Author: Teacher at Sea

NOAA’s Teacher at Sea 2026 Field Season

Woman wearing NOAA Teacher at Sea hat holds a sharpnose shark and smiles for a photo.

Here is a list of the NOAA Teachers at Sea for the 2026 Field Season. After they go on their cruise, you can view their logs that share details about their missions and personal stories about the research being done.

Amelia Black teaches pre-K through 5th graders learning English as a Second Language at Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet in Topeka, Kansas. Amelia will sail on a groundfish survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Krista Fleming teaches environmental science and marine biology at Gulf Shores High School in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Krista will sail on a shark/snapper bottom longline survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Amanda Freeman teaches biology at Lewisville High School in Richburg, South Carolina. Amanda will sail on a sea scallop survey aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow.

Amber LaMonte teaches marine and environmental science at York High School in York, Virginia. Amber will sail on an ecosystem monitoring survey aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

Stacey Morris teaches Spanish at Churchill High School in Eugene, Oregon. Stacey will sail on a West Coast pelagic fisheries survey aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker.

Jo Slavitz teaches science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) at Dover Middle School in Dover, New Hampshire. Jo will sail on an acoustic-trawl pollock survey aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.

Guy Sturdevant teaches chemistry, earth science, and ecology at Wichita Northwest High School in Wichita, Kansas. Guy will sail on an acoustic-trawl pollock survey aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.

Cheyanne Vanderdonckt teaches 1st and 2nd grade special education at Moravia Park Elementary in Baltimore, Maryland. Cheyanne will sail on a shark/snapper bottom longline survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Melina Vella is an interpretive naturalist at the Dupont Nature Center in Milford, Delaware. Melina will sail on a Northeast bottom trawl survey aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow.

Sabrina Whitaker teaches physics at Farmingdale High School in Farmingdale, New York. Sabrina will sail on a hydrographic survey of Lake Ontario aboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson.

Jennifer Widdig teaches animal and environmental science at Pickaway-Ross Career and Technology Center in Chillicothe, Ohio. Jennifer will sail on a hydrographic survey of Lake Erie aboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson.

NOAA’s Teacher at Sea 2025 Field Season

crewmembers stand around the A-frame at the aft deck of the ship. they are all wearing float coats or life jackets. one person grasps a taut cable that extends from out of frame on deck into the water. two other people hold guidelines stretched underneath the A-frame.

Below is a list of the NOAA Teachers at Sea for the 2025 Field Season. Once they embark on their cruise, you can gain access to their logs which document their missions at sea and offer a wealth of information about the research being conducted as well as personal stories. 

Jojo Chang teaches English and music at Asia Pacific International School – Hawaii in Hauula, Hawaii. She sailed on a west coast fisheries survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada.

Jenna Cloninger teaches oceanography at Central Gwinnett High School in Lawrenceville, Georgia. She sailed on a west coast fisheries survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada.

Joshua Gonzalez teaches 2nd grade at River Trail School of Agricultural Science in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He sailed on a west coast fisheries survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada.

Dorothy, wearing her Teacher at Sea t shirt, takes a selfie in front of NOAA Ship Pisces in port

Dorothy Holley teaches chemistry at West Johnston High School in Benson, North Carolina. She sailed on a northeast ecosystem monitoring survey aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

close-up photo of Rob, wearing a hard hat, life vest, reflective sunglasses, and a serious expression; in the distance, across a span of blue water, is the full view of NOAA Ship Oregon II. the sky is blue with a few wispy clouds.

Robert Markuske teaches sustainability and marine affairs at the New York Harbor School in New York City. He sailed on a longline survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Cheryl, wearing a Teacher at Sea hat, life vest, and work gloves, holds up a sharpnose shark for a photo on the deck of NOAA Ship Oregon II. behind her we see cloudy gray sky and blue-gray water.

Cheryl Milliken teaches marine ecology and marine technology at Falmouth High School in Falmouth, Massachusetts. She sailed on a longline survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Kiersten, in a blue sweatshirt and sunglasses, stands at a railing on deck and smiles for the camera. the sky is blue with fluffy clouds.

Kiersten Newtoff teaches biology and environmental science at Montgomery College in Germantown, MD. She sailed on an Atlantic marine mammal survey aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

Sinh Nguyen teaches 2nd grade at Uplift Education Mighty Primary in Fort Worth, Texas. He sailed on a larval bluefin tuna survey aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

Jacqueline Omania teaches 5th grade at Oxford Elementary in Berkeley, California. She sailed on a survey of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker.

NOAA’s Teacher at Sea 2024 Field Season

setting sun, about halfway under the horizon, dark blue waves
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Below is a list of the NOAA Teachers at Sea for the 2024 Field Season. Once they embark on their cruise, you can gain access to their logs which document their missions at sea and offer a wealth of information about the research being conducted as well as personal stories. 

Sam Garson teaches science at Friday Harbor High School in Friday Harbor, Washington. He sailed on a Northeast bottom trawl fisheries survey aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow.

Alexa, wearing an orange and black float coat, stands in front of the CTD on deck with her hands in her pockets, grinning at the camera.

Alexa Helm is an environmental educator at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies in the region surrounding Kachemak Bay, Alaska. She sailed on the NOAA-partnered Northern Gulf of Alaska ecosystem survey aboard USFWS vessel R/V Tiglax.

Ryan Johnson teaches science at Acero Jovita Idár Elementary School in Chicago, Illinois. His scheduled cruise aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II did not happen as planned, but he had a shore-side NOAA experience with Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in Galveston, TX.

Nicholas Lee teaches environmental science and computer science at Codman Academy Charter Public School in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He sailed on a Bering Sea pollock survey aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.

Jacqueline Omania teaches 5th grade at Oxford Elementary in Berkeley, California. Her scheduled cruise aboard NOAA Ship Thomas Jefferson did not happen as planned, but she had a shore-side NOAA experience with Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in Galveston, TX.

Tonya Prentice teaches science at Tremont Consolidated School in Bass Harbor, Maine. She sailed on a Northeast ecosystem monitoring survey aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow.

Charlotte Sutton teaches pre-Kindergarten at Orion Elementary School in Anchorage, Alaska. She sailed on a juvenile rockfish survey aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker.

Lisa Werner teaches music at St. Bruno Parish School in Dousman, Wisconsin. She sailed on an ocean exploration survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada.

NOAA’s Teacher at Sea 2023 Field Season

Below is a list of the NOAA Teachers at Sea for the 2023 Field Season. Once they embark on their cruise, you can gain access to their logs which document their missions at sea and offer a wealth of information about the research being conducted as well as personal stories. 

Lisa Carlson teaches fourth grade at Glenwood Elementary in Virginia Beach, VA. She sailed on a hake survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada. 

Jenny Gapp is a school librarian at Peninsula Elementary in Portland, OR. She sailed on a hake survey aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada. 

Laura Guertin teaches oceanography and earth science at Penn State Brandywine in Media, PA. She sailed on a pollock survey aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.

Julie Hayes teaches life science, ecology, and STEM at Macon R-1 Middle School in Macon, MO. She sailed on a reef fish survey aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

Martin McClure teaches third grade at Nokomis Elementary in Ukiah, CA. He sailed on a shark survey aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II.

Elli Simonen teaches algebra and calculus at Special Music School in New York, NY. She sailed on a hydrographic survey aboard NOAA Ship Fairweather.

Gail Tang teaches mathematics at the University of La Verne in La Verne, CA. She sailed on a Hawaiian cetacean survey on NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette.

Germaine Thomas teaches oceanography, marine biology, and chemistry at Bettye Davis East Anchorage High School in Anchorage, AK. She sailed on a pollock survey aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.