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Middle & High School American History Teachers Offered Berths on August Sail of OceanBound for History

"OceanBound for History is an exciting opportunity for teachers to explore the maritime perspective of American history," says Robert 'Bert' Rogers, executive director of the Rhode Island-based Ocean Classroom Foundation (OCF,) which also operates MassSail, another marine science program, in partnership with the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (PCCS.) "Our deeper aim is to help teachers excite their students by connecting the study of history to the real adventure and drama that comprises our national story, and forms our identities as Americans," Rogers added.

PCCS Executive Director Peter Borrelli urges educators to take advantage of this free enrichment program. "It is difficult to fully understand the economy, culture, and political history of the Commonwealth without knowing its maritime history," noted Borrelli, who adds that maritime history deserves more attention in school cirricula.

OceanBound for History will place up to 24 middle and high school teachers aboard the schooner Westward, a 125' steel, two-masted staysail vessel from August 2 thru 9 in the Gulf of Maine, stopping at ports along the Maine coast which are relevant to later classroom discussions and explorations of maritime history. Introducing teachers to the value of experiential learning, discovering the vital link of the marine world to national heritage, and enable teachers to take these insights to their students this coming Fall, are goals of OceanBound for History.

Teachers become full ship participants in operating the Westward, absorbing shipboard culture, hierarchy, and work - including seafaring skills and navigation - under the guidance of the professional crew. The faculty who designed OceanBound for History will sail on the August cruise: Glenn S. Gordinier, Ph.D., Robert G. Albion Historian & co-director, Munson Institute at Mystic Seaport; Richard King, M.A., instructor, Williams College-Mystic Seaport Maritime Studies program; Deirdre O'Regan, M.A., editor, SEA HISTORY magazine, maritime history professor for Long Island University's SEAmester program.

What Teachers Need to Know: Educators will board and disembark at Rockland, Maine. OceanBound for History will provide room, board, instruction, materials and equipment to qualified applicants, but getting to and from the ship, and the $95 processing fee, are responsibilities of the applicant. This is a physically active, fully participatory program. While physical fitness, mobility and general good health are important considerations for any wilderness activity, no previous seafaring experience is required, and participants need not be athletes to succeed.

For more information on OceanBound for History, contact the Ocean Classroom Foundation at: mail@oceanclassroom.org, by phone at: (800) 724-7245, or write to request an application: Ocean Classroom Foundation, 23 Bay Street, Watch Hill, Rhode Island 02891.

The Ocean Classroom Foundation (OCF) is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to providing programs of education under sail to the youth of America. Ocean Classroom Foundation operates the schooners Westward, Spirit of Massachusetts, and Harvey Gamage on a variety of programs of education under sail, including the Ocean Classroom high school semester at sea. OCF programs have received national recognition and awards, including NMHS' Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Maritime Education, and the American Sail Training Association's Sail Training Program of the Year.

[The Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (PCCS,) in conjunction with the Ocean Classroom Foundation, operates MassSail, a new marine education science program aboard the Spirit of Massachusetts.]

The National Maritime Historical Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to America's maritime heritage. NMHS publishes SEA HISTORY magazine.

The Hurricane Island Outward Bound School has pioneered experiential education in the U.S. and around the world since 1964, and currently operates the longest-running sea program in the nation.

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Bert Rogers
Executive Director
Ocean Classroom Foundation
(800) 724-7245
admin@oceanclassroom.org

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