Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET)
Marine Science Institute
NOAA brings thousands of K-12 teachers and students around the country outside for hands-on environmental education opportunities as part of Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) projects. In fiscal year 2019, one hundred and seventy-one new and continuing projects benefitted from a total of over $7 million in funding from the NOAA Office of Education’s B-WET program.
B-WET currently serves seven areas of the country: California, Chesapeake Bay, Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico, Hawaiʻi, New England, and Pacific Northwest. Grantees were selected through a rigorous peer review process administered by a NOAA program office in their region. All B-WET applicants are encouraged to partner with local NOAA offices, and/or utilize local NOAA field sites and data where appropriate. Awards in the Great Lakes region are made possible by funds from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
2019 B-WET awards, by region, are:
California
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| California State University, Channel Islands | Crossing the Channel | Camarillo, CA | $59,034 |
| Explore Ecology | Flows to the Ocean Project | Santa Barbara, CA | $50,000 |
| Exploring New Horizons | Ecosystem Resiliency: a study of watershed health and biodiversity for Salinas students | Felton, CA | $33,656 |
| Kashia Band of Pomo Indians of the Stewarts Point Rancheria | Kashia Elementary School: Promoting Watershed & Ocean Stewardship through a Cultural Context | Santa Rosa, CA | $17,610 |
| Local Earth Action Forum (Sonoma Ecology Center) | Inspiring Water Wonders and Creating Climate Champions | Sonoma, CA | $39,986 |
| Marine Science Institute | Redwood Creek Watershed Investigators and Sea Level Rise Heroes | Redwood City, CA | $55,701 |
| Napa County Resource Conservation District | LandSmart Youth Stewards: Salmon to Sanctuary | Napa, CA | $59,382 |
| Santa Cruz County Office of Education | Relevant Action and Learning for Science | Santa Cruz, CA | $300,000 |
| Water Education Foundation | Watershed Institute for Teachers: Understanding Systems, Respecting Cultures, Activating Student Stewards | Sacramento, CA | $59,666 |
| Watsonville Wetlands Watch | Building Capacity in Environmental Literacy in the Pajaro Valley | Watsonville, CA | $60,000 |
Chesapeake Bay
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth River Project | Project Blue Crab: Fourth Graders Take Action to Protect a Chesapeake Bay Fishery | Portsmouth, VA | $314,993 |
| Pennsylvania State University | Headwater Investigations for Kids and Educators to Promote Watershed Research and Stewardship | State College, PA | $296,236 |
| ShoreRivers | Sturgeon Discovery Program | Easton, MD | $209,930 |
| Towson University | Harbor Scholar Professional Learning Workshop | Towson, MD | $448,345 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Bivalves as Ecosystems Sustaining Treasures (BEST) in Bay Watersheds | Richmond, VA | $447,599 |
Great Lakes
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Public Schools | Calumet Is My Back Yard (CIMBY) Program | Chicago, IL | $74,325 |
| Delta-Schoolcraft Intermediate District | Connecting the Watershed Dots: Clear Lake, Escanaba River, Bay de Noc, Lake Michigan | Escanaba, MI | $58,468 |
| Flint River Watershed Coalition | Flint River GREEN: Developing a Community-Based, Applied, and Integrated Watershed Curriculum for the Flint River Watershed | Flint, MI | $74,858 |
| Friends of Reinstein Nature Preserve | Day in the Life of the Niagara River/Lake Erie Watershed | Depew, NY | $66,834 |
| Friends of the Rouge | The Rouge Education Project | Dearborn, MI | $75,000 |
| Inland Seas Education Association | Great Lakes Watershed Field Course | Suttons Bay, MI | $72,939 |
| Michigan Technological University | Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative | Houghton, MI | $74,967 |
| Paul Smiths College of Arts and Sciences | Lake Ontario Headwaters Watershed Education Program | Paul Smiths, NY | $50,000 |
| Regional Science Consortium at Presque Isle Center | Using the PASST to Weather the Future | Erie, PA | $75,000 |
| Riveredge Nature Center | Testing the Waters | Saukville, WI | $75,000 |
| University of Toledo | Engaging Students and Teachers Through GLOBE: Authentic Watershed Studies in the Maumee and Lake Erie Watersheds | Toledo, OH | $65,897 |
| University of Wisconsin (Superior) | Rivers2Lake - A Superior Focus | Superior, WI | $73,032 |
| Wisconsin Maritime Museum | All Wet: Inclusive Watershed Education for Learners of All Abilities | Manitowoc, WI | $72,858 |
Gulf of Mexico
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artist Boat | Turn the T.I.D.E. | Galveston, TX | $99,938 |
| Auburn University | Exploring and Mitigating Pathogen Pollution in Our Waters | Auburn, AL | $99,999 |
| Galveston Bay Foundation | Bay Biodiversity | Houston, TX | $97,810 |
| Infinity Science Center | Watershed Education & Environmental Impact Program | Pearlington, MS | $82,380 |
| Louisiana Environmental Education Commission | Louisiana Coastal Fellowship Project | Baton Rouge, LA | $84,627 |
| Santa Rosa County School District | Empowering Students to Take Action: Aquatic Care Team Navarre Beach Marine Science Station | Navarre Beach, FL | $94,661 |
Hawaiʻi
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alakaʻina Foundation | Molokaʻi Digital Bus KILO Project (Keiki Investigate Learn & Observe) Ola Honua | Honolulu, HI | $77,318 |
| BSCS Science Learning | Connecting Our Youth to ʻĀina Through Investigations of Place | Mililani, HI | $149,687 |
| The Kohala Center | Ke Kumu ʻĀina: Cultivating HĀ through Forest-to-Reef Education and Stewardship | Kamuela, HI | $150,000 |
| Mālama Learning Center | Affirming ʻĀina and Place Based Education Through Connectivity and Collaboration | Kapolei, HI | $149,500 |
| Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea | Ocean Education & Service Learning at Pūpūkea MLCD Oʻahu | Haleʻiwa, HI | $29,158 |
| Mānoa Heritage Center | Connecting K-12 Schools and Community Organizations to Create Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) Learning Journeys | Honolulu, HI | $150,000 |
| University of Hawaiʻi Systems | Building a Learning Community in the Heʻeia Ahupuaʻa | Heʻeia, HI | $117,401 |
| University of Hawaiʻi Systems | Nā Kilo ʻĀina: Observers of Our Sustenance | Kīlauea, HI | $148,960 |
New England
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buzzards Bay Coalition | Discover Buzzards Bay: Providing Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences for New Bedford Youth | New Bedford, MA | $159,497 |
| Project Oceanology | Rising Waters: the Thames River Resilience Project | Groton, CT | $237,079 |
| Save the Bay | Salt Marsh Nursery Program: How Do You Enhance Coastal Resiliency in Narragansett Bay? | Providence, RI | $173,553 |
| SoundWaters | One Million Bottle Caps! Meaningful Environmental Education and Stewardship for Middle School Students and Teachers | Stamford, CT | $220,190 |
| University System of New Hampshire | New Hampshire American Eel Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences Program | Concord, NH | $96,823 |
| Western Connecticut State University | Finding Our Way: Building a College Ready STEM Pipeline for At-Risk High School Youth Through Watershed Stewardship | Danbury, CT | $223,936 |
Pacific Northwest
| Recipient | Project | State | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feiro Marine Life Center | North Olympic Watershed Science Program (NOW Science): Salmon Impacts | Port Angeles, WA | $59,261 |
| Lummi Indian Business Council | Lummi Nation Youth: Importance of Water Quality and Healthy Watersheds to the Lummi Schelangen (“Way of Life”) | Bellingham, WA | $59,948 |
| Mid-Columbia Fisheries Enhancement Group | Watershed & Ocean Connections | White Salmon, WA | $59,971 |
| Nisqually River Foundation | Climate Literacy, Action, and Monitoring in South Sound 2020 | Olympia, WA | $57,361 |
| Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association | Students for Salmon (SFS) Program | Bellingham, WA | $59,858 |
| Oregon State University | MWEEs by the Sea III: Diving Deeper | Corvallis, OR | $60,000 |
| Port Townsend School District | Building Awareness and Understanding of Ocean Acidification in a Coastal Community | Port Townsend, WA | $59,681 |
| University of Washington | Bonds Across the Water: Exchanging knowledge and actions across boundaries to address ocean acidification | Seattle, WA | $59,955 |
Funding amounts listed above are full federal award amounts for all years of the award. In addition to the awards listed above, NOAA supported 115 continuing awards. For more details about B-WET awards, please visit the regional program websites.