Normandeau’s Bedford Biology Laboratory enjoyed hosting students from Bedford High School on a 2-day “show and tell” outreach program. Heidi Colburn, Marine Science teacher at Bedford High School, has brought students to our lab in previous years and was ready to re-establish the connection again. She’s been very interested in finding ways to connect her classroom to the community, especially the science community. Her junior and senior classes are focused on getting students excited about science, and in this case, specifically getting them excited about marine science is the goal. Given that we have a lab full of interested-in-science staff and that the high school is located “right around the corner” from us, it’s a perfect fit!
Over a two-day stretch, four classes of about 20 students per class walked over from the High School and spent about 45 minutes watching, listening, talking, and asking questions as they engaged with our lab’s staff. Sample inventory, washdown and sorting, quality control, taxonomy, literature research, data preparation, and maintaining reference collections—all tasks in our day-to-day life—were highlighted. Getting to peek through microscopes at ichthyoplankton and benthic invertebrates, handling large specimens of macroalgae, searching through cabinets with vials and jars of big and small reference specimens, and chatting with our scientists made for a successful couple of days!
Normandeau is committed to inspiring the next generation of scientists and connecting with the local community through programs like this, college fairs, and more. Although Normandeau doesn’t offer traditional internships for students, we often have seasonal positions available and are always happy to hire entry level science enthusiasts. To view our current open positions, visit our Careers page.
