MRDF’s MarineLab Environmental Education Center has onsite and virtual programs for student groups from 5th grade through college, summer teacher workshops, year-round virtual programs with live marine science instructors.
Student snorkeling shown underwater with coral and fish
School Field Trips
For school groups from 5th grade through college, MarineLab offers programs from 1 to 5 days at its self-contained coastal campus in Key Largo, FL.
Socioeconomically disadvantaged students in Florida are the least likely to access the ocean, despite living in the state with the second longest coastline! Our Art Mitchell Memorial Fund provides scholarships for these Florida Title I students to attend MarineLab programs.
“As a teacher in a Title 1 school, MarineLab has brought knowledge, inspiration, and motivation for my students to follow their dreams and be future leaders. Thank you! ”
Teacher smiling with a brittle star in her hand
Teacher Workshops
Teachers can learn about marine ecology in one of our three summer teacher workshops, hosted every July at our campus in Key Largo.
We are pleased to announce the launch of our Caribbean Teacher Initiative! This initiative funds teachers from Caribbean islands to attend our summer workshops so they can learn not only about subtropical/tropical marine ecology, but also learn activities that they can use in their classrooms with their students.
“The program exceeded my expectations. It was my first snorkeling experience and I am still amazed how much I did over the week. I had an incredible time and cannot wait to share everything I learned with my students.”
Hand holding a seastar over a shallow sandy underwater area
Virtual Programs
If you can’t come to Key Largo, we can bring Key Largo to you! Whether it’s for an entire classroom or for individual students, eMarineLab is the answer!
An eMarineLab program is a great way to introduce students to the wonders of marine invertebrates - without them having to travel! A small gift from you can provide a virtual program with a live instructor for a whole class of middle schoolers.
“Definitely the best remote field trip we’ve done, and I’ve now incorporated other aquariums and museums into my programming for my students! What I liked best: That we were able to easily connect to the boat! Very impressive! ”
“This was one of the best field trip experiences I have had and I have been organizing field trips from here to China (literally) every year for the past 30 years. ”
– Angus Cosgrove, Dean of Students, The Cushman School (FL), 2021