Parker Teacher to Head Out to Sea

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean there is a buoy, yellow and white and loaded with scientific instruments.

This mini-laboratory, bobbing in a vast expanse of blue waves, is the destination of the Kilo Moana, a University of Hawaii research vessel; an elite corps of scientists from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; and Patricia Kassis, a physics and math teacher at Parker School.

From June 3 to June 11, Kassis will volunteer aboard the Kilo Moana, gaining valuable world experience and knowledge to bring back to her classroom and students. Kassis is just one of 23 teachers in the United States chosen to participate in the 2008 Teacher at Sea program.

"By participating in this program, it becomes possible for teachers to enrich their classroom curricula with a depth of understanding made possible by living and working side-by-side, day and night, with those who contribute to the world's body of oceanic and atmospheric scientific knowledge," writes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in describing its program.

Kassis, who holds a master's degree in physical oceanography from MIT and a bachelor's degree in physics from Willamette University, will join scientists in maintaining and gathering data from the WHOTS buoy. The moored buoy, equipped with meteorological sensors and satellite transmitters, can gather an abundance of data, including information about temperature, water oxygen levels, and conductivity. The research is part of a collaborative project between the University of Hawaii and Woods Hole, the world's largest private, non-profit ocean research, engineering, and education organization.

Keep track of Kassis' ocean adventures by visiting her blog: "Patricia Kassis: Adventure at Sea" http://kassisatsea.blogspot.com.

 

Math and physics teacher Patricia Kassis (left) works with a student on wiring a
model house during a recent Interim 2008 activity at Parker School.

Visit Kassis' blog: "Patricia Kassis: Adventure at Sea" http://kassisatsea.blogspot.com.

(North Hawaii News, May 29 - Honolulu Advertiser, May 30)