NSU AAUW Branch Host “E-STEAM Project for Girls”

On January 16, 2019, the students from the Pace Center for Girls participated in their fourth session in the “E-STEAM Project for Girls”. This was a particularly exciting session as the girls visited the Marine Environmental Education Center (MEEC) and the NSU Oceanographic Campus. In the morning, they met with Meghan McGlone, MEEC Program Coordinator, who taught the girls about the sea turtle’s nesting behaviors, how to recognize their track patterns in the sand, and how the hatchlings find the ocean. The girls enjoyed a hands-on activity with a large shiny shell from a giant turtle. Winifred Verna, AAUW student chapter vice president, was also in attendance.

Dr. Maureen McDermott (AAUW/FCE) took the girls downstairs to the pool to see a presentation with MEEC’s permanent resident Captain, a green sea turtle who dives with the assistance of weight therapy.  Captain captivated everyone when eating a lettuce lunch, first above the water and then swimming down to eat lettuce leaves anchored in a device on the pool’s floor.

After visiting the MEEC, AAUW member and Halmos College Director of Academic Support and Administration, Melissa Dore, Ed.D., took them around the Oceanographic Campus, where they examined a manatee’s skeleton and toured a lab with non-living coral. After visiting the outdoor coral nursery, they worked inside with MS student Dayna Hunn on sorting her small, but fascinating, crabs. It was a day they will truly never forget!

For more information: https://aauw-fl.aauw.net/branches/nova/