MarineLab is offering free programs this academic year to Monroe County students in grade 5 and up. thanks to donations made by Leadership Monroe County’s Class XXIX “Delta Force.”
A surprising number of Keys students have never been on a boat and explored their own watery backyards. MarineLab and Delta Force have joined to take on the challenge of providing these experiences to every student who wants to go. Through its own funds, MarineLab already provides programs at significantly reduced fees for Monroe County Schools and has secured grants from the Ocean Reef Conservation Association and the Community Foundation of the Florida Keys to provide programs for Upper Keys students in grades 5-7.
In 2022, Leadership Monroe County’s Class XXIX created its “Saltwater Superhero” program to provide matching funds, so its programs are free for all Monroe County Schools until the funds run out.
MarineLab recognizes the importance of educating local students about the environment surrounding the Keys. Its mission is ocean conservation, and it focuses on educating students and teachers from all over the country about marine ecology to create emotional and knowledgeable connections to the ocean. While multiple nonprofit organizations up and down the Keys provide marine education programs as part of their mission, and Monroe County teachers also use the location of their schools to teach about marine science on their own campuses, MarineLab specializes in experiential education that includes snorkeling from its fleet of U.S. Coast Guard-inspected vessels, led by trained staff in a guided discovery process that supports state and national science standards.
More information is at marinelab.org/monroe-match. Community donations will make this an ongoing program and can be made at the same page. Teachers can also apply for grants from the United Way of Collier and The Keys to help fund transportation for their MarineLab program.
MarineLab is a program of Marine Resources Development Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1970 to promote responsible and sustainable use of marine resources through education, research, and collaboration. MarineLab began offering programs in 1985 and hosts 5,000 students and teachers every year from around the nation at its coastal campus on Largo Sound.
