Last weekend, Spring 2012 alumnus Sterling Wright participated in the 7th annual Lamoille Hill Climb in Lamoille Canyon, Nevada. It is a grueling race that climbs 3,000 feet over the 12-mile course. Sterling not only completed this difficult ride, but also finished in first place! Unlike the other cyclists who wore skin-tight biking shorts, Sterling chose to wear a pair of loose swim trunks and an over-sized Island School bike jersey that had belonged to an Island School faculty member worn during the Ride for Hope that occurred during Sterling’s semester. Congratulations Sterling! Your athletic feats never cease to amaze us. You can read more about Sterling’s race here!
Monthly Archives: August 2012
Shark Week and Flats Week at CEI
Early Monday morning Shark & Flats week were off after a busy camp exploring the mangrove flats ecosystem in South Eleuthera.
The flats week students not only worked alongside our Flats researchers all through the week, but also had the opportunity to go bonefishing with some of the local fishermen of Rock Sound and Savannah Sound. In doing this, they got a taste of some of the local ideas in conservation of the mangrove flats ecosystem and protection of bonefish as well as other species that spend all or just part of their life there.
The Shark week students spent a good amount of time in the field setting longlines and drum lines for juvenile lemon sharks and their predators. They were very successful in tagging and recapture of juvenile lemons, having caught 7 in one day at a nearby creek. They were also able to use their findings to relate to other juvenile lemon shark studies from the Bimini Biological Field Station.
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On the last day, both shark and flats presented to their fellow campers and Continue reading
Educators Dive Right In at Annual Teachers’ Conference
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Last week, The Island School welcomed 22 teachers from around the nation for a firsthand look at our organization’s mission and philosophy and how experiential education can be harnessed in and outside of classrooms worldwide. They took the campus by storm, diving headfirst into our mind-body-spirit mentality by participating in morning exercises, thinking critically around the Harkness table, and sharing stories, ideals, and teaching strategies with one another under the stars. They took in the beautiful, crystal clear waters of Eleuthera through snorkeling trips, SCUBA diving, and kayaking; spent the afternoon learning and working alongside researchers at CEI; and explored the rest of the island on their very own Down Island Trip. The week was capped off by a group coffeehouse, which had people singing, dancing, and reading manuscripts.
In the end, all had a rewarding, insightful, and career-affirming experience on the Cape, with some remarking that, “it was the most inspirational conference I’ve ever been a part of.” We are excited to move forward building partnerships with these teachers and their schools and hope to see some of their students down here for the semester or a visiting program – so that we all can continue to effect change onward, upward, together.
Stay tuned for information regarding next year’s Teacher’s Conference!
Peter Meijer (SP’05) Representing IS Abroad!
During a recent trip to the Caribbean, Peter Meijer (SP’05) made friends with a very curious iguana who seemed to want to know more about The Island School–or thought Peter’s toes were food! Way to rep those IS flip flops, Peter! If you have any photos of you doing cool things in your Island School gear, send them to alumni@islandschool.org!
Cancer Society of The Bahamas Annual Race 4 The Cure in Tarpum Bay
On Saturday August 4th, the Cancer Society of The Bahamas held it’s annual Race for A Cure in Tarpum Bay. The purpose of the event is to raise funds to assist the efforts in cancer awareness, education and cure. Held on the same weekend as the annual Back to the Bay Homecoming, many locals and visitors came out to support the cause. Among the participants were our very own from the Island School and DCMS! We are proud to announce Dr. Joanna Paul placed second in her division (while pushing a stroller with Mara!!). Kalin Griffin placed second and Lindsay Erbaugh third in their divisions and DCMS student Tyler Leary placed 1st in his division. Way to represent The Island School, Deep Creek Middld School, and Cape Eleuthera Institute in support of cancer awareness in The Bahamas!
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GWU Online High School Seines, Tags, Flies, and Soars!
The second half of GWUOHS’s time here on the Cape was filled with adventures in and out of creeks and bays, down island, and – most challengingly – along our very own loop! Wednesday morning, students joined The Island School Summer Term to complete part of the Monster Run Swim course. Having no real mental or physical preparation for such an intense morning of exercise, it was incredible to see all 7 push themselves in ways not even they believed they could, and all were extremely satisfied, elated – not to mention relieved – to come back to campus and touch that flagpole. Not to have it seem their efforts were a fluke, they were back in the water on Thursday, running and swimming through Current Cut while completing a Govia– we tip our swim caps off to them!
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After brushing off the sand and salt on Wednesday, the group made their way to both Cotton Bay and Continue reading
Building Bridges Abroad: Bradley and Garneisha Return From Training in China
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The Island School and The Embassy for the People’s Republic of China celebrated a growing partnership this summer as the Embassy welcomed Bahamian Environmental Steward Scholar alumni (BESS) and Island School alumni Garneisha Pinder (F’10) and Bradley Watson (F’08). Pinder a rising sophomore at The College of The Bahamas and Watson a rising senior at College of Charleston, attended the Training Course on Bio-gas Technology for Developing Countries on May 15th – July 9th. You can hear more about their experiences on Continue reading
CEI’s Liane Nowell Embarks on her Masters on the Cape
After graduating from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in Biology, Liane was offered a job at CEI working in the Flats Ecology and Conservation Program. She has since been given the opportunity to pursue her master’s in science through Carleton University, Canada at CEI. With the supervision of Dr. Steven Cooke (Carleton University, Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology lab) and Dr. Cory Suski (University of Illinois, Ecological Physiology lab) Liane will be studying the thermal biology and spatial ecology of bonefish.
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In addition to being part of a multi-million dollar catch-and-release fishery, bonefish (Albula vulpes) are an essential component of tropical marine ecosystems and an integral part of Continue reading
OSU’s Dr. Mark Hixon at CEI
Dr. Mark Hixon plus four graduate students have been conducting lionfish research at CEI this summer. Dr. Hixon is the most cited coral reef biologist in the last decade and recently gave a TED talk about the lionfish invasion.
Mark and his team our the first long-term residents in Hallig House. He speaks about his experience at CEI in the video below. Mark will return later in August with Carl Safina and a film crew in tow. They will be shooting an episode for Saving the Ocean.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZD2JDIuYJw&feature=youtu.be