Nassau Education Foundation
Press Release
Submitted by Karen Schexnayder
February 4, 2018 5:00 p.m.
Like her students, Ms. Nathalie Faulk, the marine biology teacher at Yulee High School was excited to start the new school year. Faulk began the school year using grant funds awarded to her from the Nassau Education Foundation to purchase fish, coral, and other aquamarine supplies for her 125-gallon, saltwater aquarium. The aquarium is a part of her dual-enrollment marine biology class, which enables high school students to simultaneously earn high school and college credits for a single course.
The purpose of the aquarium is to provide students the opportunity to learn to determine which creatures survive best in this saltwater environment, how to follow nitrogen and phosphate levels and to measure coral growths. Running this size aquarium can be quite expensive, thus the need for grant monies. Faulk’s students also fundraise to purchase supplies to keep the tank in optimal shape.
The aquarium provided many learning opportunities for Faulk’s students during the beginning of the school year. Then disaster struck. During a severe storm in October, a breaker did not come back on causing the most of the aquarium inhabitants to perish. Faulk and her students were heartbroken. They were back to square one.
“When Ms. Faulk applied for her grant, we knew this was a special project, especially since we live so close to the ocean and many students have an interest in marine biology,” said Abby Bean, Executive Director for the Nassau Education Foundation. “Shortly after the incident, one of our board member’s, Julie McGuinnes, heard about the unfortunate event and acted quickly. We connected Ms. Faulk to Mr. Chris Conti, vice president of sales for CoralVue, one of North America’s biggest aquarium suppliers.”
Upon learning of Faulk’s situation, Conti reached out to his colleagues to see if anyone could assist Faulk in her efforts to recreate her saltwater aquarium. Several of Conti’s colleagues came to the rescue. Chris Meckley at ACI Aquaculture contributed rocks and fish, while another company plans to also donate fish feed.
The biggest surprise came last week. Ms. Laura Birenbaum, the owner of ReefGen, a farm located at the Long Island Aquarium, donated more than $2,600 of coral. The coral was propagated at the farm and is a sustainable resource for the marine aquarium trade.
“We are thankful for the extremely generous donation to our marine biology program,” stated Nathalie Faulk. “We are not only back on track, but have skyrocketed past where we were. The kids were so amazed by the donations.”
“The Nassau Education Foundation is proud to be a part of this wonderful project and sincerely thank CoralVue and ReefGen for their generous contributions,” said Bean. “We are especially grateful and proud of Ms. Faulk for her dedication to her marine biology students at Yulee High School.”
The Nassau Education Foundation (NEF) is a 501c3 not-for-profit corporation whose mission is to support public education throughout the county by awarding competitive grants to teachers and schools. The foundation strives to identify innovative projects that enhance the educational experience for all students. Since its inception, the Nassau Education Foundation has funded projects throughout all 16 Nassau County schools, totaling almost $300,000. To learn more about the organization or to donate, please visit their website at www.nassaueducationfoundation.org