BAHIA - 2009 Website

BAHIA, a partnership with the City Heights Educational Collaborative, is an innovative program that draws on the resources of the region to fill the gaps in the community’s science education opportunities. A total of thirty Hoover High School students (half 9th grade English Learners and half 11th grade students with a strong interest in science and technology fields) are enrolled each year.

Students begin with ten weeks of coursework in marine science and ecology. Through this curriculum students perform dissections and experiments, learn to keep a lab notebook and journal, participate in university research, and gain swimming and snorkeling skills.

The following seven weeks are spent at the Vermillion Sea Field Station working on directed field research projects, in Bahia de Los Angeles, Mexico. Student projects include working with a local non-profit organization to monitor turtle populations, partnering with UC Davis researchers to study island communities and creating exhibits and educational opportunities at Museo de Bahia de Los Angeles. In addition students snorkel in the Sea of Cortez, explore pristine mangrove habitats, and invest themselves in the community.

Upon their return, students present their research findings in a colloquium. Students continue to further their expertise through a variety of other experiences in the science and technology fields and disseminate their knowledge through outreach programs and presentations. Through BAHIA, skills are developed to achieve academic success and build a stronger foundation for the future.