University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) Summer 1 oceanography students took a field trip to Galveston Island, Texas, Tuesday, June 21, as an outdoor part of the course.

Led by UHD Natural Sciences Lecturer Alex Barnard, the comprehensive itinerary began on the island before concluding in Baytown. The group visited Surfside Beach, Surf Side Jetty Park, San Luis Pass, Galveston Island State Park, the Galveston Seawall and Fisherman's Wharf. Students discussed various topics from wave formation, astronomical tides and barrier islands to Galveston Island history and historical storms.

"This kind of experiential education is an essential part of our students' holistic understanding of the natural sciences," said Barnard. "Galveston is a wonderful local natural laboratory that is complementary to our classroom/laboratory sessions, and the proximity of Galveston is a major opportunity for students to experience and observe many of the processes, and their products, that we study in detail in the lab."

Student participants included Will Graves, Dedrick Moore, Diana Perez, Jacky Jarrett, Gil Ribeiro, Ivan Bedolla, Jose Figueroa, Joseph Fleeks, Briana Helaire, Michelle Rios Gomez, Diana Salazar, Ilda Teixeira, Kara Verma and Clyde the Labrador.

Mary Jo Parker, Ph.D., director of UHD Scholars Academy, provided transportation and Poonam Gulati, Ph.D., interim director of the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning arranged for the students to perform beach cleanup as a service learning component of the trip.