Visiting College and University Field Trip Program
Are you a professor of marine science or oceanography? Bring your students to Darling Marine Center for a salty marine adventure they'll never forget. You will find that teaching on-site at a coastal marine lab gives students a unique educational experience. In addition, student exposure to the numerous undergraduate and graduate research activities at the Center is equally rewarding.
The DMC's Visiting College and University Field Trip program makes it easy for faculty to add a hands-on field component to a regular classroom syllabus. A typical field trip is two to three days long and includes a half-day sampling cruise aboard the R/V Ira C. on the Damariscotta River Estuary, a tromp in the mud flats at low tide, and plenty of lab time for identifying organisms in a flowing seawater classroom. Some groups add a rocky intertidal specimen collection trip, or conduct individual experiments along the coast or in our wet labs.
We urge you to take full advantage of the resources we have to offer and customize your visit. DMC staff is available to provide assistance with specimen collection, equipment use, classroom/lab setup, housing and meals. We can even arrange for guided field trips to rocky shore and mud flat habitats, as well as lectures by resident faculty.
Sample Field Trip Costs (rates current as of 1/09)
A weekend day field trip for 15 students and one professor costs less than $2200.
Classroom/Lab $200/weekend visit
Boat Charter $425-$850 trip (dredge or trawl)
Housing $15.00/student/night, $30/instructor/night
Meals $32/person/day
If we've sparked your interest, please contact Tim Miller, Laboratory Manager, for additional information temiller@maine.edu.
Visiting Colleges & Universities
For over 15 years, academic institutions from Maine to Nebraska have staged their ocean explorations from the DMC. The following institutions have participated in the Visiting College and University Field Trip Program:
Amherst College, MA
Baldwin Wallace College, OH
Bates College, ME
Bradford College, MA
Bowdoin College, ME
Brown University, RI
Bucknell University, PA
Colby College, ME
College of the Atlantic, ME
Connecticut College, CT
East Stroudsburg University, PA
Fairleigh-Dickenson University, NJ
George Washington University, DC
Gordon College, MA
Harvard University, MA
Kennebec Valley Community College
Laval University, QC, Canada
Manhattan College, NY
Mt. Holyoke, MA
Mulhenberg College, PA
Northeastern University, MA
Quinnipiac University, CT
Simmons College, MA
Smith College, MA
Southampton College, NY
SUNY, Geneseo, NY
St. Lawrence University, NY
Unity College, ME
University of Maine, Augusta
University of Maine, Farmington
University of Maine, Presque Isle
University of Pennsylvania, PA
University of South Alabama, AB
Villanova University, PA
Wayne State College, NE
Wayne State University, MI
Westfield State College, MA
Yesheva University, NY
In recent years, middle school and high school groups have developed similar field trip programs. These schools include:
Conant High School, NH
ConVal High School, NH
Lincoln Academy, ME
The Village School, NJ
