I just want to take a moment to introduce myself a little as the new FMSEA Southeast rep. I’ve been teaching science for the past 11 years most of which has been at the middle school level. My interests are mostly in marine science and how to incorporate more of it in the classroom. As an undergrad in NY I created a customized hybrid program that allowed me to explore partnership programs in marine science because such courses were not offered at the University I attended. As a graduate student in education this sparked my interest in getting more marine science in the classroom. Fortunately, the Ocean Literacy movement is underway and I am happy to say that I’ve seen a great deal of progress, but there’s still much to do to spread the word. After completing an education specialist (Ed.S.) program in administration at Florida Atlantic University, I decided that “principalship” was not for me. As a “lifelong learner” I entered into a PhD program at Florida Atlantic and I am in the final stages and ready for dissertation at this time. The official topic is groundbreaking, “Shark Sense: A Mixed-Methods Investigation of a Middle School Students’ Perceptions of Sharks.” My middle schoolers will be going through a series of activities (about 80 hours of contact time) that will hopefully….. change their perceptions about sharks, teach them Ocean Literacy concepts, Sunshine State Standards, and provide a lot of awesome experiences! I’m currently putting the curriculum together and any suggestions, ideas, assistance or reviewing you’d like to provide, send me an email. Aside from that, I’ve been a member of FMSEA since 2009 when I heard that Dr. Eugenie Clark was going to be the keynote speaker. I met her way back in 1995 as an undergrad. at Long Island University, Southhampton and I kept her autograph. Unfortunately, she didn’t remember me, but was delighted by the great things I’ve been doing to promote shark conservation. Since then, I’ve met great educators, speakers, and many other with the same interests and passions about the ocean. For those that don’t know me already, I’m a little quiet at first, but once I get warmed up ) As far as future outings and my plans for FMSEA I’m looking forward to the future as the rep. for our region. I live in South Broward County, but I frequently attend outings, events, and workshops in all our counties. We represent a pretty large region so PLEASE feel free to send me your ideas for outings, events and the like. I’ll be posting information on this blog as a record of events and sending out information to everyone.
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