Tag: Kansas

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Amelia Black: From the Kansas Prairie to Gulf Seas, June 28, 2026

Amelia takes a selfie with a historic tall ship in the background.

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Amelia Black

Aboard NOAA Ship Oregon II

July 6-17, 2026

Current School: Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet Elementary, Topeka Public Schools (USD 501)

Upcoming School: Jardine Middle School, Topeka Public Schools (USD 501)

Mission: SEAMAP Summer Groundfish Survey

Geographic Area of Cruise: Gulf of America/Gulf of Mexico

Date: June 28, 2026

Personal Log

  • Amelia takes a selfie with a historic tall ship in the background.
    At the USS Constitution in Boston with a group of History educators from Kansas.
  • Amelia takes a selfie at an airport window; we can see an airplane at a gate in the background.
    From June 2026, headed from Kansas to Boston.
  • Amelia, wearing bright pink shades and a straw hat, takes a selfie in front of a towering wind turbine.
    Taking a group of teachers to learn about Windfarms at Fort Hays, Kansas.

Hello, all, my name is Amelia Black and I am a proud Kansas public school teacher. I have been a teacher for over fifteen years with Topeka Public Schools (USD 501). Transitions, geography, incredible adventures, and connectivity is the theme for this summer.

One big transition for me will be happening this this coming school year as I move from teaching elementary ESOL ( English as a Second Language) to middle school. I will be transitioning to a new school and starting the next journey in my teaching career, teaching newcomers ELs (English Learners) at Jardine Middle School. Newcomers are students who are new to America, who often arrive speaking little or no English. I love working with my students, as well as other educators and helping them both to find their strengths, their voice, and empowering them through learning and inquisitiveness. My favorite part of being an educator are the moments when new understand or a new skill clicks and they have a ‘light bulb moment’. Seeing the understanding dawn is an amazing part of teaching.

Before I set up my new classroom, I am embarking on an incredible new adventure with NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) as part of the Teacher at Sea (TAS) Program. I will leave Kansas on America’s 250th birthday (Independence Day) and I will be trading landlocked Kansas for open waters aboard the NOAA Ship Oregon II!

During this adventure, I will be learning from some amazing scientists and crew members as part of NOAA’s Summer Groundfish Survey. When I step onto the ship, I will be a “newcomer” myself. In addition to learning new vocabulary, scientific language, and marine culture, I will be getting my ‘sea legs’ as I learn how to navigate on a 170-foot fishing vessel. This will be a whole new adventure for me and as a life-long learner something I am truly excited to experience. I want my students to see that it is okay to try new things and step out of your comfort zone, that it is okay to be nervous when you learning something new and in a brand-new place. By stepping out of my comfort zone and working alongside NOAA scientists, I want to model resilience, curiosity, and bravery. Skills that I know my language learners experience as immigrants to America.

You might be wondering, what is an ESOL teacher doing going on scientific exploration? The answer is in connectivity. Connectivity between language, reading, science, and social studies. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) AND Social Studies are essential for building background knowledge, academic vocabulary, and conceptual understanding. All components that are integral to comprehending complex texts and bring the joy of learning to the classroom.

As a passionate advocate for social studies, I serve on the board of the Kansas Geographic Alliance (KGA) and as a coordinator of their annual P4 Summer Institute (Plants, People, Places, Patterns). In this role I am given the opportunity to work alongside inspiring educators from across Kansas to explore and advocate for geography and social studies. Connectivity extends geographically: our rivers in Kansas lead to our oceans. The Midwestern watersheds affect our marine ecosystem in the Gulf. In participating in this experience, I will be able to bring back my learning and experiences not just to my students but to educators and others throughout Kansas.

To all my amazing students, families, and friends: I hope you are able to follow along this journey with me and I cannot wait to take you all on this learning experience. So get your maps out and follow along as we set off from Kansas to the Gulf of America/Mexico starting at Pascagoula, Mississippi.

Kansas Learning Log

Part of being a good educator is being prepared, so as I start this journey I want my log to reflect my learning but also the interconnectivity of science, social studies, and many other disciplines. The NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) TAS (Teacher at Sea) Program has a blog format that I will be following in future blogs. The blog outline will start with Weather Data from the Bridge and a Scientific Log before my personal log. Each log will end with a fun learning opportunity or a sneak peak, you will have to read to find out! For this intro blog, I wanted to give you all a look at the Weather Data from Topeka, Kansas as well as a little information about this fantastic landlocked state.

Weather Data from Topeka, Kansas
Latitude: 39.0483o N
Longitude: -95.6780o W
Elevation: 945 feet (288 meters) above sea level
Wind Speed: 15mph (13 knots)
Wind Direction: South (180o )
Visibility: 10 miles (8.69nm)
Air Temperature: 93o F, heat index of 108o F
Barometric Pressure: 29.64 Hg (1003.73)
Sky: Mostly clear

A Little Bit about Kansas (Science and Technology Log)

You might already know a few things about Kansas. In addition to being a fly over state (thank you, Jason Aldean), Kansas is located in the middle of the United States. Kansas is the geographic center of the 48 contiguous United States (https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/GeoCenter_USA1.pdf). In fact, prior to modern mapping technology advancements a ranch in Osborne County, Kansas was the official geodetic center of North America. This meant that all the maps created for the United States, Canada, and Mexico used this Kansas ranch as their reference point. https://www.penryfamily.com/geographicalcenters/meadesranch.html

Most people assume that Kansas is flat. However, the eastern part of Kansas is part of the Flint Hills and has some breathtakingly beautiful rolling hills and prairies. Additionally, the elevation of Kansas rises steadily from east to west. The lowest point of Kansas is 679 feet above sea level and the highest point is over 4,000 feet above sea level!

an elevation map of Kansas set against a white background. The counties are marked in gray lines. The lowest elevation, 679 ft, is colored dark blue. Relatively low-lying river valleys extend in feathery fingers away from the eastern border of the state, fading toward green, and finally toward a dark maroon patch (4039 feet) along the western border.
Color Elevation Map of Kansas from KU GeoKansas
image from: https://geokansas.ku.edu/color-elevation-map-kansas

Did You Know?

NOAA Ship Oregon II samples ocean habitats spanning all the way from Florida to Texas!

Sources
https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/GeoCenter_USA1.pdf
https://www.travelks.com/listing/geographic-center-of-48-contiguous-states/2307/
https://www.penryfamily.com/geographicalcenters/meadesranch.html
https://geokansas.ku.edu/color-elevation-map-kansas


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Guy Sturdevant: Heading North, June 17, 2026

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Guy Sturdevant

Preparing to board NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson

June 20 – July 15, 2026

Mission: Summer Pollock Acoustic Survey, Leg 2

Geographic Area of Cruise: Bering Sea, Alaska

Date: June 17, 2026

Weather Data from the Flint Hills of Kansas

Latitude: 37°34’00” N

Longitude: 96°30’40” W

Winds S at 20-30 mph

Air Temperature: 79° F (26° C)

Introduction

Guy (Clark) Sturdevant

Hello and welcome! My name is Guy (Clark) Sturdevant from Northwest High School in Wichita, KS. You join me as I make final preparations for my two-day journey to Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Once there, I will board the Oscar Dyson and join an amazing science team and crew for a month-long leg of the biennial Eastern Bering Sea Pollock Survey.

As I prepare for this incredible opportunity, I find myself reflecting on the amazing science educators and communicators that helped define my relationship with science. From Mr. Patton’s sixth grade life science class through graduate studies in the department of Geology at the University of Kansas, the passion, character, and enthusiasm of my mentors and teachers was infectious. In my seven years in the classroom, I have worked to immerse my students in the hands-on practice of science. NOAA’s Teacher at Sea Program will be another amazing opportunity for me to learn from world-class scientists and technicians in hopes of bringing the exciting world of marine science into my high school classroom.

Check in here for regular updates from the Bering Sea!

Science and Technology Log

Next Monday, I will board NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson in Dutch Harbor, Alaska. The Oscar Dyson is a 208 ft. purpose-built research vessel which hosts the Midwater Assessment & Conservation Engineering (MACE) team for the Summer Pollock Survey. The full survey spans nearly three months and hundreds of nautical miles of the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska.

NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson as seen from the port side, in port. The sky is bright blue and the blue water in front of the ship has a faint ripple from a wake. we can see a bridge in the background.
NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson. Photo credit: Ensign Haley Glos
(Photo from @NOAAShipOscarDyson Facebook account)

Did You Know?

The Oscar Dyson is named in honor of a fisherman and sustainable fisheries advocate, Oscar Dyson.

a black and white portrait photo of a man
A photo of Oscar can be found hanging in the galley aboard his namesake.

 Oscar’s fame, however, is eclipsed by his wife, Peggy. Peggy Dyson acted as the “Voice of the North Pacific”, broadcasting out marine weather forecasts as WBH-29 twice daily for over 30 years. Her voice served fishing communities in the North Pacific, providing valuable information and a familiar voice across the vast span of the open ocean.

a woman smiles as she swings what we presume is a bottle - covered in red, white, and blue cloth and ribbons - up toward the hull of a ship
Peggy Dyson christening NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson. Photo credit: Ray Broussard.
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Kip Chambers: From the Prairies to the Oceans… July 5, 2017

NOAA Teacher at Sea 

Kip Chambers

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker 

July 17 – 30, 2017

Mission: West Coast Sardine Survey

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean; U.S. West Coast

Date: July 5, 2017

Weather Data from the Bridge: (Pratt, KS)

Date: 07/05/2017
Wind Speed: SE at 6 mph
Time: 16:00
Latitude: 37.7o N
Temperature: 29o C
Longitude: 98.75o W

Science and Technology Log:

Soon I will be aboard one of the most technologically advanced fishing vessels in the world, the NOAA research vessel Reuben Lasker. I will be participating on the second leg of the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) West Coast Sardine Survey. The ship will depart on the 17th of July from San Francisco, CA to conduct a survey primarily focused on Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax) populations. The data collected from this survey, and others like it, will be used by NOAA and other federal and state agencies to make decisions about how to best manage the Pacific sardine fishery to ensure that Pacific sardines are harvested in a sustainable manner. The data provided by these types of surveys is critical to ensuring that appropriate regulations are put in place to protect the ecological integrity of our complex, marine ecosystems.

Personal Log:

Hello, my name is Kip Chambers. I am a biology instructor at Pratt Community College (PCC). PCC is a small liberal arts/vocational technical school located in south-central Kansas. I am thrilled and humbled to have the opportunity to participate in the NOAA Teacher at Sea (TAS) program. I first learned about the program from a colleague more than 15 years ago, and it has been something that I have been contemplating for the last several years. After applying in the fall I was ecstatic to find out in early February that I had been accepted to the program. Even though I was born and raised in Kansas, and Pratt, Kansas is more the 600 miles away from our nearest ocean (Gulf of Mexico), I have always been fascinated by the immensity, power and beauty of our oceans. I have often been asked “what do the oceans have to do with Kansas?” For those of you who live near an ocean, or work directly with these precious resources, this may seem like a silly question, but for many of my students and people in my community there can be a lack of understanding of how our oceans affect all of us, and how critical they are to maintaining the biogeochemical cycles and energy flow that make life possible on the planet.

The story of Kansas’ geological history cannot be told without talking about oceans. The map below depicts the 11 physiographic regions that outline the geology of Kansas. Many of the rocks at and below the surface of Kansas were deposited as shallow seas moved into and out of Kansas over millions of years. Because of this, Kansas has a rich marine fossil record that provides insight into the role oceans played in shaping our state. There is an excellent web site that is maintained by the Kansas Geological Survey that provides additional information about our state’s geology and the types of marine fossils that can be found in many areas of the state.

Kansas Physiographic Regions           Figure 1.1 Physiographic regions of Kansas provided by the  Kansas Geological Survey. (http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Extension/home.html)

The geology of Kansas is just one way oceans have affected our state; our economy, weather patterns, and ecology are all influenced by our oceans. Helping students to connect to our oceans, and understand that oceans impact the ecology of the entire planet, regardless of where you live is one of the main objectives that I hope to accomplish as I move forward with this project. It is my sincere hope that through my experiences with the TAS program I will become a more effective communicator and stronger advocate for relating the importance of protecting our planet’s most valuable resource, our oceans.

I would be remiss if I did not thank the people that have helped make this opportunity possible. Thank you to the NOAA TAS program, the crew and scientists of the Reuben Lasker that I look forward to joining soon, Pratt Community College, my family and friends and my beautiful wife Janet. See you in San Francisco…

Images from the Sunflower State:

 

Figure 1.2  Upper left, wind and wheat, lower left, energy production, upper right, generalized flight plan, lower right, Chambers’ family (Sadie, Janet, & Kip).  All photos from DK Chambers, map from Google Earth.

Links:

Kip Chambers’ page on NOAA Teacher at Sea Program website:
http://teacheratsea.noaa.gov/#/2017/Dave*Chambers/blogs

Kansas Geological Survey’s GeoKansas website:
http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Extension/home.html

Pacific Fishery Management Council’s documents on Coastal Pelagic Species assessments:
http://www.pcouncil.org/coastal-pelagic-species/stock-assessment-and-fishery-evaluation-safe-documents/