UM’s Rosenstiel School and ‘Ocean Kids’ link up to explore marine environment

Every year since 2008, elementary school children meet with expert educators to learn how to rescue marine mammals and protect coral reefs.

These young citizen scientists also study ocean conservation research, sustainability, and the importance of sharks.

Called Ocean Kids, the hands-on activities program at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science is run by volunteers who are undergraduate and graduate students, as well as faculty and staff.

This year’s event was co-hosted by Maria Cartolano and Executive Director of the Hobe Sound Nature Center Jill Richardson through the Ocean Conservancy Ocean Justice Community Grant. Ocean Kids was founded by Richardson in 2008.

“The students learned about current research that scientists are working on at the Rosenstiel,” Cartolano said. “They got to interact with Aplysia (sea slugs) and learn about how they are used for models to study human health with Dr. Rachael Heuer.

“One goal of Ocean Kids is to provide early access to STEM curriculum. Students investigated life cycles of marine organisms using a microscope with Dr. Erik Folkerts and Dr. Andrea Durant. And Dr. Richard Coleman shared his research about marine fish evolution and ecology, and showed students how to extract DNA!”

They also learned about fish physiology and even met a Gulf toadfish with the Rosenstiel Toadfish Lab.

Ocean Kids is a no-cost, civic engagement and field trip event for elementary students from high-needs education districts in Miami. Over 120 students from three local schools rotated between 14 engaging education stations.

Activities took place at Historical Virginia Key Beach across the street from the Rosenstiel campus. To learn more, visit www.earth.miami.edu and www.oceanconservancy.org There is an Ocean Kids Fund if you can help grow this important coastal conservation education program.

BBBS Littles inspire at graduation

Student and family resilience and determination are always highlighted at the annual graduation ceremony of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami’s Littles. This year, the event showcased the achievements of 276 remarkable young individuals.

And during the June 15 ceremony, the graduating Littles were awarded nearly $2 million in college scholarships generously donated by valued donors. Walmart and Old Spice School of Swagger sponsored the event.

Organizers said the ceremony was made even more memorable by surprise celebrity guest speaker, Victor Fontanez, also known as Vic Blends. The renowned motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and barber brought his inspiring voice to honor the graduating Littles.

The company sponsors also demonstrated their support by presenting the graduating Littles with gifts as tokens of appreciation. The gestures “served as a heartfelt recognition of the Littles’ hard work and dedication throughout their journey with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami.”

This year, the graduating class of Littles was noteworthy with 62 percent being Hispanic students. Many are first in their families to graduate.

Also in attendance at the ceremony were the dedicated Bigs, the mentors for the Littles, and supportive parents/guardians.

For more about Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami and its mission to “ignite the power and promise of youth through one-to-one mentoring relationships,” visit www.bbbsmiami.org.

Art students awarded

Congratulations to 15 talented Miami-Dade County high-school art students who were awarded scholarships through the Coconut Grove Arts Festival. During the ceremony, members of the Coconut Grove Arts Festival and EngageLive, producers of the festival, jointly presented each recipient with a $3,000 check.

“We are in the business of connecting people to create truly engaging experiences,” said EngageLive CEO Tony Abelo. “So it is wholly fitting that we are now joining with CGAF to ‘connect’ brilliant young artists with educational funding that will help further their studies. And we are honored to do so.”

The event also included a showing of each student’s artwork.

“Since 1963, the Coconut Grove Arts Festival has played a prominent role in promoting arts and culture in South Florida, most visibly through our efforts each year hosting the internationally acclaimed outdoor arts festival over the Presidents’ Day weekend,” said Monty Trainer, president of the CGAF.

Trainer added that behind the scenes, the organization has a proud history of giving back to the community all year long through arts educational and outreach programs.

Seniors receive hurricane kits

Volunteers from FPL and United HomeCare in Miami-Dade recently helped distribute hurricane kits with three days of shelf-stable, nutritious food, water and snacks to seniors who can’t leave their homes, or who receive home-delivered meals, after a storm.

The groups made 2,460 hurricane kits for 820 seniors. Since 2016, FPL has worked with local community nonprofits to deliver thousands of hurricane kits to help seniors prepare for storm season. For tips, and to learn more on how you can prepare, visit www.FPL.com/storm

Write to ChristinaMMayo@gmail.com with news for this column.