OC MARINE STUDIES PROGRAM AWARDED FEDERAL GRANT
The Marine Studies Program at Oxnard College has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration to train students in an Entrepreneurial and Educational Partnership Program.
The grant will be funded through 2010 and will engage students in a three-part program of academic studies, hands-on experience in white abalone hatchery operations, and research in the laboratory and at sea that provides exposure to a range of experiences relevant to a career in science.
The goals of the grant are to increase success and transfer to four-year colleges and to encourage students to consider careers in environmental, resource management, and fisheries sciences, and private enterprise in the environmental sciences. The majority of the grant provides direct support for students in the form of stipends, educational equipment, supplies, and travel expenses. The grant also provides for instructional equipment, student ship time aboard an oceanographic research vessel and audio-visual equipment for recording and analyzing data collected by research divers Other agencies that are contributing to student projects include the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, the Channel Islands National Park, California Sea Grant, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
The Marine Studies Program at Oxnard College (MST) includes coursework, marine conservation activities, and community outreach. This grant will launch the program to new heights of academic excellence through the student exposure to research, contributions of the scientists specializing in marine studies, and additional instructional equipment and supplies. Oxnard College students will be working with scientists of the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and Channel Islands Marine Resource Institute at their facilities and at the new Oxnard College Marine Education Center in Channel Islands Harbor.
The state's only white abalone hatchery is located in Oxnard, California, and is operated by the Channel Islands Marine Resource Institute (CIMRI), a non-profit organization that is a partner with Oxnard College for this grant.
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