Coorporate Volunteering Takes the Helm, a BayLines Original Article

 

The Marine Science Institute is a wonderful organization, which I took pleasure in being the group lead for this year at SAP Labs. This was my third actual time volunteering at their location. MSI’s goal is to teach schoolchildren in Northern California about the ocean and its inhabitants up close and hands-on, along with how we can preserve our bay and ocean. The employees are the greatest, very knowledgeable, and were so kind and thankful for SAP coming out to help them once again. One of this year’s projects was to remove a giant in-ground planter, and transplant the native plants to a new location. Then, we leveled out and paved the area with gravel so the fuel truck for the Institute’s teaching ship would be able to reach the dock. The second project was to paint two wonderful 3D topography maps (4’ x 5’) to match an actual map of the Bay Area and the Bay. Some volunteers already knew each other, but a good majority did not, so it was great to meet new colleagues from all the different teams, and SAP’s area campuses. We really came together as a team, and had a busy, but fulfilling day; all want to come back next year. The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful breeze to keep the heat at bay. It was a fantastic day for all!

Cheryl Jensen – Executive Assistant at SAP Labs in Palo Alto

Marine Science Institute would like to thank Cheryl for submitting this article and setting up this event, and the rest of our wonderful SAP volunteers who’s generosity will help inspire thousands of students, teachers and staff.

Corporate and individual volunteer opportunities are always available. To learn more please visit our webpage at www.sfbaymsi.org or contact the Community Outreach Coordinator at 650-364-2760 X16 or by email volunteer@sfbaymsi.org

This article was featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2015-2016.

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
©2015. All Rights Reserved

Corporate Volunteering Takes the Helm, a BayLines Original Article

Hard days work

Enjoying lunch

Pulling in the fish net

Adrian (far right) with team

Emergence Capital team

“I’d rather be fishing” is a common thought that goes through many a “nine-to-fiver’s” mind during the workweek. Well, we lucky folks at Emergence Capital got to do just that and more. 5

On a gloriously sunny October day, we picnicked outside with the staff on their oyster shell beach. Over hamburgers and chocolate chip cookies we learned of their strong interest in marine biology and the changes they have seen in the environment over the years. MSI’s Executive Director, Marilou Seiff, then expertly took us on a guided tour of the facilities, which showcased varied opportunities for school children to visit and learn onsite.  From there, we boarded the R/V Robert G. Brownlee and set off to work! MSI’s Community Outreach Coordinator, Tiff Murzi-Moyce, guided us through a physically competitive challenge of teams pulling up the fishing nets. We later experienced how to safely handle the fish.  We in turn gave back by cleaning the boats interior with a lot of elbow grease and laughter.

A huge “thank you” to everyone at MSI for sharing with us the valuable work they do every day. The employees at Emergence Capital definitely felt that our community goals were met and our anticipation of the day’s activities hit the mark.

-Adrian Mallinger, Executive Assistant at Emergence Capital in San Mateo.

Marine Science Institute would like to thank Adrian for submitting this article, coordinating this event, and spearheading her company’s donation process to replace the carpet on our research vessel. We also want to send a big THANK YOU to the Emergence Capital team for their hard work and dedication in making this cleanup day a huge success.

Volunteer and internship opportunities are available year round.
Please visit our webpage at www.sfbaymsi.org to find your next volunteer position! 

This article was featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2015-2016.

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
©2015. All Rights Reserved

45 Years of Marine Science Education

Batray experience

Mud line

Robert G. Brownlee

As we look back at the year, we have much to be proud of and thankful for. Our staff has once again made science come alive to excite and educate more than 56,000 people about the wonders of the San Francisco Bay. Many of our students had never been to the water’s edge let alone on a boat, or had the opportunity to touch a live shark. Every day, the anticipation level and excitement run high here at MSI!

We have been extremely busy aligning all of our programs to the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). This allows teachers in our region to see in advance what topics will fulfill their curriculum requirements and to plan the most inspiring and educational field trip of the year for their students. In collaboration with the San Mateo Environmental Learning Collaborative (SMELC), Ten Strands, the San Mateo County Office of Education and five local nonprofit organizations, we participated in a series of Teacher Workshops titled, ‘Professional Learning Collaborative for K-8 Educators: Succeeding with NGSS Using Your Local Environment.’ Although California’s full adoption of the NGSS standards will not take place until 2018, MSI’s alignment of the NGSS standards now provides teachers with on-the-job training and preparation that prepares them for the rigorous changes they will encounter as they implement the standards in their classrooms.

Studies have shown that Multi-Exposure programs have a greater impact on the students, facilitating much deeper learning experiences. Between 2011 and 2015 we piloted three programs in which we bundled single modules with a field trip allowing us to reinforce the science concept for students – The Scientific Method Combination, Biomimicry Discovery Voyage and Wonders of Watershed Programs. The astounding popularity of these pilot programs has led us to offer several more Multiple Exposure Programs including Biomimicry Inland Voyage, and four different Habitat Combos. Our teachers have recognized the value of Multiple Exposure Programs to the extent that we have completely booked all of our available slots for them in the 2015-16 school year!

As the drought continues, we have increased the water conservation education in our curriculum to teach students about the causes and how their actions can be a part of alleviating the crisis. We have done our part in reducing our own facilities’ water consumption too. We replaced our water guzzling natural lawn with artificial turf, and stopped watering our smaller lawn altogether. We made water conservation changes to our aquarium protocol. And very recently, we installed a rain collection system to prepare for the rains we hope will come this winter.

Our 90-foot research vessel, Robert G. Brownlee, continues to be the star of our show. This amazing work horse continues to carry full loads of students out onto the waters of the San Francisco Bay or the Delta twice a day, six days a week, nearly every week of the year! Quarterly, we host EcoVoyages for the public to explore the bay and learn
about our precious ecosystem. We invite you to join us and learn first-hand what tens of thousands of students are experiencing each year.

The Board and Staff have finalized our three-year strategic plan. We look forward to the implementation phase of these strategies, to continue to improve our programs and our outcomes, as well as to improve our financial stability. We will be sharing our success stories with you in this coming year.

Finally, we want you to know that we feel gratitude every day for our many funders. We could not do this work without your support.

Sincerely,
Marilou Seiff and James Crawford

Executive Director Marilou Seiff

Board Chair Jim Crawford

 

MSI Expenditures

MSI Student Demomgraphics

 

We invite you to keep in mind the significant and tangible impact your donation will make for students.
We hope you will donate to science education and stewardship in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

Click the link to view the rest of our 2014-2015 Annual Report.

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
©2015. All Rights Reserved

Translating the Tides 2016, a BayLines Original Article

It is with great pride that we share with you our 16th annual Translating the Tides collection. This collection of poetry and artwork was designed by students who, through the Marine Science Institute’s hands on programs, directly encountered the wildlife of the San Francisco Bay, Pacific Coast, and Delta. Their beautiful work expresses not only what they have learned during our programs, but their new found appreciation of these aquatic habitats.

March 2016

April 2016

February 2016

January 2016

December 2016

September 2016

October 2016

Cover

May 2016

June 2016

July 2016

August 2016

November 2016

 The 2014-2015 Translating the Tides artwork has been transformed into a printable 5×7 calendar and is available for download here

printable download

 

Translating the Tides is a creative contest run by Marine Science Institute (MSI) for students in grades kindergarten through college who participate in MSI’s hands-on marine science education programs.

Translating the Tides is a wonderful opportunity for students to express, in their own voices, what they have learned and what they want others to know about our aquatic environments.

 

 

 

We invite you to keep in mind the significant
and tangible impact your donation will make for students.

This article was featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2015-2016.

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
©2015. All Rights Reserved

A Season of Giving , a BayLines Original Article

A Great Gift for the Bay!

Now is the time to show your support for the Marine Science Institute.  Each year, you can see the wonderful work we accomplish together , teaching science and inspiring environmental stewardship. In 2015, we provided 56,000 students with the opportunity to go out on the San Francisco Bay and learn about its unique ecosystem. As a supporter, you are a part of every program.

As we close 2015, Marine Science Institute’s 2015-16 school programs are well underway! MSI is the largest marine science K-12 educator in Northern California and we have the largest estuary on the West Coast as our classroom.

The San Francisco Bay is home to millions of fish, mammals, marine plants and migratory birds. The shorelines and underwater habitats are the best classrooms for young students to learn about.

As a supporter of the Marine Science Institute, you play an important role in the education of our young students and their families. We can’t thank you enough for your generosity. Our success stories are your legacy.

Please, won’t you reaffirm your commitment to marine science education and stewardship with a donation to the Marine Science Institute of $50 or more?

Our goal is to raise $18,000 by December 31, 2015, to ensure the funding for experiential marine science programs in 2016.  Together, we can carry on with the work of educating about our unique ecosystem and the myriad inhabitants of the San Francisco Bay.  But even more important, together we will continue to teach how and why we take care of our precious home.

Marine Science Institute is a leader in hands on science education. We offer a variety of unique opportunities such as Discovery Voyages aboard our research vessel the Robert G. Brownlee, Marine Science Camp, and Tidepool Expeditions. We are part of a network of innovative environmental educators. Your gift helps us leverage additional partnerships with many sponsors, donors and collaborators. We provide scholarships for science education and field trip transportation costs on a sliding scale for all schools, specifically targeting the needs of low-income schools, as determined by the schools’ percentage of enrollment in the Federal Free and Reduced Price Meal Program (FRP).

Your gift before December 31 will help the Institute meet our goal of $18,000 and ensure that we can continue to foster a love for learning and a link to nature in every student who visits us.

If you’ve already sent your year-end contribution and our messages have crossed in the mail, please accept our thanks for your generosity.

As you consider who you will support with your end-of-year gift this year, we hope you will donate to science education and stewardship in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

We invite you to keep in mind this holiday season the significant
and tangible impact your donation will make for students.

This article was featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2015-2016.

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
©2015. All Rights Reserved

MSI’s Discovery Lab

The mission of the Marine Science Institute (MSI), founded in 1970 as a 501(c) 3 non-profit, is to cultivate a responsibility for the San Francisco Bay Area’s natural environment through high quality interdisciplinary science education programs. Our programs are developed by MSI instructors in partnership with teachers and professional marine biologists, and updated regularly to meet State educational standards. MSI offerings build foundational scientific skills and knowledge, including elements of those of physics, geology, biology, microbiology, and chemistry.  We facilitate active learning, observation and critical thinking through a variety of programs, most of which involve safe, supervised contact with local marine animals.

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The Discovery Lab is a central feature of our shore side facilities–the homebase for our operations, and the site where we host thousands of students each year. The 2,000 square-foot aquarium is the temporary home for live marine animals from the nearby Pacific Ocean and the San Francisco Bay. Providing a healthy and safe environment for more than 70 animals in our 2,600 gallon Bay system and 1,800 gallon Ocean system is crucial to our work in engaging students of all ages toward an interest in marine science. MSI instructors not only teach students through interaction with the animals at our facility in Redwood City, but also transport these animals in a specially designed aquarium trailer towed behind MSI vans or trucks to schools across the nine counties we serve in the Bay Area.

Get Those Doubles Giants, a BayLines Original Short

Joe Panik with the best “flippin” double play this season!

Get those doubles, Giants! That’s what MSI was cheering all September long, as one of the lucky nonprofits featured in the SIMS Metal Management San Francisco Giants Community Outreach radio program. For the month of September, every time the Giants pulled off a double play SIMS committed to donate $50 to be disbursed among six local nonprofit organizations, including the Marine Science Institute. SIMS also generously sponsored MSI to be featured in segments on KNBR radio. We were thrilled to receive a check from SIMS for $1550, and to cheer the Giants on to a World Series victory was icing on the cake.

Both camps feature a day in the Bay aboard the Robert G. Brownlee.

Thank you to SIMS Metal Management, KNBR and, of course, the San Francisco Giants.  This gift will go towards helping us bring our unique, hands-on environmental science programs to students all around the Bay Area.

There are many ways to donate at Marine Science Institute. If you are interested in getting involved by corporate
or individual donations, event sponsorships, volunteering or joining our family membership program please look us up at sfbaymsi.org

This article is featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2014-2015.

BayLines Winter Edition 14′-15′

Marine Science Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ©2015. All Rights Reserved

Summer Internship and Murals, a BayLines Original Article

Austin Cai

Over the summer, I (Austin Cai), lead a team of four high school artists completed two murals for the mural project at MSI. I painted the Kelp Forest mural, while Nancy Hu and Sabrina Zhai painted the Mangroves mural. The murals will be used during MSI’s summer camps. Although there was no definitive deadline, the project had to be completed in the length of summer to avoid conflicts with schools.

I first received the project before the summer of 2014. At the time, I was naively hoping to finish two or three murals in time for them to be used in the summer. However, this plan quickly fell apart. The revised, final, plan was to finish two murals, one by me, one by my team, before the end of summer. I recruited first through my school’s art class, and then I recruited at my extracurricular art class. Many students were interested, but most had scheduling conflicts or lived too far away to make it. In the end, Nancy, Sabrina, Andrew, and Kevin, all of which were in my extracurricular art class, joined.

I designed four drafts for kelp forest, and was close to getting approved within the first month of summer. I was planning to attend COSMOS, a science summer program for a month, so I knew I had to finish most of my drafting work early on. (I actually attended a course on marine mammals in COSMOS, so by the time I came back I had enough expertise to add ear flaps and increase the pectoral flipper size on the kelp forest sea lion.)

Kelp Forest Sketch

Kelp Forest Sketch

Kelp Forest Skeleton

As our schedules started clearing up, the team members, and many of their parents, held a meeting at a bakery to discuss how to move onward with the project and decide who had what responsibilities in terms of finalizing drafts. Nancy designed two more drafts, combining and finalizing the mangrove mural designs submitted by Sabrina and Andrew. Later, with the kelp forest draft complete and the mangrove mural draft nearly approved, the team held another meeting at the local library to discuss the logistics of beginning to paint. The main area of concern was how to carpool, and how to get the paint.

I knew from previous painting experience that Kelly Moore would donate paint to non-profit projects. The team was ready to start painting. We decided to first sketch the designs out on the cubicles as a point of reference. Nancy and Sabrina were responsible for the mangroves mural, while I was responsible for the kelp forest mural. On weekdays, we worked 3 hours a day, and about four days a week, depending on what time my and Sabrina’s mom had time to drive. Sabrina’s mom would take Sabrina, me, and sometimes Nancy to MSI, while my mom brought dinner and drove us home.

Mangrove Forest Skeleton

Mangrove Forest Sketch

Mangrove Forest Sketch

In total, it took about five weeks or 265 hours to finish the murals, including time needed for planning, drafting, meeting, commuting etc.

This project was the first time I have so formally led a group, and it was an amazing experience. Tiff, and the MSI facility were extremely supportive and patient, even when we made mistakes. The entire process was an amazing experience. And to top it all off, we were painting mere meters away from the bay; it’s hard, if not impossible, to find a more desirable working environment!

Volunteers painting a mural

Kelp Mural

 

Volunteer and internship opportunities are always available at Marine Science Institute. To learn more please visit our webpage at www.sfbaymsi.org or contact the Community Outreach Coordinator at 650-364-2760 X16 or email volunteer@sfbaymsi.org.

 

 

 

This article is featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2014-2015.

BayLines Winter Edition 14′-15′

Stewardship Monday: Giving Green

Tis the season of giving. We give to our family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors. We also choose to give to their communities and to causes we care about. There are many ways to show your support for a community or cause—and there are many causes to care about (over 1 million non-profits in the US!). Individuals who give are very important—annually they account for 72% of donations. That means that your choices can make a big difference to your favorite organization or cause. Environmental/Animal focused non profits receive 3% of donations each year to support a wide range of services including research, restoration, protection, and advocacy. Education receives 13% of charitable giving. Marine Science Institute serves both in education and to promote environmental stewardship. There are many ways that you can show your support for us and for the Bay and ocean. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

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Give the Gift of Science, a BayLines Original Article

Happy student holding a bat star

The close of 2014 is on the horizon and those of us on staff at the Marine Science Institute are reflecting on all the organization has accomplished this year. Thanks to our donors we can report on some very encouraging statistics for January-October 2014:

• MSI has provided 968 programs for Bay Area schools in San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano, Napa, Sonoma and Marin counties.
• We have served 33,571 students through our programs.
• There have been over 8,000 volunteer hours logged by devoted MSI supporters.
• More than 8,650 students have participated in a bay exploration Discovery Voyage aboard MSI’s 90-foot research vessel, the R/V Robert G. Brownlee.

As we look forward to the rest of the school year, we hope that you will join us in helping to reach more Bay Area students with our hands-on programs. Of the 563 Bay Area schools we have served so far this year, 30% to 91% of students in more than half of those schools are enrolled in Federal Reduced Priced Meal programs, an indicator of student poverty. Donor contributions are what enable MSI to provide sponsorships to underserved schools so that students can access hands-on, interdisciplinary science programs taught by our highly qualified instructors.

Through feedback from teachers and MSI instructors we learned that while many underprivileged K-12 students reside 50 miles or less from the California coast, an alarming number have never seen the Pacific Ocean and

Looking at plankton

are unaware of the abundant marine life beneath the surface of the San Francisco Bay. An MSI program may well be their first direct encounter with the natural world. Children in our programs have been surprised to learn what a storm drain is and where the water that funnels into it actually goes. MSI often provides students their first insights into the consequences of littering, and the connection between their actions and the impact on marine life and water quality in the Bay.

Palm Kelp Hat

Science offers a laboratory of common experience for development of language, logic, and problem-solving skills in the classroom and beyond. This is frequently not the case in financially struggling schools where many teachers feel unprepared to teach science. Schools lack resources for professional development, materials and equipment required to offer the high-quality science programs so important to the future of students. That’s where the Marine Science Institute and your donations come in.

Our mission is to provide marine science activities to promote science learning among students in a way that gives them and their teachers access to programs, supplies and state-of-the-art equipment that schools cannot afford. MSI programs engage students in hands-on exploratory activities that build foundational scientific skills and knowledge. MSI programs and online resources enable teachers to meet Next Generation Science Standards for life, earth and physical sciences. We even take programs to schools that cannot afford the cost or time to transport students to our facility, or local wetlands and beaches.

We invite you to keep in mind this holiday season the significant
and tangible impact your donation will make for students.

 

 

 

This article is featured in our BayLines Winter Edition 2014-2015.

BayLines Winter Edition 14′-15′