From the Pilothouse
I'd like to begin with a tribute to one of ISEA's dedicated volunteer instructors, mentors, and friends, Claudia Gaudschaal. Claudia passed away earlier this month, and has left everyone who knew her much saddened, but also glad to have been a part of her life. Claudia had been an active volunteer instructor and donor since almost the beginning of ISEA. She taught aboard Malabar, Manitou and Inland Seas, and offered her 30+ years of teaching experience to our students and her fellow instructors. Her passion for boats, sailing and the Great Lakes was a perfect fit with ISEA, and led to the publishing of her scholarly book Destination Leelanau earlier this year. Thank you, and fair winds, Claudia.
The gales of November have held off this year, thanks to El Nino, which as been a blessing for getting work done on the boats. Capt. Remy has gotten all the spars scraped and slushed, and we have most of our donated "for sale" fleet inside for the winter. Liberty is stored at Northport Bay Boat Yard (thanks NBBY!), and Northern Lumber supplied a truck and fork lift to bring her 1,000 pound mast back to Suttons Bay for refinishing this winter (any volunteers?).
We are busy planning next summer's ship schedules, which will likely include a trip to Chicago in late August for the Tall Ship festival there. We are also talking with several organizations new to ISEA about extended summer trips. By mid-December we will have our summer schedule posted on our web site, just in time for you to give a sailing/learning cruise as a holiday gift.
At this Thanksgiving we at ISEA are thankful you are part of this fantastic organization dedicated to protecting the Great Lakes and transforming kids' lives.
Tom Kelly, Executive Director |
Asian Carp
Want to know more about the increasing threat of Asian carp entering the Great Lakes? Check out this Great Lakes United website dedicated to the most up-to-date information regarding the ongoing struggle. |
All classes take place from 6:30-8:30pm at the Inland Seas Education Center unless otherwise noted.
January 6
Introduction to ISEA, our Great Lakes Schoolship Program, and Education Center
January 13
Luke Clyburn of the Noble Odyssey Foundation will present a seminar, "The Norwood Project: Underwater Adventure into the Past"
January 20
The Great Lakes and Global Freshwater
January 27
Safety Aboard the Schoolship
February 3
Sample Collections and Weather
February 10
Water Chemistry
February 17
Benthos
February 24
Plankton
March 3
Fish
March 10
Seamanship
March 17
Teaching Strategies
March 24
Stewardship and Review
April 7
All Day New Volunteer Instructor Training (9:00am-5:00pm)
April 14
Veteran Instructor Training (1:00-5:00pm)
April 21
Lead Instructor Training (2:00-5:00pm)
April 30
New Volunteer Schoolship Programs (8:30am-12:30pm OR 1:15-5:15pm) |
Volunteer to take care of our aquariums and fish
Volunteer to help with donated boat acquisitions & sales
Laptop computer for shipboard use
Digital video camera
Mounted Great Lakes fish
Foul weather gear | |
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2009 Schoolship Year in Review
 ISEA recently completed our 21st season of offering experiential science and sailing adventures for students of all ages. A total of 102 Schoolship Programs were offered in spring and fall 2009. Spring Schoolship Programs were offered aboard ISEA's schooner Inland Seas in Suttons Bay and the chartered schooner Manitou in Traverse City. Fall Schoolship Programs were offered aboard Inland Seas. These programs included 2,883 students representing 52 schools, with 25 districts bringing multiple classes. Thirty six schools (70% of all districts) returned from 2008.
 Shipboard programs were also offered for the public during the summer. A total of 44 shipboard programs were offered aboard the schooner Inland Seas: 28 Family Science Sails, 2 day-long programs, 9 specialty programs, and 5 overnight programs.
ISEA provided shipboard experiential science learning opportunities for 3,930 people in 146 educational programs in 2009. The total number of shipboard participants to date in ISEA's Schoolship Program is 83,109.
In addition to the participants of shipboard educational programs, 1,258 members of the public participated in shoreside educational tours of the schooner Inland Seas (in Charlevoix, Escanaba, Fayette, Suttons Bay, and Traverse City), and 182 people attended one of our Great Lakes Seminars in 2009. |
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ISEA Recognizes Long-Term Schoolship Participants
 ISEA would like to recognize those schools that have participated in Schoolship Programs for at least ten years. These teachers and schools have helped provide hands-on experiences for thousands of students throughout the state of Michigan. A special thanks to each of these schools for their commitment to the Schoolship Program and for their help in creating future stewards of the Great Lakes. Schools that participated in a spring or fall Schoolship Program for at least ten years include:
Bear Lake Lakeland Elementary
Bellaire Lakeshore High School
Central Grade School Lewiston Schools
Claire Elementary Mancelona Middle School
Cook and/or Mason Michigan Trails/Shore-to-
Elementary Schools Shore Girl Scout Council
Fair Winds Girl Scout Council Mio AuSable
Fulton Schools Old Mission Elementary
Gaylord St. Mary's Sacred Heart Academy
Grayling Elementary Smith Middle School
Interlochen Elementary Suttons Bay Schools
Kalkaska Middle School Tappan Middle School
Lake Leelanau St. Mary's Willow Hill Elementary
We would also like to recognize the following organizations that have participated in Schoolship Programs in Escanaba since our first trip in 1995:
Bay de Noc Community College
Delta-Schoolcraft ISD
NewPage-Escanaba Operations |
Great Lakes Seminar Series: "The Norwood Project: Underwater Adventure into the Past"
January 13, 2010
 ISEA's 2009-2010 Great Lakes Seminar Series continues on January 13th at 7:00pm at the Inland Seas Education Center. Luke Clyburn, president of the Noble Odyssey Foundation, will discuss a short video with amazing footage and commentary about the ancient submerged river channel near the mouth of Grand Traverse Bay. The seminar is free and open to the public.
The Noble Odyssey Foundation (NOF) research team is a group of scientists from local universities and museums and divers that undertake submarine and coastal research projects under the direction of Captain Luke Clyburn, who also serves as the Director of the NOF. In 2004, John Zawiskie of Cranbrook Institute of Science and Scripps University marine biologist Dr. Elliot Smith directed the underwater mapping of the geology of the sill at the mouth of Grand Traverse Bay. This led to the creation of the first geologic map of the bottom sediments and bedrock in that part of the lake basin and documentation of a drowned river channel cut through lake bottom clay at depths of up to 150 feet. This is a relict channel from the low stand period that formed when the current lake floor was a land area, sometime between 10,000 and 7,500 years ago.
Click here for more information about this and other upcoming seminars. |
ISEA's Volunteer Instructor Training Course Begins
January 6, 2010
 Come join us for our 2010 volunteer instructor training course. Become an ISEA volunteer instructor and help us provide students with an exciting science and sailing adventure. Not sure if you want to become a volunteer? Come to the introductory session on January 6, 2010 to learn more about ISEA.
No experience required! Already an instructor? Come back for a review and an update on ISEA programs.
The volunteer instructor training course takes place on Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:30pm at the Inland Seas Education Center in Suttons Bay (100 Dame Street). Classes include an educational presentation and hands-on activities led by ISEA staff and experienced volunteer instructors. If Suttons Bay Schools are closed due to weather, no class will be held that evening.
For a complete list of the volunteer instructor training schedule, check out the column to the left. For more information, head to our website. If you have further questions or would like to register for the training course, please contact ISEA Education Director Christine Crissman by phone at 231-271-3077 or e-mail. |
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Signed into Law
On October 30, 2009, President Obama signed the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative into law. This inter-agency initiative led by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will provide $475 million to target significant problems in the Great Lakes region. About $146 million will be spent to clean up toxic areas of concern, $60 million will go towards combating invasive species such as zebra mussels and the Asian carp, $97 million will be spent on reducing runoff and contamination of streams from farms and industry, $105 million will help restore habitat and wildlife, and the remaining $65 million is for accountability and monitoring. For more information on the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative go to the EPA website. |
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Would You Like to Receive a Guaranteed Lifetime Income Stream and a 2009 Tax Deduction?
Consider a charitable gift annuity with ISEA. In addition to a gift to ISEA, a Schoolship gift annuity offers very competitive rates along with immediate income tax savings. For more information pleasecontact ISEA's
Development Director Steve Cruzen at 231-271-3077 or by e-mail. | |
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