Marine Science at SMCC is one of only three 2-year community college marine science programs in the US.  The program is uniquely exciting, with access to research vessels, student laboratories that aren’t available at other colleges, and faculty that are excited to engage with students every day. The two full-time faculty members for the major, Lareen Smith and Brian Tarbox, suggested I change my major when I met with them for an interview. 

“We steal students from other majors all the time,” Brian joked. We all laughed, when another faculty member, Lauren Hayden, chimed in with,“You should take GIS.” I agreed to at least take one more marine science course in the near future,  maybe Sea Time II, where students get to practice real science on board the program’s research vessel in the warmer months. I had met Lareen before, as my Intro to Oceanography professor. Brian and Lauren were new faces to me, but they were incredibly easy to connect with as soon as we met. 

When I came to Lareen’s classroom, the first thing I noticed was the smell of saltwater and preservatives. The room is its own science museum; the walls are lined with shelves of preserved creatures, fossils, and seashells. Small models of satellites hang from the ceiling, and informational posters line the walls. Students pitched their capstone research projects to Lareen and Brian. There was a wide range of research pitches: One student, Garrett, is tracking the migration patterns of right whales and how pollution on the east coast has been affecting them. Another student, Morgan, is studying how microplastics in tunicates and snails are affecting feeding patterns in said creatures. 

Brian, Lareen, and Lauren were all excited to talk about what sets the marine science major here apart from others. The program is in its second year of a small grant from NASA through the Maine Space Grant Consortium. Students in the program at SMCC build and deploy student drifters, which are devices that track marine data and ping a satellite as they drift out to sea. They can use this data to predict where harmful algal blooms may travel, which helps scientists figure out where they can best help marine life and other humans who may be affected by the toxins released by these blooms. 

Lareen came to SMCC from southern California, where she taught at Santa Monica College. She previously had done her graduate program in Maine, and applied for a full time position here after adjuncting. “I was very very fortunate,” she said. “ I don’t know, but I got it. This is literally my dream job.I always thought, ‘that is where I want to teach’… I could make the most impact at that level.” 

Brian, unlike Lareen, was an SMCC graduate. He started teaching here as an adjunct in 1986, and has been here ever since. “They can’t get rid of me,” he joked.  Lauren, who is a part-time faculty member, works with geographical information systems (GIS), which are maps made of different data inputs, such as water salinity or terrain height. Like Brian, she was an SMCC graduate, and she was able to come back due to the school’s need for another science class. “There was not enough space on the boat for all the Sea Time II students,” she said. GIS isn’t just for Marine Science, and is a useful class for anyone interested in science. “It’s probably more important for [the student’s] resume than Sea Time is,” noted Brian.

   SMCC has been awarded another marine science grant with the National Science Foundation in collaboration with a lab at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, where students are trained to grow and research microalgae in a professional environment. SMCC’s campus is right on the water, and is the only 2 year marine science degree program in the Northeast US. “We get students from all over the country,” Lareen said. Lauren added, “We have people from Utah, Colorado, people from Iowa…”

Most students go on from this program to get a bachelor’s or graduate degree. Some students, however, immediately join the workforce. Two previous SMCC Marine Science graduates went on from this degree program to jobs in environmental consulting. Some students even have jobs in aquaculture before applying for the marine science program at SMCC.  “I think the aquaculture industry is opening up more opportunities for people with two year degrees,” Brian said.  The marine science program at SMCC provides equipment for students that isn’t seen at most universities. A wet lab and a molecular lab, for one. ”We have a very high end side scan SONAR unit,” Lauren said. “We have a research vessel,” Lareen added. “And access to incredible internships.”   

    There are paid internship opportunities for SMCC students with a marine science background. The Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Bigelow Labs both offer paid internships to students where you gain hands-on experience in a laboratory setting. Additionally,  two upcoming science events this semester will be held with free food: One seminar on april 26th held in Jewett Hall about dietary lipids from Ilka Pinz, a faculty scientist at MaineHealth Institute for Research, and the fifth annual Science Fest on May 1st in the Learning Commons, where science students will be showing posters for their current research projects. 

The Marine Science program at SMCC brings unique opportunities to students. Between high-end equipment and facilities, paid internships with local labs, and a class where you get to take a boat out onto the ocean to learn how to conduct your own research, it’s hard to see why someone interested in ocean science wouldn’t want to explore the major. The infectious enthusiasm of the faculty certainly helps, and they just might convince you to switch out of your current major in favor of marine science.