Middle/High School Outreach Program: Expanding Access to Ocean Education

Our Goal:

To connect WHOI scientists and engineers with schools serving a high proportion of students from communities that are underrepresented in marine science. We hope to create a long-lasting outreach program that increases environmental literacy and the visibility of research careers as an option for students from all backgrounds.

Who are we?

Scientists and engineers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Our team consists of people throughout the WHOI community (technical staff, PhD students, post docs, scientists, engineers, etc.) who are passionate about sharing their scientific knowledge with the next generation and increasing diversity within ocean science. 

We welcome all scientists and/or engineers who are interested in participating. We provide training on teaching, curriculum development, and teaching to diverse audiences prior to classroom visits. Scientists and engineers conduct classroom outreach as a team.

What we do

The WHOI Committee for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (CDEI) aims to increase opportunities for underrepresented students to learn about marine science and demonstrate pathways into research and ocean-based careers. We support outreach with a focus on 1) benefitting teachers by incorporating Massachusetts State Science standards into lessons and 2) increasing student literacy of ocean principles and pathways into research careers.

For scientists and engineers at WHOI, we provide administrative support for connecting and scheduling with teachers, training, and funding for travel costs/materials. We hope that by making a centralized system for connecting with educators and removing some of the financial burdens of outreach, we can make WHOI outreach more inclusive.