Archive of Spotlight Feature Articles

Adopt-A-Boat Links Fishermen with Students

By Andrea Cohen

When asked to define commercial fishing, a third grader in Dexter, Maine, ventured, "Something on TV?" That was during the pre-course survey of The Adopt-a-Boat program, a collaborative project between the fishing industry and educators. By the end of the class students could name the parts of a fishing vessel and identify types of fish.

Conceptualized and organized by New England fishermen, the MIT Sea Grant College Program, and other cooperating organizations, Adopt-a-Boat uses commercial fishing boats to teach the complexities of marine resource utilization, marine ecology, and life as a fisherman to K-12 students. In addition, the project helps present a balanced picture of commercial fishing, thereby building an enlightened citizenry regarding marine resource utilization and its importance to coastal communities. The project has been funded by the Northeast Consortium.

Now in its third year, Adopt-a-Boat links 35 fishermen with 70 classrooms in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Each boat partners with a classroom, typically in the same geographic region as the vessel's homeport. MIT Sea Grant provides fishermen and classrooms with financial and logistical support, as well as communications tools and other state-of-the-art technologies.

"The key to the program is flexibility," says Adopt-a-Boat coordinator and MIT Sea Grant education coordinator Brandy Moran. "We work with each teacher to help figure out how Adopt-a-Boat can work with his or her class. Partly this is because we are dealing with such a wide age range: K-12." Class visits, boat visits, or regular data exchanges are often included. Topics of study have included the fishing industry (life of a fisherman, fishing vessels, fisheries economics, fishing communities); ecology/biology of marine systems (species identification, water quality, and oceanography); marine resource utilization (fishers regulation/fish stocks and aquaculture); and careers. And the program has introduced some kids to the ocean for the first time.

While the concept of stewardship via "adopt-a-something" programs isn't new, Adopt-a-Boat differs from other such programs, says Moran. "A lot of those programs relate to a specific location or environment. However, this relates to an industry," she explains. MIT Sea Grant's marine advisory leader Cliff Goudey adds that Adopt-a-Boat is special "because of the depth of support we're prepared to give to make the partnerships work." Along with funds and time, this support has included supplies such as nautical charts, navigation kits and books for teachers, digital cameras for fishermen, and even computers, since electronic communication is critical for spanning distances between boats and classes.

The program's success in the Northeast thus far has revealed its potential for replication in other regions. In New Jersey, the Garden State Seafood Association has started its own version. Adopt-a-Boat will also expand further southward through a partnership between North Carolina Sea Grant and the N.C. Fisheries Association. NC Sea Grant marine educator Terri Kirby Hathaway hopes to pair two or three boats with classes in a pilot project this fall.

For more information about Adopt-a-Boat, see http://www.adoptaboat.org or contact Brandy Moran at bmmoran@mit.edu or 617-253-5944.

[4/5/04]

CLIMATE · OCEANS, GREAT LAKES, and COASTS · WEATHER and AIR QUALITY
ABOUT US · RESEARCH PROGRAMS · EDUCATION · HOME

Contact Us
Privacy Policy