URI_Research _Magazine_Momentum_Spring_2020_Melissa-McCarthy

Wetherbee continues his educational efforts throughout the summer with a shark camp at URI for Providence area high school students, who despite their proximity to the coast may never have visited the beach.

Photo by Bradley Wetherbee shows a shark with a transmitter on its fin.

opportunities are out there,” notes Wetherbee of the diversity of the camp, now in its third year. In part, the camp aims to give exposure not just to sharks, but also to marine biology and other related fields that they might not know about or consider to explore in college. The weeklong camp for 16 high school sophomores and juniors from underrepresented populations transports the students between their school and campus and they spend the days aboard the Cap’N Bert . They meet with URI faculty and staff, learn about fishing gear, and conduct trawl and long line surveys in Narragansett Bay. Other activities include close-up examination of marine life, a trip to Mystic Aquarium, and presentations on college admission and from natural science majors at URI. “The question was how come they’re not in my classroom, not majoring in marine biology,” explains Wetherbee, talking about what led to creating the camp. “One of the answers is that they haven’t had the experience. The camp is an opportunity URI provides to change that.”

estimated to contribute $42 billion in end value to the global economy, according to a Pew Charitable Trust 2016 report. Wetherbee continues his educational efforts throughout the summer with a shark camp at URI for Providence area high school students, who despite their proximity to the coast may never have visited the beach. “Some of the kids in the camp are going to be first-generation college students and often don’t know what

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