Amy Boyajian (pictured above, at right), NYSG’s LIS Outreach Coordinator worked with Eileen Gerle (in hat), an Environmental Educator with the Town of Brookhaven, at a Secondary Teacher Workshop at Cedar Beach in Mt. Sinai, NY. Photo courtesy of Amy Boyajian


At a workshop that was held on Friday, July 19th, six middle school and high school teachers learned about the Long Island Sound estuary and how they can incorporate hands-on activities like seining and water quality testing into their curricula. The teachers also learned about the horseshoe crab tagging program and got a tour of the Town of Brookhaven’s clam and oyster nursery, where the Town of Brookhaven’s Shellfish Mariculture Program is run. According to the program evaluations, 100 percent of the attendees indicated that they learned new information about Long Island Sound and were also exposed to new activities and materials to use in their classrooms.

This is just one of the many teacher professional development workshops being conducted along Long Island Sound, by New York Sea Grant’s new LIS Coordinator, Amy Boyajian. NYSG will offer two more workshops this fall – on Saturday, September 21st and Saturday, September 28th. For more information about these workshops, please visit www.longislandsoundstudy.net or contact Amy at acb328@cornell.edu.

— Amy Boyajian


Amy and Eileen explain water quality issues associated with the Long Island Sound estuary at the teacher workshop sponsored by Brookhaven National Laboratory’s Open Space Stewardship Program. Photo courtesy of Amy Boyajian


Amy Boyajian began working in the position in late February 2013, taking over for Larissa Graham, who vacated the post in mid-January after five years. Graham has relocated to Ocean Spring, Mississippi, where she accepted the Coastal Training Program Coordinator position at the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR).

Boyajian comes to New York Sea Grant from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, where she was a Program Associate for the Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program as well as a Water Resources Agent for New Jersey Sea Grant.  In these roles, she was in charge of New Jersey's rain garden program and conducted outreach on stormwater management to communities throughout New Jersey and the region. Amy holds a master's degree in science education at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education in New Brunswick and a bachelor's degree in environmental science at Cook College, also in New Brunswick.  "I enjoy working in team environments to solve complex environmental problems and appreciate the opportunity to develop and implement outreach programs that not only help solve environmental issues but also engage and motivate stakeholders," Boyajian said.


Long Island Sound Study Fall 2013 Workshops

New York Sea Grant and the Long Island Sound Study invite you to attend the Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher Workshops.
 
Take advantage of one or both of these exciting, educational workshops focused on the Long Island Sound, an estuary designated by Congress in 1987 as an “Estuary of National Significance.”
 
The Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher Workshops, developed by Connecticut Sea Grant in 2003 and expanded to New York in 2011, are unique in that they are taught by formal and informal educators who have experience incorporating Long Island Sound into their curricula and educational programs.
 
At these hands-on teacher professional development workshops, formal and informal educators will be engaged in activities that utilize Long Island Sound’s natural resources. Participants will receive 6 professional development hours and materials to conduct classroom and outdoor activities.



Awesome Estuaries
Saturday, September 21, 2013 (rain date September 22)
9:00am-3:00pm
Sunken Meadow State Park, Kings Park, NY

$15 registration fee covers the cost of continental breakfast and lunch

Please dress in field attire – sneakers or boots and layered clothing that may get wet or dirty

Register online at http://tinyurl.com/lismt by September 13th.  Workshop is limited to 20 participants.

About the instructors:

• Fanny M. Kleisler is a Naturalist with Nassau BOCES and enjoys connecting children to the natural world through innovative, hands-on, and creative activities.  She looks forward to helping you create memorable and engaging activities for your students.
  
  
• Monica Marlowe received her MS in Marine and Wetland Science from Coastal Carolina University.  She currently teaches high school AP Environmental Science and Biology, as well as Oceanography at Suffolk Community College.  This workshop will allow her to share many outdoor lab activities that can be differentiated to many ages and abilities.

If you have any questions about this workshop, please contact Amy Boyajian, Long Island Sound Outreach Coordinator, at acb328@cornell.edu or 631-632-9216.




Learning’s a Beach
Saturday, September 28, 2013 (rain date September 29)
9:00am-3:00pm
West Meadow Beach, Stony Brook, NY

$15 registration fee covers the cost of continental breakfast and lunch from Fratelli’s Market Place

Please dress in field attire – sneakers or boots and layered clothing that may get wet or dirty

Register online at http://tinyurl.com/lismt by September 20th.  Workshop is limited to 20 participants.

About the instructors:

• Eileen Gerle has been sharing her love of nature with children and adults for over twenty years, having worked as a marine educator/naturalist for New York Sea Grant, Cornell Cooperative Extension Marine Program, the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, and the Long Island Aquarium.  She is currently the Environmental Educator for the Town of Brookhaven at West Meadow and Cedar Beach.  She holds a master's degree in marine environmental science from Stony Brook University.
  
  
• Jaclyn Stiegert has a BS in Environmental Science and her MAT in Earth Science.  She has four years of teaching experience at the middle and high school level.  

 If you have any questions about this workshop, please contact Amy Boyajian, Long Island Sound Outreach Coordinator, at acb328@cornell.edu or 631-632-9216.


More Info: Long Island Sound Study

Long Island Sound is one of the 28 nationally-designated estuaries under the NEP, which was established by Congress in 1987 to improve the quality of Long Island Sound and other places where rivers meet the sea.

The Long Island Sound Study, conducted under the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Estuary Program (NEP), is a cooperative effort between the EPA and the states of Connecticut and New York to restore and protect the Sound and its ecosystems.

For more on what you can do to make a difference, click over to the "Get Involved" or "Stewardship" sections of the Long Island Sound Study's Web site. News on the Long Island Sound Study can also be found in New York Sea Grant's related archives.

If you would like to receive Long Island Sound Study's newsletter, please visit their site's homepage and sign up for the "e-news/print newsletter" under the "Stay Connected" box.

For daily updates and tips on how you can help protect and restore Long Island Sound, please join LISS on Facebook or, sign up for their RSS feeds.