Pennsylvania Sea Grant

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Pennsylvania Sea Grant

Promoting healthy coastal waters & watersheds through research, outreach, education & communications

The Pennsylvania Sea Grant team of scientists, educators and communicators build bridges between science and people to promote the importance of maintaining sustainable coastal and river ecosystems for the health of our communities and families and to ensure a thriving economy. Our work is supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Penn State University, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

09/03/2026

Educators – are you looking for ways to include Great Lakes literacy & aquatic invasive species (AIS) into your classroom or educational setting?

Join us! October 1, 2026, at 4:30 PM Eastern for “A Deeper Dive into the Great Lakes Topic: Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS)” - a 90-minute professional development program for formal and non-formal educators of learners in grades 4-12.

What’s included?
• An overview of AIS in the Great Lakes
• Guest lecturer and PA Sea Grant-funded researcher,
Dr. Casey Bradshaw-Wilson
• Meaningful Watershed Education Experience (MWEEs) intro
• Tips for incorporating the topics into your educational setting
• Time for discussion and resource sharing

Details are available online at https://seagrant.psu.edu/events/aisdeeperdive

Penn State Behrend Penn State Allegheny College PAEE - Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Educators Pennsylvania Department of Education National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Sea Grant College Program

08/31/2026

What happens when 39 educators trade the classroom for the shoreline? New connections, experiences, and resources to take watershed learning back to their learners.

This summer, PA Sea Grant partnered with Asbury Woods, IU5, the Stroud Water Research Center, and PA DCNR to host three hands-on Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) workshops, where educators became the learners. The workshops happened in Erie, PA at Asbury Woods and Presque Isle State Park.

MWEEs are a learner-centered framework that focus on investigations into local environmental issues. They include in-class learning and hands-on outdoor experiences, and help learners make sense of the relationships between the natural world and society.

We could tell you what we hoped educators would take away. Instead, here's what they told us:

💬 "I met someone I can get advice from, who has resources I can use and plan to collaborate with - and - I got MWEE program ideas from conversations at the workshop."

💬 "The hands-on ‘be the student’ portion of the exploration, where we got to see how the facilitators lead us (the students), was most helpful. I now I understand my role in a MWEE.”

💬“I enjoyed the hands-on learning and face to face conversations with partners.”

Thanks to the educators who joined us this summer, and to our incredible partners and facilitators who made these workshops possible!

Want to see more workshop photos? Check out our photo recaps and workshop summaries online at https://seagrant.psu.edu/education/meaningful-watershed-education-experiences/

Are you interested in participating in future MWEE workshops? Let us know! https://seagrant.psu.edu/about/michelle-niedermeier/

Asbury Woods Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Stroud Water Research Center National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) NOAA B-WET Great Lakes B-WET Penn State Behrend Penn State Behrend National Sea Grant College Program PAEE - Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Educators

Support for the PA Certified MWEE Ambassador (June 9 and 16) and Facilitator (July 27-28) workshops was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Great Lakes Bay Watershed Education & Training (B-WET) program, helping to fund place-based educational opportunities for students.

08/14/2026

See it – Report it – Stop it! The spread of Invasive species, that is.

Why? Invasive species threaten native species, are expensive to remove, and can impact economies, communities, and entire ecosystems.

Today, we hosted a workshop to train others how to identify and report invasive species. Participants (34) traveled from across the state to Harrisburg to take part in the day-long, in-class and in-field workshop to learn about invasive fish, mollusks, plants, and invertebrates – and how to do their part to stop the invasive spread!

In-class presentations focused on some of the worst ‘invaders’, tips to tell the difference between invasive & native species, and tools to report the sighting to state officials.

Armed with knowledge, it was time for a ‘wetland walk’ to practice their skills! The “Plant out of place” field survey challenged the group to use the provided ID resources, like the PA Aquatic Invasive Species Field Guide and “PA AIS” app, to identify invasive plant species. Together, the group identified and practiced reporting nearly a dozen invasive species. Success!

Our thanks to everyone who participated in the workshop – we hope you will use your new skills to help stop the spread!

If you would like your own copy of the PA Aquatic Invasive Species Field Guide - or downloadable, species specific fact sheets with ID tips, locations, and ways to report your sightings - visit us online at https://seagrant.psu.edu/outreach/topics-projects/ -species

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission Temple University Penn State Extension NWPA Master Watershed Stewards Penn State Penn State Behrend National Sea Grant College Program

08/11/2026

Guess who’s back, back again! 🎶👀🪼

You may have spotted these tiny, jellyfish-like hydrozoans drifting through the warm water lately. Meet the Freshwater Jellyfish… a surprising visitor that has been showing up for over 100 years!

Most of the time, they live in a small polyp stage, but when the water is warm and food is plenty, they transform into the familiar medusa form we recognize as a jellyfish. Native to China, the freshwater jellyfish does use stingers to catch prey, but their stings are far too small to affect human skin.

First spotted in PA back in 1957 in a quarry near Bloomsburg — now they've made themselves at home across the whole Commonwealth!

Want to learn more about this unusual non-native species? Check out our Freshwater Jellyfish factsheet, available for download - https://seagrant.psu.edu/resources/resource-item/freshwater-jellyfish-fact-sheet/

08/06/2026

🐟🌱 What a fantastic couple of days in Erie, PA!

Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Michigan Sea Grant , and Ohio Sea Grant recently welcomed 23 pre-K–12 educators to the Tom Ridge Environmental Center Foundation for a hands-on aquaponics workshop — and the energy (and curiosity!) was contagious. Swipe through to see it in action!

Educators from a variety of backgrounds, from grade school teachers to occupational therapists, participated, proving that aquaponics really can fit into ANY classroom.

Even veteran educators walked away with new ideas. Patrick Roberts, who's run an aquaponics system in his classroom for 14 years, said it best: "I am learning how to use the facility I have in new and better ways."

A huge thank you to all our incredible educators for their curiosity and dedication, and to the Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative and Center for Great Lakes Literacy for funding this incredible opportunity! We look forward to hosting more events for educators to get hands-on experience in the future.

Do you recognize a familiar face in these photos? Tag them below!

📍 Ohio educators — a similar workshop is coming your way in 2027! Reach out to Nicole Wright ([email protected]) to learn more.

Learn more: https://seagrant.psu.edu/news/sea-grant-engages-educators-in-hands-on-aquaponics-workshop/

08/05/2026

Download the PA aquatic invasive species mobile app here: https://seagrant.psu.edu/news/pa-ais-app/

08/03/2026

Educators, get ready for the 2026–2027 school year with the Sea Grant Center for Great Lakes Literacy Resource Library! Explore a growing collection of free, vetted lessons, videos, books, and hands-on activities covering topics like biodiversity, invasive species, watersheds, and more.

Browse resources by grade level, subject, or Great Lakes Literacy Principle: cgll.org/resource-library/

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Sea Grant College Program New York Sea Grant Lake Champlain Sea Grant Ohio Sea Grant Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Michigan Sea Grant Minnesota Sea Grant University of Wisconsin Sea Grant/Water Resources Institutes

07/31/2026

🌊 Join us in welcoming Olivia Szaszko to Pennsylvania Sea Grant as the new Digital Engagement Specialist! 🌊

Putting her Bachelor of Science in Marketing Management from Penn State World Campus to work, she will help elevate our communications capacity and expand audience reach through compelling digital content that informs and connects people to the Great Lakes, coastal, and watershed resources they need.

“I’m excited to join the dedicated team of experts at PA Sea Grant and to engage with the broader community of Pennsylvanians committed to enhancing the health and resilience of our state’s coastal regions. It’s a rare opportunity to put my marketing and design skills to work for a cause I genuinely believe in.” - Olivia

Welcome to the team, Olivia! We can't wait to see the stories you'll help us tell.

Read more: https://seagrant.psu.edu/news/welcome-new-staff-olivia-szaszko/

Penn State Behrend Penn State National Sea Grant College Program

07/30/2026

Happy National Intern Day!

Today we're celebrating the incredible interns who help power our mission at Pennsylvania Sea Grant! Whether they're monitoring water quality, identifying and cataloging species in the Natural History Museum – or supporting communications, education, outreach activities across our coastal and Great Lakes communities - our interns bring fresh energy, curiosity, and hard work to everything they do.

Whether you're out in the field, in the lab, or behind the scenes helping us make science accessible to everyone, your contributions matter. Thank you to our interns for helping us build healthier watersheds, stronger communities, and a more sustainable future for Pennsylvania's coasts!

Address

Erie, Harrisburg
Philadelphia, PA

Website

https://seagrant.psu.edu/

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