Marine Ecology & Mariculture 4-Teachers

• What to expect

  Marine Ecology & Mariculture 4-Teachers is primarily a field based course and we will be spending most days outside exploring different learning possibilities.  Students should be able to walk at least 5 miles.  Portions of the course may be carried out over uneven terrain, often without a trail, and may include river crossings or other hazards depending on route and travel logistics. The course requires being able to sit in a kayak for several hours (3+ hours) and participate in boat-based activities. The course may require good physical condition and ability to perform in cold and/or inclement weather. Students must be prepared to spend long days outside, with a number of environmental concerns to mitigate, including: bears, mosquitos, wolves, rivers, weather, temperature, etc. 

• What will you get
  • A week of content-rich days immersed in classroom and field exercises to deepen teaching pedagogy.
  • Teachers will walk away with lesson plans, resources, tools how to fit the curriculum into a classroom or virtual learning environment, and examples of place-based lesson planning.
  • All students will develop a place-based lesson plan or unit to use in their own classroom. All of the lesson plans developed will be put into an online database that will be made available to all students for adaptation and use in their classroom.
•  Why should you come
  • Gives teachers the ability to reconnect to and re-energize their passion for teaching.
  • Mixes classroom activities with place-based/outdoor activities, which asks the teachers to not only consider their curriculum, but to also their classroom environment
  • Collaborative workshop activities allow STEM teachers to meet and network with other educators who are living through the same experience
• Important Grant Information
  • Grant funding will only pay for grades C or higher in the program. Failing grades (F), D's, withdrawals (W), and incompletes (I) will not be covered by the grant and students will be responsible for the cost of tuition. 

Meet The Instructor

Dr. Melissa Uselman

Melissa came to Prince William Sound College from Michigan State University, where she completed graduate work focused on aquatic ecology, studying how behavioral differences influence growth and survival in juvenile bluegill sunfish. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources with a concentration in Fish and Wildlife Management from Northland College in Wisconsin, where her education emphasized hands-on, field-based learning. Her academic and professional interests center on experiential education, data literacy, and connecting students with real-world scientific questions. While at Michigan State University, she co-developed Data Nuggets, an educational program designed to help students engage directly with scientific data, an approach that continues to shape her teaching philosophy. After moving to Valdez in 2021, Melissa joined PWSC as the Marine Natural Resources Technician (MNRT) program coordinator. In this role, she teaches and supports courses that immerse students in field-based learning, including a marine field course in Seward taught in collaboration with mariculture specialists at the Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute. She also mentors independent student research projects, including applied monitoring work at the college’s oyster farm. Melissa believes that students learn best through active engagement with their environment. Her teaching emphasizes hands-on experience, critical thinking, and using data as a tool to understand local ecosystems. She is excited to continue developing programs at PWSC that connect students to Alaska’s marine environments and provide meaningful, place-based educational opportunities.

Program Coordinator: Teshina Dorsey

Partners

Alaska Mariculture Cluster Build Back Better Grant