Following SEA 2021

FOLLOWING The Magazine of Sea Education Association

Summer 2021

FOLLOWING SEA | 1

Cover: SSV Robert C. Seamans, alongside at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. The ship arrived there in June 2020 and remained for the better part of a year.

The stay was made possible by the generosity of museum director Dr. Ray Ashley, W-1. SEA shipkeepers aboard the Seamans worked alongside the museum staff to keep the ship, the museum, and the museum’s historic ships safe during the pandemic. This page: SSV Robert C. Seamans hauled out at the Marine Group Boat Works in Chula Vista, California last spring.

CONTENTS PAGE 2

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The Seaman's Epic Voyage

Uncharted Waters

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

As the pandemic closes borders, the SSV Robert C. Seamans' professional crew make an epic, nearly 9,000 mile nautical voyage from New Zealand to California, and tell "the story of the Pacific" along the way.

A look back at the many operational challenges faced over this roller scoaster of a year, and how SEA managed those challenges.

An update on SEA efforts to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in our community and curriculum, with a special focus on the new Samuel V. Howe High School Diversity Scholarship.

LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT Sailing to windward, a ship must frequently trim its sails and adjust course. It takes a good ship and a nimble crew to make headway. This past year, SEA trimmed sails and adjusted course, and overcame major challenges in a turbulent sea.

2020 was the year of “the pivot,” and the many ways our organization “pivoted” are illustrated here, in Following SEA. We begin with the epic 9,000 mile trans-Pacific voyage of the SSV Robert C. Seamans, which showed what our dedicated SEA team can accomplish, and how lemons (a voyage with no students) can be turned into lemonade.

This issue also takes a look back at SEA’s rapidly shifting operations over the past year, as new programs were scheduled, and others cancelled. We implemented remote learning, and saw the creation of several innovative virtual projects. New health protocols were introduced, and we confronted major challenges regarding logistics, administration, and finance. And we successfully conducted three fully enrolled semesters by perfecting our operations in a COVID free bubble on shore and at sea!

Finally, as protests swept across the nation last summer, SEA responded with expanded efforts, critical self-examination, and renewed determination with regards to improving equity, diversity, and inclusion. We take this opportunity to provide more details on the many ways SEA is confronting this vital imperative.

None of what we have struggled to accomplish this past year could have been possible without the dedication of the many people who support our mission. We are grateful.

Thank you.

Peg Brandon, W-48, President

2020-2021 Officers & Trustees Officers

Trustees

Jessica McWade, Chair Richard Cost, Vice Chair Jeremy Salesin, W-75 Vice Chair Robert Knapp, W-99, Treasurer Richard Chandler, W-7, Clerk Margaret Brandon, W-48, ex-officio

Walter Brown Lee Campbell, W-60 John Gerngross, W-20 Lauren Gilbert, S-190 Dick Hawkins Susan Humphris Ambrose Jearld Morris Kellogg Steve Laster, W-83 Ivan Luke Linda Cox Maguire Caleb McClennen, W-144 Sarah Murdock, W-66 Rebecca Sparkes, C-183 Willis Wang Jaqueline Webb Anthony Whittemore John Wigglesworth, W-5 Charles Willauer, W-40

Trustees Emeriti Richard Burnes Peter Ellis John Kingsbury Peter Willauer Eric Wolman George Woodwell

Presidents Emeriti John Bullard Rafe Parker

Editor: Douglas Karlson Project Manager: Lauren Zike, S-184 Director of Stewardship: Monica Bowman Development Associate: Crickett Warner Development Assistant: Kerry Sullivan Alumni Relations Coordinator: Victoria Smith Design: Anna Farrell, S-239 Photography: SEA faculty, students, and friends

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By Doug Karlson

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The SSV Robert C. Seamans arrives in San Diego.

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s the world came to grips with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Global Ocean students of Class S-290, aboard the SSV Robert C. Seamans, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand for a final port stop.

Visiting a museum, they learned that passengers on a nearby cruise ship were isolating due to a suspected case of the disease. Capt. Elliott Rappaport, W-79, and Chief Scientist Jan Witting alerted SEA in Woods Hole. Concerned about news reports and the interruption to international travel, SEA’s senior management team decided to end the program a week early and bring the students home.

“The ground truthing is what decided it,” recalled SEA Director of Marine Operations Tom “Sully” Sullivan, noting that if there was just one case of corona virus on board, the whole ship would have been quarantined.

“We needed to get people home,” said Sully, who began making plans to sail the Seamans to U.S. territorial waters.

But the ship needed a crew.

Although not scheduled to sail aboard the Seamans until later in the season, Capt. Seán Bercaw, just returned from an assignment in Antarctica, saw the writing on the wall. COVID was no longer something that was happening in Italy. It was a global pandemic. He phoned Capt. Jen Haddock, C-109, in the Marine Department and asked, “do you need a captain?”

“I was in the air when New Zealand closed the border. If I had been 18 hours later, it wouldn’t have happened,” said Seán, who arrived in New Zealand on March 20th.

SEA’s Marine Operations department connected with crew members who were travelling or working in New Zealand. Capt. Cassie Sleeper, S-176E, was in New Zealand to ferry a yacht to Australia, but when that job was cancelled, SEA persuaded her to join as Third Mate for the Pacific crossing.

Hilary Ranson was in New Zealand for a much needed break after completing a PhD program at the University of Rhode Island. She returned to Christchurch after being out of touch while hiking

4 | SUMMER 2021

on the South Island to find a country suddenly transformed.

“Everything closed really fast in New Zealand,” she recalled, including domestic air flights. 48 hours later she arrived by car at the Seamans and signed on as a watchstander.

Quarantine in New Zealand With the help of ship agents in Wellington, the Seamans was safely refueled and reprovisioned as the crew quarantined for two weeks. Time was of the essence. It was fall in the South Pacific, and winter was on its way.

“If we couldn’t leave then we would have been stuck there for the year, the weather window would have closed,” explained Sully.

The crew were all experienced professionals, but they hadn’t sailed together before. With that in mind, Seán focused on crew training during the quarantine, and on securing the ship in anticipation of stormy seas.

“The Southern Ocean can be rough,” he said.

The Seamans departed Wellington on April 8th, bound for Hawai’i with 17 souls on board.

As it turned out, said Seán, “the weather gods smiled on us.”

They were helped by Captains Rick Miller and Jason Quilter, who sent weather information and guidance from shore, and helped calculate the best route. To conserve fuel, the ship followed the trade winds, which explains the circular route shown on the chart.

Throughout the nearly 9,000 mile voyage, said Seán “we never had to beat into the wind, which is pretty remarkable.”

“It was fun to sail the boat hard and use a lot of sails,” said Hilary. With no students aboard, the focus was on making speed. She found it strange that they saw no other boat traffic during the voyage. Even the oceans, it would seem, were closed for business.

With the University National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) research fleet docked, SEA was in the unique position to deploy ARGO floats provided by the Scripps Institute of Oceanography as part of the ARGO Float Project, the world’s largest subsurface ocean sampling project. The remote waters where they sailed were ideal locations for the deployments.

A highlight of the first leg of the voyage was crossing the Equator. The Seamans arrived just before lunch. As luck would have it, the seas were calm for the first time in many days, allowing the captain to authorize a swim call. The crew jumped in and swam across the Equator.

pacific crossing 2020 SEA Faculty, Staff and Crew

Marine Operations Department

Master: Seán Bercaw Mate: Tristan Feldman, S-233 Mate: Rocky Bonner Mate: Kate Enright, S-252 Mate: Cassie Sleeper, S-176E Engineer: Henry Cylkowski Assistant Engineer: Damian Byers Assistant Engineer: Sonia Pollock, S-252 Deckhand: Will Muir Steward: Kylie Wiegel Assistant Scientist: Helen Dufel, S-257 Assistant Scientist: Anna Wietelmann, S-259 Assistant Scientist: Hilary Ranson Assistant Scientist: Ella Cedarholm, S-278 Deckhand: Sabrina Hutchinson, C-259 Deckhand: Sarah Acker-Krzywicki, C-288 Deckhand: Sascha Drice

Capt. Tom Sullivan Capt. Jen Haddock, C-109 Laurie Weitzen Alex Myers Kim Reed-Nutt, S-236 Maia Theophanis, S-206

Shore Faculty Dr. Jan Witting Capt. Chris Nolan

Weather Support on Shore Capt. Rick Miller Capt. Jason Quilter Joe Sienkiewicz Dr. Elan Porter

Dr. Kara Lavender Law Capt. Chris Nolan Erin Bryant, Esq. Dr. Mark Long Dr. Blaire Umhau, S-238

Contributors to the Video Cast: Dr. Mary Malloy Dr. Jan Witting Capt. Chris Nolan Dr. Kara Lavender Law Dr. Blaire Umhau Capt. Seán Bercaw Chief Engineer Henry Cylkowski

Guest Posts in the Story Map Journal Capt. Rick Miller Dr. Jan Witting Capt. Seán Bercaw Dr. Richard King Chief Mate Tristan Feldman Capt. Elliot Rappaport

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San Diego, CA

Honolulu, HI

Wellington, NZ

“That was really cool,” said Hillary.

Sailing through the Marquesas and the Tuamoto Archipelago was another highlight of the voyage. “It was good to see land after weeks at sea,” said Seán.

The initial plan was for the ship to remain in Hawai’i.

But two weeks before arriving, it became clear that travel restrictions and quarantines meant leaving the ship in Hawai’i was problematic. San Diego offered better security and easier crew changes.

“It’s like running a marathon and not knowing where the finish line is.”

Captain Seán Bercaw

Arrival in Hawai’i Whereas the revised plan called for the ship to remain alongside in Honolulu for two weeks, the ship ended up staying just six days, enough time to take on fresh provisions and fuel, and off-load

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Cruise track of the SSV Robert C. Seamans from Wellington, New Zealand to San Diego, California.

trash. The Transportation Department required SEA to hire a local security guard to make sure a quarantine was enforced, and the ship was tied up at a noisy port near a major highway.

The crew saw no advantage to staying there longer than they had to. Instead, they departed Honolulu and spent several days anchored in a secluded anchorage off Oahu. It was an ideal place to rest after such a long first leg, and there was a bonus: it was close enough to shore for crew to have cell phone access, to send and receive messages to friends and family, and to catch up on news from home.

The crew received regular news updates from SEA Assistant Professor of Maritime History Craig Marin, W-119, and many felt frustrated to be so far away while so much was happening at home. At the same time, said Cassie, the isolation provided relief from the daily bombardment of bad news.

“We were able to disengage and focus on an important challenge,” agreed Hillary.

After weeks of strenuous work, monotonous watches, and constant motion, the crew was tired. The brief respite in Hawai’i provided much needed rest.

With the departure of four crewmembers in Honolulu, that left 13 souls on board for the leg from Hawai’i to San Diego. As a result, the ship sailed with a more conservative sail plan requiring less sail handling, but the watch schedule remained the same: six hours on, 12 hours off.

Pacific Crossing 2020 A deadhead passage without students is an expensive and lost opportunity, so SEA faculty came up with an idea to turn lemons into lemonade—Pacific Crossing 2020. Quarterbacked by Jan Witting, now back in the States, and Capt. Chris Nolan, Pacific Crossing 2020 was an ArcGIS StoryMap with regular posts and videos that shared the “story of the Pacific.” Jan served as virtual chief scientist, producing daily StoryMaps, and Chris hosted video presentations and conducted interviews. The crew collected and shared ADCP data, did Neuston tows, and made observation of plastic debris.

Over the course of 19 days, students of all ages logged in to share this unique educational experience. The video cast attracted more than 600 viewers.

“The historical waters we traversed were perfect for SEA. It portends what could contribute to the future of SEA,” said Chris.

Topics ranged from the history of people who made similar journeys to human impacts on the ocean environment.

Arrival in San Diego The voyage ended on a high note, sailing two days through the Santa Barbara Channel, which Seán described as a megafauna paradise. Whales literally breathed on the delighted crew.

8,821 nautical miles and 60 days underway after departing Wellington, New Zealand, the SSV Robert C. Seamans arrived in San Diego on June 13th, 2020, having averaged a speed of 6.1 knots.

Left to right: Engineer Henry Cylkowski, Mate Tristan Feldman and Assistant Scientist Anna Wietelmann on the quarterdeck of the SSV Robert C. Seamans.

The voyage crossed the Antemeridian, the Tropic of Capricorn, the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer with just one brief port stop, traversing 78 ½ degrees of latitude and 68 degrees of longitude “If you had to pick a perfect place to have a boat, San Diego is it,” explained Seán. The weather is dry and the wind is light. What’s more, the Maritime Museum of San Diego, made possible by Dr. Ray Ashley, W-1, the museum’s director, was extremely secure.

In recognition of the epic voyage, Tall Ships America recently honored Seán, the crew of the Seamans, and SEA’s Marine Operations and Academic Program teams with its 2020 Tall Ships America Reimagination Award.

In presenting the award, SEA President Peg Brandon credited the recipients for “pivoting on a pandemic-dime to undertake and complete an epic deadhead voyage,” and for producing Pacific Crossing 2020, which she said “has inspired SEA to think differently about how we can share ocean education, exploration, and research.

Seán credits the crew for their sense of “can do,” especially given the uncertainty of the cruise track.

“It’s like running a marathon and not knowing where the finish line is. They ran with it. Everyone pitched in and were very positive.” Looking back, he said, “The sense of accomplishment is pretty darn cool.”

Capt. Bercaw has taught hundreds of students since he joined our crew in 1990.

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The sun sets off the SSV Robert C. Seamans.

Out here, out at sea, we get to be something different. Something more. Something bigger than ourselves. Here we are bread makers and boat checkers, lookouts and leaders. We take the helm, haul on halyards, and deploy hundreds of thousands of dollars in scientific equipment. We are artists, poets, singers, writers, cooks, and woodworkers all working towards a common goal, a common purpose. The ship.”

Daniel Ethan Bernas Basa, Eckerd College

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2021 San Diego Yard Crew on SSV Robert C. Seamans.

uncharted waters T A Look Back at 2020-2021

By Doug Karlson 10 | SUMMER 2021

he faculty, staff and crew of Sea Education Association are no strangers to complex logistics and ambitious expeditions, but operating a study abroad program during the COVID-19 pandemic tested them as never before. It was a period of rapid change, and rapid response that included program cancellations, faculty and staff reductions, new programs, remote learning, digital initiatives, and new safety protocols.

Here’s a look back at the many operational challenges faced over this roller coaster of a year, and how SEA managed those challenges.

Spring 2020 The first sign that programs could not proceed as usual came in March 2020, when SEA made the difficult decision to cancel the sea component of class S-291, Oceans & Climate, whose students were nearing the completion

of their shore component. It soon became clear that there had been no choice. New Zealand sealed its borders just days after students enrolled in S-290, The Global Ocean, flew home.

In the Atlantic, Class C-290, Colonization to Conservation in the Caribbean, was just ending in St. Croix.

The decision was taken to return both the SSV Corwith Cramer and SSV Robert C. Seamans to the continental United States. On March 23rd, the Cramer departed the U.S. Virgin Islands bound for Woods Hole. Following a quarantine in Wellington, New Zealand, the Seamans followed suit, departing on April 8th, bound for Honolulu and then San Diego. (See story).

To anxious students enrolled in upcoming programs, the word went out: Pacific cruises were cancelled, Atlantic programs would be modified to avoid port stops and to remain in U.S. coastal waters.

With most SEA staff working from home, an SEA COVID-19 task force was established to make plans for how SEA could operate in the pandemic environment and to develop safety and testing protocols. At the same time, a vigorous outreach campaign was started to keep the wider SEA community informed, and the SEA Board of Trustees intensified efforts to help guide the organization through stormy seas.

Later that spring, Class C-291, Marine Biodiversity & Conservation was cancelled, as was S-292, Pacific Reef Expedition, due to a quarantine imposed in Hawai’i. After stops in Fernandina Beach, Florida, and Cape Charles, Virginia, the Cramer, with a professional crew aboard, arrived back in Woods Hole on April 18th.

With programs curtailed, SEA responded with two free digital

initiatives. Class on the Quarterdeck was a series of free live videos presented

by SEA faculty on topics ranging from the Sargasso Sea to SEA’s expedition to the newly formed Tongan island of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai.

Pacific Crossing 2020 was an ArcGIS StoryMap with regular posts and videos that shared the “story of the Pacific” as the Seamans transited from Hawai’i to San Diego.

Summer 2020 Summer saw all in-person learning cancelled, including S-293, Protecting the Phoenix Islands, as well as SEA’s two high school programs, SEA Expedition and SEASCape. In their place, SEA introduced a new remote high school program called SEA Quest.

The Woods Hole Diversity Initiative’s Partnership Education Program, or PEP, also successfully converted from in-person on the SEA campus to remote, and 16 students participated.

Effective July 1st, most SEA employees were either furloughed or laid off.

Fall 2020 While programs in the Pacific remained impossible (S-295, SPICE, and S-295, Climate & Society were cancelled), fall 2020 brought renewed optimism for a return to more normal programming in the Atlantic. For the first fall program, SEA focused on gap year and winter start students, launching a hybrid program combining Atlantic Odyssey, a non-credit-bearing gap year program, and Ocean Exploration, which offers credit.

the country on the SEA campus and form a COVID-free “bubble” before embarking on the Corwith Cramer.

Associate Dean for Financial Aid and Student Services Virginia Land McGuire, C-115, spearheaded efforts to develop entirely new protocols and procedures to make the program possible. Spacing was increased in classrooms and in the cottages, classes were shifted outdoors when possible, contact with the outside world was limited, and students, faculty and crew were tested frequently.

Class C-294 departed Woods Hole on October 11th, bound for Key West, where they successfully arrived on November 18th, having made no port stops along the way.

The next fall program, C-295, Caribbean Reef Expedition, posed a new challenge: how to safely move a COVID-free “bubble” of students from Woods Hole to the ship in Key West for their sea component? The solution was grueling but effective: a very long drive on a chartered bus.

The SSV Corwith Cramer at Sunset at the dock in Cape Charles, VA.

The arrival of SEA Semester class C-294 in September was the culmination of months of detailed planning that would allow students to gather from around FOLLOWING SEA | 11

ELSAESSER FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY

SEA is accepting preliminary proposals for the 2022 Armin E. Elsaesser Fellowship.

The professional crew of the SSV Corwith Cramer en route from St. Croix to South Carolina.

The good-natured students arrived safely in Florida and sailed aboard the Cramer from November 23rd to December 23rd, on a voyage that ended where it began, in Key West.

Winter 2020/2021

Winter saw a discouraging uptick in COVID cases around the country.

C-296, Colonization to Conservation in the Caribbean, had already been cancelled, and regular Pacific programs remained out of the question. A new gap year program, Pacific Odyssey, was launched in place of the cancelled S-297, Oceans & Climate, but unfortunately, it soon became clear that this was logistically impossible.

Spring 2021 Thanks to a second PPP loan, spring saw the return of many furloughed employees. In addition, as vaccinations became available to a wider population and infection rates showed encouraging signs, in March, 12 | SUMMER 2021

SEA once again welcomed students to the Woods Hole campus. 25 students were enrolled in SEA Semester class C-297, Marine Biodiversity and Conservation. To accommodate the large class, SEA installed temporary walls in the cottages to convert doubles into singles, and introduced new air filtering equipment in the classrooms.

Once again, students travelled by motorcoach to Florida where they boarded the Cramer in St. Petersburg on April 20th. Their cruise track ended in Woods Hole on May 19th.

A second shore component followed, culminating with the Ned Cabot Marine Biodiversity & Conservation Symposium, held virtually.

Summer 2021 As of this writing, summer at SEA looks to be busy, but, as one would expect, different from past summers.

The remote high school program, SEA Quest, is being offered, as is Science at SEA, a high school program aboard the Cramer, with a shore component beforehand to achieve quarantine.

In the Pacific, a summer session for

SEA alumni, faculty, crew, staff, and past employees are eligible for this fellowship, which funds projects of exploration that involve any marine or maritime field that is not directly related to the applicant’s current professional activities. Successful projects should reflect a creative and independent approach to the pursuit of knowledge.

SUBMIT

Awards range from $6,000 to $12,000.

To request information please contact elsaesser@sea.edu

undergraduates, called SEA Summer Session, is currently underway.

The challenges of the past year have required SEA to invent new ways of doing things, in many ways, to reinvent itself. Despite all the changes, one of the most important things at SEA has stayed the same: a commitment to our mission of cultivating ocean scholars, stewards, and leaders.

Each day brings new knowledge, respect for nature, love for each other, and appreciation for life. We are so lucky to be here and be safe and healthy and I think about that every day.”

Grace Evans, Colorado College

Bow watch aboard the SSV Robert C. Seamans.

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SEA expands efforts to improve

DIVER EQUIT INCLU

S I T Y, Y, & SION

By Peg Brandon, W-48

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Heave ho! Students of Class C-277 haul on a line aboard the SSV Corwith Cramer.

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s civil unrest erupted last summer, sparked by the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, businesses, organizations, and educational institutions across the country began reevaluating their own efforts to contribute to a society where all people, regardless of race or ethnicity, share equally in the freedoms and opportunities many of us take for granted.

Sea Education Association is dedicated to the goal of increasing diversity among our students, faculty, staff, and within the broader community of Woods Hole. While we have made some progress in our efforts towards this goal we haven’t yet achieved the results we would like.

“Overall, a lack of diversity remains a challenge throughout the scientific community of Woods Hole.”

The percentage of students from diverse backgrounds enrolled in our programs, for

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example, does not reflect that of four-year colleges and universities or of the United States as a whole. In addition, the level of diversity among faculty and staff is more aligned with the local demography and the STEM and maritime fields than our nation as a whole.

We’re working to change that. This past year, for example, we established the Samuel V. Howe High School Diversity Scholarship thanks to a generous donation by alumnus Samuel Howe (W-3). Other donors have added to the fund, and we continue to seek gifts for this endowment.

Starting in the summer of 2023, the scholarship fund will begin providing tuition for two to six students every year. To bridge the gap until then, this summer and next, special Annual Fund gifts will cover the tuition of high school students from culturally and socio-economically diverse backgrounds at specially selected partner institutions. This summer we are pleased to fully fund five students for our month-long Science at SEA II high school program.

Sam’s commitment to elevating opportunity for students from diverse backgrounds led to his establishing this fund. His gift will make possible the great benefits of the SEA experience: self confidence, an expanded world view, and a chance for a young person to develop in their area of interest, whether it be marine science, environmental policy, or maritime technology.

This effort is in keeping with a goal we recommitted to in our Statement on Racial Injustice, published on our website last year.

That goal is to expand our recruitment of underrepresented students by increasing scholarship opportunities.

But making progress requires more than just funding, as Sam explained in a recent newsletter.

“For me, it’s about more than just donating money for tuition; it’s also about finding those kids who are already leaning into science and the sea. SEA staff members were great to think outside of the box with me about this important recruitment component and formulated a plan to partner with science and marine oriented youth programs, high schools, and organizations that already serve these students. With this approach, SEA can recruit teens who are the perfect fit for our programs, and the tuition support is there to bring them aboard.”

With that in mind, SEA is transforming the way we recruit. We’ve initiated partnerships with nearby schools and organizations to establish a pipeline of high school students who are interested in the ocean and for whom SEA is the perfect next step in their educational advancement.

We’re doing this at the university level as well.

We continue to explore new strategies to increase diversity in our enrollment, and to build a network of dedicated people focused on this objective.

In our Statement on Racial Injustice, we also committed to educating ourselves. This past winter, ten SEA staff, faculty, and board members enrolled in the Unlearning Racism in the Geosciences (URGE) program. Funded by the NSF, this 16-week program provides

a template for a wider discussion within our organization, with the aim of developing anti-racist policies and strategies.

Additional URGE sub groups were also formed with some SEA crewmembers to participate in bi-weekly reading and discussion groups.

SEA community members also participated in the Tall Ships America Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion workshop this past March and others completed the University of South Florida’s 14 week Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate program. Additionally, donor funded Anti-racism training by the Mosaic Project was scheduled this spring specifically to include as many crew and staff as possible. Many members of the SEA community have actively participated in these and previous programs, which will provide a solid foundation on which to improve our efforts to promote diversity at SEA. Our shifting curriculum also plays a part. We are committed to the process of decolonizing our pedagogical practices by continuing to

SAM HOWE Sailed with SEA on W-3 as a junior in high school.

Graduated with a BA in History from Bowdoin College in 1977.

Holds an MBA in Marketing and Finance in the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern.

He’s still an avid sailor, currently sailing a Rodger Martin Presto 30 and an Alerion Express 28.

I wanted to figure out how to make real change in terms of bringing under-represented groups, particularly those from black and brown communities, into the world of ocean sciences. And what better way to bring them into the world of ocean sciences than to bring them to SEA? So together with SEA, I created an endowed scholarship fund—the Samuel V. Howe High School Diversity Scholarship fund, designed to identify and provide tuition support to qualified kids from diverse backgrounds for SEA’s high school programs. I am convinced those we enroll today will change tomorrow.”

Sam Howe, W-3 FOLLOWING SEA | 17

PEP students aboard the SSV Corwith Cramer, summer, 2018

incorporate the works of diverse scholars and the participation of diverse educational partners in the places we visit. Faculty have begun this important work and we will share the results in our SEA program curriculums going forward.

Overall, a lack of diversity remains a challenge throughout the scientific community of Woods Hole. To help address that, in 2004, six scientific organizations in Woods Hole, including Sea Education Association, formed the Diversity Initiative, with the goal of improving diversity and inclusion in Woods Hole. In 2009, the Initiative launched the Woods Hole Partnership Education Program (PEP).

PEP recruits students from under represented communities for 10-week research experiences in Woods Hole. Every summer, PEP students take up residence at SEA where the program begins with academic coursework on campus and follows with internships at institutions in the local scientific community. The idea is to expose students to career possibilities and foster relationships with mentors who will guide their careers. So far, the program has been highly successful with nearly 200 alumni, and in 2019 an NSF-funded symposium was convened with college faculty, administrators and government officials in order to study and replicate the program elsewhere.

In 2018 and 2019, PEP introduced five-day research voyages on the SSV Corwith Cramer.

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Unfortunately, in the summer of 2020, the COVID pandemic prevented an in-person program. Instead, a successful remote program was developed, with a full cohort of 16 students.

Program director George Liles summed up our thinking: “We decided that PEP had to continue in 2020 and 2021... the Woods Hole community does not have the luxury of putting aside its efforts to learn how to become a more inclusive and diverse community.”

While there is much work to be done, and many challenges to overcome, the faculty, staff and board members of SEA are dedicated and focused on the issue of diversity, equity and inclusion, and are working hard to achieve success. We are also committed to increasing transparency by sharing information about efforts on our website.

I close by quoting from the SEA Diversity Statement. “We believe that diversity is a strength to be developed in our programs, on our ships, in our community, and in our world. We believe that by acting together, we can accomplish more than by any of us acting alone. We recognize that the ocean doesn't separate us; it connects us. We are committed to understanding and strengthening those connections every day through hands-on education, stewardship development, and sail training at sea.”

Porpoises swim off the bow of the SSV Corwith Cramer en route from St. Croix to Woods Hole last spring.

This past month has been the most magical and mind blowing experience but also extremely difficult. I have grown in many ways and learned so much; as a result I can now see changes in myself and I am able to do things I never would have imagined. I look forward to relishing our last few weeks aboard, but for now I better get some sleep before I’m woken up in the dead of night for another dawn watch. I wonder what wonderful new and exciting things tomorrow will hold.”

Audrey Wood, gap year student

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did you know ALUMNI REFERRALS PRODUCE MORE STUDENTS THAN ANY OTHER INQUIRY SOURCE. Your voice matters! If you know any students who would be great shipmates, please tell them about SEA Semester!

THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE ANNUAL FUND! YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS PLAYED A CRITICAL ROLE IN SUPPORTING SEA AND OUR MISSION IN 2020.

Making a gift is one positive act that directly empowers students to forge a relationship with our oceans to help solve global environmental challenges.

not yet a donor? make a gift