Down Under, Out Yonder coral reef workshop and scuba trip is sponsored annually by the Gulf of Mexico Foundation for K-12 and college
entry educators, nationwide.
DUOY is a five-day workshop that includes a two-day (July 10-11) land-based workshop in
Galveston, Texas, featuring guest speakers and educational
materials to bring back to the classroom. Afterwards, participants travel to Freeport, Texas, for three days (July 12-14) of scuba diving aboard
the M/V Fling, a 100-foot live-aboard dive boat operated by Fling Charters. Non-diving educators may participate in the land-based workshop
only and forego the DUOY dive component of the workshop.
This workshop focuses on the coral reefs of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, located in the Gulf of Mexico about 115
miles off the Texas coast. The federally protected underwater sanctuary harbors the northern-most coral reefs in the continental US. The
sanctuary's 56 square miles of coral-covered salt domes are home to schooling fish, turtles, sharks, and occasional pelagic animals including
sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, manta rays and an occasional whale shark.
By providing educators this participatory field experience, the Gulf of Mexico Foundation encourages interest in and conservation of our
important marine environment and habitats. GMF’s DUOY program, which offers 28 hours of Texas State Board for Educator Certification for this
workshop, received recognition in 2004 from the Environmental Protection Agency by being awarded a
Gulf Guardian Award. ConocoPhillips also received a Gulf Guardian Award in 2009 in the Business Category for their philanthropic work with DUOY.
The initial two-day portion of DUOY focuses on coral reef education. Educators of all levels will walk away from the two-day experience
with the means to actively involve their students in the learning process, to expose them to scientific research and to share personal
experiences about the challenges of fieldwork.
Workshop participants will receive a canvas bag full of resources, activities, materials and ideas for implementing topics in biology,
oceanography, geology, physical science, American government and environmental science. They will also participate in a supplemental field
trip to the Aquarium at Moody Gardens to practice their newly acquired skills and learn other ways to apply what they've learned.
The FGBNMS is an authorized provider through the Texas State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and offers 14 hours of SBEC
credit for this workshop. Registration and information materials are available online.
For more information about the DUOY 2010 workshop, please contact the
GMF at
info@gulfmex.org or (361) 882-3939.
Video about GMF's 2009 Gulf Guardian Award for DUOY & IWWC
To watch video, click on image above or watch it on YouTube
DUOY JOURNAL by Maureen B. Barrett
New Jersey school teacher
I have been scuba diving almost as long as I have been teaching. Most
of my dives have been off of New Jersey's coast ...
Little did I know that the Gulf of Mexico offered some great scuba
diving! One hundred fifteen miles off the Texas/ Louisiana border lies
a protected area called the Flower Garden Banks. READ MORE (PDF)
Galveston, Texas, featuring guest speakers and educational
materials to bring back to the classroom. Afterwards, participants travel to Freeport, Texas, for three days (July 12-14) of scuba diving aboard
the M/V Fling, a 100-foot live-aboard dive boat operated by Fling Charters. Non-diving educators may participate in the land-based workshop
only and forego the DUOY dive component of the workshop.
sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, manta rays and an occasional whale shark.
DUOY PHOTOS
