The following is a brief summary of the progress and success we have experienced in the
development of the Cabrillo High School Aquarium. The project began
in October of 1986 involving one student, one instructor, and one project.
It has evolved into a program that has created an ever increasing interest and awareness in the ocean and its inhabitants.
Our program now includes numerous new and ongoing educational projects involving students interested
in all aspects of our curriculum.
The is an official Aquarium Club on campus. Some students serve as tour guides
for the hundreds of visitors that come to see our marine viewing area. Other students are involved
in partnership projects with members of the local business community. Our
students have shared their projects and knowledge with students of all grade levels throughout our
school district and surrounding areas as well as numerous community groups and individuals.
AWARDS
1. Received a $100,000 grant from Coastal Resource Enhancement Funds for expansion of the facility.
This funding is designated for capital improvement. Additional funds in the amount of $11,724 were received for expansion
of the educational program.
2. Received national recognition on the televised A Pledge and a Promise Environmental Awards Program
sponsored by Sea World/Anheuser Busch Theme Parks. Placed Second in the high school
division and was the only marine science program to be honored.
3. United States President's Environmental Youth Award.
4. California School Boards Association Golden Bell Award.
5. Best of Show and People's Choice Awards at California Polytechnic State
University at San Luis Obispo.
6. Has received numerous awards at local science fairs.
7. Received Senate Rules Committee Proclamation from Senator Gary Hart
for outstanding achievement in environmental education in the State of California.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
1. Developed the Cabrillo Aquarium On-Line Service in order to provide information about our facility throughout the world.
2. Have had four articles about the Cabrillo High School Aquarium published in Fresh Water and Marine Aquarium Magazine--June 1988, June 1989, August 1995, and April 1996. This publication
is distributed internationally.
3. Designed, built and developed a 375 gallon Warm Water Reef. It is a habitat much as you would find in the South Pacific containing fish, anemones, corals and live plants.
4. Designed, built and developed a 375 gallon Cold Water Reef that is a habitat for specimens from our local coastal waters.
5. Designed, built and developed a unique intertidal habitat that has a wave making device. We call this the Point Pedernales Splash Tank.
6. Received funding from the Point Pedernales Working unit oil companies for development of the Point Pedernales Splash tank and other projects.
7. Have established partnerships with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Santa Barbara Sea Center, and PG&E's Marine Education Center at Diablo Canyon.
8. The Cabrillo High School Aquarium is an education satellite facility of the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Santa Barbara Sea Center.
9. Student Curator served a two week internship at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
10. Through a grant provided by Bank of America, designed and built a habitat for a jelly fish project. This project was conducted in conjunction with the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
11. Designed and built a habitat that is used for a trout hatchery. Through a partnership with the Department of Fish and Game we were able to receive and successfully raise trout eggs and release the trout fingerlings. Through special
permission we have been permitted to keep several of the trout in our exhibit.
12. Designed and built a simulated Rain Forest. Living in this habitat are fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds and plants.
13. Designed and built an Incubation Area to raise brine shrimp to provide live food for our habitats.
14. The Lompoc Record, Santa Barbara News Press and Santa Maria Times have published feature articles about the Cabrillo Aquarium.
15. The Cabrillo High School Aquarium has been featured on KCOY, KEYT and KSBY television news programs.
16. Aquarium students go on to complete their higher education in biology, marine science, and environmental studies.
17. Each year aquarium students are invited for a behind-the-scenes tour and camp out at Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Students also have an opportunity to spend several days at the Catalina Island Marine Institute on Catalina Island.
18. IBM provided a teacher work station that allows us to communicate with educational centers throughout the nation.
19. Aquarium students provide guided tours for the hundreds of visitors that tour our facility each year.
20. Community members volunteer as Aquarium Docents to assist with Aquarium tours and our outreach program.
21. In February 1989 the Aquarium sponsored the first annual Santa Barbara Channel Awareness Week.
This activity involved the entire student body and was for the purpose of making everyone aware of the fact that we need to be concerned about the environment of the Santa Barbara Channel.
22. In April 1989 the Point Pedernales Splash Tank was exhibited at the California Polytechnic State University -- San Luis Obispo Science Fair, winning the Best in Show and People's Choice Awards.
23. The Point Pedernales Splash Tank was entered by the student curator in the Lompoc Valley Science Fair. The entry was awarded top honors and the student received a monetary scholarship for his work in intertidal environmental studies.
24. An Aquarium Club has been established on Campus. Club members have been trained to give guided tours of the facility. Hundreds of students and community members visit our facility each year.
25. As a result of the Golden Bell Award we were invited to make a presentation at the Association of California School Administrator's Annual Convention in San Diego, March 1989.
26. The Aquarium Club Team entered their Study of the Gestation Period of Swell Sharks in the Lompoc valley Science Fair in 1990. The students won First Place.
27. The Cabrillo Aquarium was featured in the Spring, 1990 issue of A'lul'quoy, which is a semiannual journal on the marine environment, a cooperative project of the Channel Islands Marine Sanctuary, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
28. We received funding from Shell Oil company Foundation for continued development of student projects.
29. Rotary Club of Vandenberg Village assisted with the purchase of a new Brine Shrimp and Phytoplankton Hatchery. This provides us with a source of live food for the habitats and is also an educational tool that permits our students to better understand the food chain.
30. Through Adult Education, a Closed Reef Management class was offered to students and members of the community.
31. Received funding from the Texaco Philanthropic Foundation for continued development of student projects.
32. Through a partnership initiated by Manville/Celite Corporation, a grant was received from the Manville fund for the purchase of probes to be used in monitoring and testing water quality and testing filter media. Celite Corporation employees worked with students on a regular basis on these joint projects.
33. Paul Andreasen of Mount Desert West Computers donated computer equipment to be used in conjuction with the water monitoring project.
34. Aquarium Club Team entered their study on Water Quality and Filter Media in the Lompoc Valley Science Fair in 1991. The students won the Judges' Award and First Place in the Biological Science Category.
35. The outdoor pond was renovated for the development of an Aqua Culture Project.
36. The Cabrillo Aquarium purchased a microscope, camera, and television which the students use to study specimens and identify substrate organisms. Is also enhances student learning during guided tours.
37. The Lompoc Dive Club takes an active interest in student projects and assisted in developing the touch tank habitat.
38. A huge underwater mural was designed and applied to the windows of the facility, courtesy of Dr. Tint.
39. At the entrance to the aquarium, an underwater seascape (Landscaping) was created by Valley rock and Paulson's Nursery.
40. Students and alumni have created murals depicting the history of the Santa Barbara Channel and are on display in the facility.