Extra curricular

School year 24-25 clubs with the West Tisbury School and the Ag Society continue to be a hit! All clubs are full, but waitlists can be accessed through the WT School Club Coordinator for BioKids for 2nd-4th graders, or the Ag Society for 4H Seashore Explorers.

In spring 2023, MVSG started an afterschool club at the West Tisbury School called BioKids for K-2 students. In fall 2023, a 4-H club called Seashore Explorers for the same age group was added in collaboration with the MV Ag Society. The aim of these clubs is to inspire young scientists with simple experiments, expose them to aquatic life, and teach them how to be better stewards of our marine environments. We also work with scouts and other organizations & clubs.

Classroom visits & shoreside tours

This year, MVSG continues to work with schools and libraries. If you are interested in a classroom visit or a a fieldtrip to one of our hatcheries, please reach out to our Education Manager.

In 2023, MVSG rekindled a focus on education, reaching over 700 students Pre K- Grade 12 to host demonstrations and share facts about water quality, shellfish benefits, salt marsh ecosystems, and the world of science.

For the first time in over 20 years, we host school kids and tours at the John T. Hughes Research Station to build shoreside aquariums, peek inside our greenhouse hatchery & walk the Brush Pond Marsh with our Marine Biologists.

Community outreach

2024-2025 is supported with funding from NOAA’s eeBLUE Aquaculture Literacy Program and continued funding from the Edey Foundation to inspire locals and visitors to get out onto the ponds, explore to the benefits of aquaculture, and participate in volunteer science opportunities.

With original funding from the Edey Foundation in 2023 to build education toolkits, MVSG has been able to diversify how we represent ourselves in the community. We work with individuals, other conservation organizations on Island, community members & libraries to teach people how to shuck, how to clam, how to restore eelgrass, and why we work so hard to “bivalvify” the waters around Martha’s Vineyard.