Long Beach students participate in GenSea Blue summer internships
Three Long Beach High School students, Vicki Tran, Justin Mares and Jose “Tony” Garcia, participated in GenSea Blue internships this summer.
To inspire the next generation of leaders in marine and coastal sciences, the GenSea Blue Economy Pathways Internship program at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) offered a cohort of seventeen high school students the opportunity to intern at various USM research sites during the summer, with positions ranging from four to eight weeks.
The program, facilitated in partnership with the Center for STEM Education and working with the School of Ocean Science and Engineering (SOSE), brings togetherUSM faculty and staff to host students as blue economy mentors. Under their guidance, students are introduced to the world of STEM along Mississippi’s coastline through hands-on training and invaluable experiences in the blue economy.
“Opportunity doesn’t happen by accident. This program affords students transformational lab and field experience while building their professional networks,” said Chelsey Reid, assistant program manager of outreach of the GenSea program. “By working with high school students, we can meaningfully reach students early enough in their academic career to impact their workforce readiness before graduation. My favorite observed program byproduct can be summed up in one word: hope.”
Interns have worked at teaching and research sites, including the Gulf Park campus in Long Beach, the Stennis Space Center facility, the Marine Research Center in Gulfport and the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs.
“My internship involved learning about hydrography as well as other careers in the blue economy,” said Garcia. “We got to go out and do a good amount of fieldwork. For example, we did a survey of part of a river. We also spent some time in the lab handling the various equipment needed for hydrography.”
“During my aquaculture internship, I got to work with countless people who all share a strong passion for their work,” said Tran. “I also got the chance to assist with the oyster hatchery, where I learned about how much work it takes to take care of oysters from their larval stage to their grown stage. My work included cleaning oyster tanks and systems to clear out any mud to promote faster growth and recording down the water quality every day. I got to go out on the boat at Halstead campus to identify surviving and dead oysters that have been placed in the Gulf. I also learned how to initiate a siphon, calculate the amount of algae for the oysters, and how to count the number of larvae under a microscope.”
“Our School is focused on participating in many impactful and strategic initiatives to promote economic, scientific and technological innovation in Mississippi’s coastal zone,” said Dr. Robert Leaf, interim associate director of the SOSE. “We are particularly excited about our engagement with Mississippi’s students. Our faculty cultivate the interests of Mississippi’s students while fostering a deeper understanding of the marine and coastal ecosystem and opening doors to exciting career paths in the blue economy.”
