Upcoming Teacher Information Sessions

If you know someone that may be interested in our program, we encourage you to share this information with them!

International Field Studies, Inc (IFS) will be hosting an information session on November 17th from 4pm to 5pm at the Upper Arlington Library (Friends Theater), 2800 Tremont Road, Upper Arlington, OH 43221. We will be providing details about our international educational opportunity for your students, experiences from local teachers who participate in our programs, and we will answer any questions you may have. Light refreshments will be provided and we expect the session to last about 45 minutes.  All attendees will be eligible for a scouting trip to Forfar Field Station at half-price the normal rate.

If interested folks are unavailable to attend we will also be at the upcoming NSTA Area Conference held at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, December 1-3, 2016. Additionally we are available to come and give a presentation at your school for department staff meetings or other appropriate meetings.

Please RSVP (by emailing IFS) for the November 17 informational session by November 14, 2016.  If you would like to request a presentation at your school,  please contact us through email (office@intlfieldstudies.org) or by phone at (614) 268-9930.

Hurricane Matthew Havoc

Category 4 storm Hurricane Matthew pounded the Bahamas on Thursday, October 6 with storm surges as high as 15-20 feet. 

With wind speeds as fast as 130 mph, roofs were ripped from buildings and many homes were flattened on the north end of Andros.  Lowe Sound lost nearly 90% of their homes with one fatality.  Additionally, more than 700 power lines are down, adding to the estimated cost of repair damage in the Bahamas which is said to be close to $400 million, according to The Nassau Guardian. International Field Studies, Inc, along with many other local businesses, have been effected by the storm. 

Forfar Field Station sustained some significant damage.  We lost the roof from our storage area, shingles from our office trailer, workshop and dive shop.  We had over 50 trees that came down on our property.  Water was finally restored after 12 days and the power is still off at Forfar but has been restored to Stafford Creek and Blanket Sound. Our maintance crew (Cardo, Allan, Randall, and Franklin) along with some community help (Ashton, Jackson, Cordell, and Rico) have done a fantastic job of clearning away the downed trees and vegetation.  We were fortunate that we didn't have any major structrual damage to the buildings but it left us weeks behind schedule.  Androsians are resilient and our local staff are doing well.  

We are asking for monetary donations in order to  get Forfar Field Station back up and running for our incoming November groups. With a functioning station, we will be able to provide even more help to the surrounding community.

Coral Restoration in the Bahamas

In an intense 9 day workshop held at the Cape Eleuthera Institute in August, International Field Studies was represented by one of our Forfar Educational Staff, Ahmed Mendez.  The workshop was titled, “Reversing The Decline of Bahamian Coral Reefs: 1st Coral Workshop 2016” and was led by the Perry Institute for Marine Science and the Bahamas National Trust.    
 
Using reef restoration methods developed by SECORE, the participants collected coral spawn and fertilized thousands of Acropora palmata eggs, and got larvae to settle from at least two brooding coral species – Undaria agaricites and Favia fragum. Additionally, AGRRA (Atlantic and Gulf Rapid Reef Assessment) training and surveys were performed around the South Eleuthera reef.  We are excited about the positive results from the coral propagation and restoration efforts so far in the Bahamas.

 IFS will continue to partner and assist with the ongoing efforts.  There is hope yet that we can restore, protect, and reverse the decline of our beloved coral reefs.

Hello and Good-bye

In March, we said goodbye to Kate Hammond and Joey Marullo and their two beautiful children as they literally sailed away from Andros.  We appreciate their time at the station and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors. 

Conversely, we said hello to Liz Richardson as the new Forfar Field Station Director in February.  An alumnus of the program from Westerville North High School (OH), she comes with a diverse background in group leadership skills and logistics.  Welcome to the Forfar family Liz!

We are also looking for interns to start in the fall.  If you have completed your undergraduate degree in marine biology or similar field, have some experience working/teaching/leading groups, and the ability to commit to one year in a rural and challenging environment, then we want you to apply!  Send your resume and cover letter to lindsey@intlfieldstudies.org.   Additional skills that we are looking for (but not required) include: boat driving (24 feet and over), SCUBA diving experience, and camp/field station experience.

IFS Is Moving!

We are moving our Columbus office to 1550 Old Henderson Rd., Suite E268, Columbus, OH43220.  Our phone numbers will remain the same.  We are moving on February 1, 2016.  Please bear with us during the first week of February as we make our transition.

2015 Highlights from Forfar Field Station

We had a great year on Andros creating “the magic” that is Forfar:  sharing our love for science with groups new and old ranging from 6th graders up through graduate students.

We also hosted a greater number of researchers from the scientific community than in recent years and we are excited to expand that number in 2016.   For example, one of our greatest highlights of 2015 has been our involvement in the installation and care of a 100-piece coral propagation project in 40ft of water off of Pigeon Cay. The project is in association with Dr. Craig Dahlgren and Bahamas National Trust (BNT). It delights us to visit the fragments, track their growth, and keep them clean. With hope, we’ll be transplanting pieces back to the reef in late 2016. A couple of our staff spent several nights camped out in the Joulter Cays tagging and releasing Piping Plovers with the Audubon Society and BNT. Some Clark Montessori students experienced an extra bit of enchantment when they sailed aboard the s/v Flying Dragon, a very real pirate ship owned and operated by Capt. “Topsail” Bill.

We successfully completed year one of the BNT Navigator’s program with high school students from Central and North Andros High. We are currently moving along with year two of the curriculum. BNT is just one of several Bahamian organizations Forfar assists in their mission of educating Bahamians about their own environment.

Year after year, Andros continues to “WOW” us with her beauty, on land and in the water and we look forward to sharing that magic with you in 2016!