIOS after a nine day cruise between Barbados and Bermuda. The purpose of these cruises is to give early-career marine scientists, including PhD students, insight into what it takes to successfully plan and execute a research cruise—everything from acquiring funded ship time to mobilizing laboratory equipment and supplies, from reporting at sea to living aboard a working research vessel.

This past month, sixty primary and middle school educators from the Bermuda Union of Teachers came to BIOS to participate in a professional development workshop focused on marine robotics.  The workshop involved PVC pipes, car batteries, foam noodles, propellers, and a race against time as participants were challenged to build their own Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) for launch into the Sargasso Sea. Successful ROVs are neutrally buoyant and can be maneuvered through the water to complete tasks, mimicking the professional classes of underwater robotics used around the world to collect data for science and industry.

What do golden rafts of seaweed, great ocean currents, and ghost stories have in common?  They all play a part in the history and ecology of the Sargasso Sea, the focus of the 2012 Explorer program at BIOS that introduced 1300 primary students to hands-on marine biology, chemistry, and physics. With the recent publication of an “Expedition Sargasso” lesson plan by Kaitlin Baird, Assistant Director of Science Education Programs at BIOS, many more students will be able to discover the unique communities that thrive in Sargassum seaweed and explore the interconnectedness of ocean ecosystems.

The BIOS education team proudly accepted the TechAwards14 “Most Innovative Youth Project” for Ocean Academy’s HSBC Explorer program. The team sincerely thanks the Ministry of Education and Economic Development, and the sponsors of Ocean Academy.

Neoprene exposure suits, rapid-fire sampling, and filtering for DNA; according to 2014 BIOS REU student Keeley Rideout, science never sleeps. Find out why in Keeley’s blog!

Last month, twenty-one teams from nine schools—including a new team from Impact Mentoring Academy—met at the National Sports Centre for the 2019 Marine Advanced Technology in Education (MATE) Bermuda Regional Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Challenge.