Former GCPS Teacher of the Year sets sail on NOAA research vessel

     Jenna Cloninger, an Oceanography teacher and former Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) Teacher of the Year, has been offered the opportunity to join the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on a voyage across the country for marine research. Cloninger will embark on this journey to enhance instruction in her Central Gwinnett High School classroom.

     “While at sea, I will be developing lesson plans to use in my classroom and updating the official Teacher at Sea (TAS) blog with details about my experience for the public to read," Cloninger shares.

     Participating educators will return as a primary source to lead their classrooms on how living and working practices operate at sea. For more than 30 years, NOAA has helped more than 850 teachers sail on their survey expeditions and gather information on ocean trends, fisheries, and unexplored regions of the seafloor.

     “This is an exciting opportunity for me because it allows me to gain firsthand experience with marine science research methods and tools,” Cloninger continues. “As an oceanography teacher in a landlocked school district, stories and data from my experience will support my students by providing engaging and meaningful connections to course content.”

     Cloninger will be specifically sailing aboard the Bell M. Shimada for the first leg of the Integrated West Coast Pelagics Survey, which begins its journey in San Diego, California. She will collect information about West Coast fisheries and update the NOAA TAS blog.

     NOAA is a scientific agency whose mission surrounds understanding and predicting atmospheric changes on our planet, including climate, weather, ocean, and coastal changes. They aim to spread this information with others to continue to improve, manage, and conserve marine ecosystems, methods, and resources.