In her own words: Leslie Wallace

 

(Leslie Wallace is a graduate of our Discovery Hall Programs High School Summer Program. An exceptional student and individual, Leslie is another success story from the Sea Lab’s educational program. Here is an account of her experience at the Sea Lab:

Most of my friends and family do not understand my love of marine science, considering that I grew up in Tennessee. Most people find it odd that in seven months I will pack my belongings and leave behind friends, family, and 18 years of memories to pursue a career in marine science. However, most people haven’t spent a month at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab.
 

Leslie aboard the R/V Pelican during the Project SEAS cruise with Dr. Monty Graham 		  .
I participated in the Discovery Hall Program during the summer of 2001. I remember thinking, as my parents drove away from the Sea Lab, that I was all alone in a whole new world. I was only partially correct. I was in a whole new world; one of salt marshes, sand dunes, and tide pools. However, I was not at all alone. Denise Keaton, John DiPlacido, Hazel Wilson, and Kirsten Patterson made me feel so much at home.
They introduced me to all aspects of marine science in a fun yet challenging way. The fieldwork in the salt marshes and at the beach provided me with an education no classroom can provide. And through an individual research project, I learned to ask questions about the environment and then find the answers by means of scientific experiments. The Discovery Hall Program taught me in one month what my school system has been striving to do for 13 years: that science is fun. DHP taught me that there is more to science than reading about it in a textbook. The hands-on activities at the Sea Lab made everything I had learned in the past come to life.

Aside from the education I received at DISL, the friendships I made have granted me other opportunities. Denise Keaton helped me get involved with Dr. Monty Graham’s SEAS (Science Education At Sea) Project. In September of 2001 I returned to Dauphin Island and joined Dr. Graham and his research staff on a 10-day cruise in the Northern Gulf of Mexico where we studied jellyfish. I gained new insight on collecting and analyzing data and making simple observations to gain knowledge. The SEAS Project taught me that research is difficult and sometimes tedious, but rewarding overall. I also learned that one can survive ten days of seasickness and still love the ocean. The most memorable aspect of the cruise was the fact that I was in the Gulf of Mexico on September 11th. I sat before a lab table labeling vials and looked up just as the second plane struck the World Trade Center. I flew home one week later
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In August of 2003 I will enroll at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. This school promises me an enriching education that will prepare me for a career in science. I have read many books and articles about deep-ocean research and am very interested in hydrothermal vent communities.

I am very thankful to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab for showing me the world of marine science. It isn’t often that a girl from Tennessee chooses to study the ocean. I owe it all to the Discovery Hall Program and its instructors and administrators for sparking my interest in science, granting me opportunities beyond DHP, and providing support, encouragement, and friendship the whole way through.