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Goal

I am applying for this grant to fund an innovative reef ball project that will provide hands-on conservation based learning for students throughout Yulee High School, with plans to expand the project to include students at other schools within the district.
Through this project, students will engage with curriculum and standards supported concepts surrounding human impacts on the environment, climate change, habitat/biodiversity loss, and ecological succession, all the while working to create and deploy a solution to these challenges in the coastal waters around Nassau County. In working to improve these environmental concerns, students will work to build concrete reef balls that will later be deployed in hopes to create artificial reefs. These reef structures will provide essential habitat to many local species and, over time, will become fully integrated into the existing natural habitat. Once deployed, the reefs will be monitored and photographed regularly to allow for data collection, data analysis, and observations to be made surrounding the ecological succession that will occur at the deployment site(s).
The bulk of this project will be carried out through marine science classes at Yulee High School and through a new club that will be formed called “Yulee Wavemakers”. Initially, these classes alone will serve at least 150 students per year, with plans to eventually bring other schools and classes into the program as it develops. Ideally, each school could eventually have their own “Wavemakers” chapter and incorporate the program into the marine science classes at their schools as well, which would involve THOUSANDS of students throughout the county each year. Once the reef balls have been deployed and data collection begins, data and imagery will be provided to all other science classes in the county for the foreseeable future. An ongoing project like this has the potential to impact tens of thousands of students as it progresses.
This project has never been carried out in Nassau county and Mandarin High School in Duval County is the only other school in the vicinity to have completed a similar project. There will be ample opportunity for the school(s) to build lasting partnerships with local and national organizations and businesses, providing both financial and informational support to the program for years to come.

A rough timeline for implementation of this program is as follows:
In the months after the grant is awarded (Jan-May 2025):
-Apply for Artificial Reef Permit (January-March) and select deployment site(s)
-Form Yulee Wavemakers Club and begin to emphasize related topics in the classroom
-Conduct “pre-test” assessment in order to later gauge that learning goals have been met
-Students learn about project goals and significance of the project
-Reach out to local businesses/organizations for support
-Club members to design informational flyers for program
-Apply for supplemental grant with the Reef Ball Foundation to help offset cost of reef ball molds
-Start making reef balls

•Once enough (to be determined by deployment site and permitting) reef balls have been made (2026-2027 school year):
-Deploy reef balls at selected site(s)
-Monitor reef balls every 6-12 months (timing to be adjusted based on funding, time, and location): collect biodiversity data and document progress through photo/video collection
-Students create infographics/presentations about project (including updated results/progress) to share with school/district/community/etc. and display learning and understanding
 

 

Category

SHARK Other -  

 

What will be done with my students

Through the reef ball project students will:
•Construct reef balls using marine-safe concrete while learning about environmental engineering, marine biology, and conservation
•Be able to articulate the importance of marine habitats in terms of why they are disappearing and what the larger impact is on the environment as a whole.
•Make ongoing observations on the benefits of human intervention and the steps of ecological succession once reef balls have been deployed.
•Communicate the progress of this project with classmates and members of the community through creative flyers and presentations.

Student success will be measured through:
•Pre/post tests
•Creation of infographics about the project to be shared with the school, the school district, and the community
oCould be used as outreach in other schools to encourage future involvement
•Delivery of student-created presentations with community organizations

Short-term Project Goals:
•Establish the Yulee Wavemakers club, recruit membership, and continue outreach to other schools to gain additional involvement in the program (listed partner applicant to assist in recruitment)
•Students will learn about marine habitats, habitat loss, conservation methods, ecological succession, etc.
•Students will build and deploy reef balls

Long-Term Project Goals:
•Cross-curricular integration of project goals, progress, and results (listed partner applicant to assist in this process)
•Expand the program to other schools, increasing student engagement across the county
•Establish and maintain partnerships with local businesses and organizations
•Build a large-scale county-wide program, with chapters and involvement at multiple schools in the district
•Continue to monitor and study ecological succession in real time
•Expand the project into additional deployment sites with varied reef ball types as program builds and funding allows.
•Branch out and incorporate new conservation projects into the program (ex: raising and transplanting seagrasses, implementing recycling programs in the schools, etc.)
 

 

Benefits to my students

Participation in the reef ball program (and associated “Yulee Wavemakers” club) will benefit students in a number of ways, from gaining real-world experience in marine science, conservation, and environmental engineering to improving skills in critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, and leadership. This program will also prepare students for external opportunities to compete for scholarships which require students to come up with their own unique and creative solutions to existing environmental problems.
One of the most important lessons I hope to leave students with is this: “You can’t protect what you don’t love, and you can’t love what you don’t know.” This project gives students ownership over a real environmental solution, helping them connect emotionally and intellectually with both the problem and the impact of their actions. That kind of experience stays with them — and may inspire their future education and career paths.
 

 

Budget Narrative

The proposed budget is sufficient for the construction, deployment, and monitoring of approximately 100 reef balls (in two different sizes).
Efforts will be made to secure additional funding through The Reef Ball Foundation's Grant Program to help lessen the cost of the reef ball molds in the future.
Assistance and support from local businesses and organizations will also be solicited to help fund supplies for additional reef balls to be constructed and deployed.
The misc. category is to account for potential shipping costs and changes in material pricing. 

 

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