By Joni MIller | Projects Director
Last week on Face Book memories, a 2011 photo of Danny Michel and Ocean Academy students popped up. The students in this photo have long-since graduated, but our friendship with Danny and his fans is still going strong, and we feel blessed to have all of you supporting Ocean Academy. A Khlebnikov Ice Breaker might not seem to have much in common with a small tropical island, but we feel connected by following Danny's concert tours and travels, and are proud to see recent honours like the Canadian Folk Music Awards. Our 2017-2018 academic school year is flying by and the Ocean Academy (OA) students have also accomplished so many amazing activities.
As always, August was a time for preparation. OA teachers participated in professional development workshops to study differentiated learning strategies, literacy skills and counselling strategies. New students transitioned to high school with a two-week course in Math and English skill-building to bring them closer to grade level. And of course, campus beautification and repairs took place with students and staff volunteering time to paint, fix furniture, re-establish the garden, and renovate a shack into our new OA Seatide Cafe to serve break food on campus.
Female students have represented OA at several big events. Three female students and their mentor attended the Women in Politics Conference in Belize City, and got to meet with First Lady Kim Semplis Barrow as well as many other influential women in Belizean society. We sent two female delegates to the World Youth Conference in Belize City to meet with youth leaders from over 43 countries and create an action plan for Sustainable Development Goals 2030. Ocean Academy girls have formed their own club - Girls Rising - and are working with GirlUp to plan empowerment activities campus-wide. An OA science teacher represented Belize in Panama City at a conference organized by TeacHER, in order to learn strategies for encouraging more girls to enter careers in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math).
Our technology students are also shining. The Tech Club won 3rd place in the National Raspberry Pi Young Innovator's Challenge, with their design of an electronic voting booth. Students will present their project next week to the Caye Caulker Village Council to discuss real-world uses. Both Geography classes went to the World GIS Day Expo, and were the only highschoolers asked to also be exhibitors; students showcased uses of mapping technology in tracking manatee movements (to create no wake zones) as well as liquid and solid waste sites on the island (to plan transport systems).
Community involvement in leading our Elective classes continues to be a terrific success. Students learn from skilled mentors with a shared passion in a wide variety of areas: art, guitar, yoga, drumming, pinata making, karate, chemistry, basketball, soccer, fly fishing, cooking, bird watching, marine ecology, gardening, meditation, dance and more. December 9th is our annual Christmas Dinner & Show Fundraiser on the island. Students are working with chefs from Hibisca Restaurant to prepare a gourmet three-course menu, and other students are rehearsing performances in music, dance as well as karate and yoga demonstrations.
The campus is buzzing, and we are so thankful for your role in supporting educational opportunities and dreams for the Caye Caulker youth. A special "big up" to all of our monthly donors who keep us in their hearts and thoughts all year long. Danny has been back to Caye Caulker many times since that 2011 photo memory, and we hope one day soon you will all come visit us too and meet the students in person.
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