Center For Ocean Sciences Education Excellence COSEE Ocean Systems
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 COSEE-OS partners attend the kick-off meeting for the 2010-2013 program
COSEE-OS partners attend the kick-off meeting for the 2010-2013 program
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences seeks to understand key processes driving global ocean ecosystems, their evolution, and their fundamental relationship to life on Earth. The Laboratory’s research ranges from microbial oceanography — examining biological productivity and phytoplankton community dynamics in the world’s oceans at the molecular level — to the large-scale biogeochemical processes that drive interactions between ocean ecosystems and global environmental conditions. Bigelow scientists are committed to sharing their discoveries with educators, students, and the public through a variety of programs, both at the Laboratory and within the regional community (e.g., Café Scientifique, Keller BLOOM Program for high school students, and Research Experience for Undergraduates).

Institute for Broadening Participation (IBP) is a non-profit organization created to design and implement strategies to increase access to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education and careers for diverse underrepresented groups. IBP's mission is to make education and careers in science more accessible to students - particularly to members of underrepresented groups, support faculty and administrators as they work to include students from a variety of backgrounds in their programs, and foster an on-going exchange of ideas and resources between individuals and institutions who are working to navigate their future in the STEM fields. Click here to view their webinars hosted in collaboration with COSEE-OS.

Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) offers a welcoming community energized by the excitement of discovery in research and education. MDIBL has grown rapidly over the past ten years with new investigators and state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, but they are committed to maintaining the unique atmosphere created by a small, diverse, collaborative, and open-minded cadre of leading researchers and students. With a commitment to preserving the marine environment and the belief that everyone needs to understand science, MDIBL’s community extends beyond the world of scientific research. They are restoring marine habitat and engaging local school children and community volunteers in scientific activities that monitor and protect water quality, as well as offering programs throughout the summer that educate the public about the marine environment, genetics, and biomedical research.

New England Aquarium (NEAq) is a global leader in ocean exploration and marine conservation. The Aquarium is one of the premier visitor attractions in Boston, with over 1.3 million visitors a year, and a major public education resource. The Aquarium is redefining what it means to be an aquarium: combining education, entertainment and action to address the most challenging problems facing the ocean. They are committed to engaging and educating the public through exhibits in Boston—but also in taking an active role in the world by building awareness and finding innovative solutions through marine conservation and research. NEAq has a plethora of programs and classes for families, members, teens, and adults, and also offers Aquarium Lecture Series on a range of current topics presented by scientists, authors and Aquarium staff members. NEAq supports teachers both at the Aquarium and in the classroom through field trip planning, classroom resources, school programs, professional development and a Teacher Resource Center.

New England Ocean Science Education Collaborative (NEOSEC) is a diverse networked collaboration of more than forty institutions from across New England, including aquariums, museums, universities, government entities and science and research centers. NEOSEC’s mission and collective purpose are to leverage New England’s extraordinary assets to engage the public in understanding the vital connections between people and the ocean. The diversity of professional expertise, resources, locations, and audiences represented by NEOSEC enables us to facilitate strong connections between New England scientists and educators. They recognize that understanding the ocean is integral to comprehending the Earth’s systems and life on this planet, and have identified Ocean Literacy as a key goal for all of New England.

Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS) is a component of the national IOOS, spanning coastal waters from the Canadian Maritime Provinces to the New York Bight. Their mission is to make available information to those who use these waters. For example, they provide weather and ocean data to fishers and commercial shippers, and to emergency and resource managers issuing storm warnings, monitoring water quality, and forecasting coastal flooding and erosion. NERACOOS advocates through education and outreach for the regional, national, and global ocean observing system and the application of scientific assessments using environmental data to meet societal needs.

School District Collaborators (K-12 Formal Educators) Three school districts in inland Maine are partnering with COSEE-OS: Bangor School Department, Alternative Organizational Structure 92 (AOS 92) in Waterville, and Maine School Administrative District #11 (MSAD #11) in Gardiner. Each school district has staff members who have interacted previously with COSEE-OS (e.g., professional development workshops). They will be teaming up with COSEE-OS to plan curriculum development workshops with regional scientists and to evaluate where ocean science content could be integrated into curriculum at all levels.

Sea Grant College Programs Environmental stewardship, long-term economic development and responsible use of America’s coastal, ocean and Great Lakes resources are at the heart of Sea Grant’s mission. Sea Grant is a nationwide network (administered through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), of 32 university-based programs that work with coastal communities. The National Sea Grant College Program engages this network of the nation’s top universities in conducting scientific research, education, training, and extension projects designed to foster science-based decisions about the use and conservation of aquatic resources. Their research and outreach programs promote better understanding, conservation and use of America’s coastal resources. Specifically, Maine, New Hampshire and Oregon Sea Grant are partnering with COSEE-OS.

Seacoast Science Center (SSC), located in historic Odiorne Point State Park in Rye, NH, is a popular destination for families and students to learn about coastal environmental history. SSC creates connections to nature through personal learning experiences in the natural sciences, and offers a wide range of engaging and interactive programs and exhibits that appeal to all ages, backgrounds and learning styles. Each year, over 60,000 people visit the Center, 15,000 of whom are students from throughout New England. The $1M Gregg Interactive Learning Studio with two-way communication technology enables SSC to provide innovative, high-quality distance learning experiences to students throughout the state and across the country.

University of Maine School of Marine Sciences has a mission to develop scientific understanding of the marine environment that is Maine’s heritage, to integrate and communicate that knowledge through interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate studies, and to apply it toward stewardship of sustainable marine resources. The faculty is well known for its research over a broad spectrum of marine studies from molecular biology and biotechnology to fisheries science, economics and anthropology, and from marine geology and coastal engineering to aquaculture, marine ecology and oceanography.

University of New Hampshire Marine Sciences Program integrates the marine research, education and public service activities of over 60 faculty, 300 undergraduate students and 100 graduate students from 14 departments and three colleges at the university. The Program serves as a catalyst for marine research activities at various levels from individual investigators to large interdisciplinary Centers of Excellence and Cooperative Institutes. Extramural support for this research also expands research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. In addition to these opportunities, the Marine Program retains a core focus on finding solutions to real-world problems and integrating these efforts into the formal classroom as well as public education and outreach efforts through Marine Docent and Sea Grant programs.