No. 16 Vol. 5
www.mypaperonline.com
May 2018
New Field Trip On Water Brings Hands-On Experience To Learn And Protect The Lake
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By Cheryl Conway tudy Hull was set to sail on its maiden voyage Monday, May 21, on the waters of Lake Hopatcong. With room for 40 passengers plus crew, fourth graders from Kennedy and Nixon elementary schools in Roxbury were expected to be the first to participate in the floating classroom. Students from Franklin and Jefferson schools in the Roxbury School District have booked their trips for Monday, June 4. The 40-foot by 12-foot covered catamaran pontoon boat was named and christened Friday evening, May 4, at the Garden State Yacht Club in Lake Hopatcong with more than 75 in attendance. There was “a lot of excitement in the air,” says Donna Macalle-Holly, Lake Hopatcong Foundation grant and program coordinator. “After cracking the champagne bottle on the vessel, people got to board and see.” Macalle-Holly explained, “The vessel name selected by the LHF Board of Trustees was submitted by Kimberly Murphy during our Giving Tuesday campaign last December in support of the floating classroom. If you made a $25 donation you can come up with a name. Quite a few names were given.” The board decided on Study Hull: “Thought it was a good play on words,” says Macalle-Holly. “It fit the vessel good and what we want to try to do on the vessel. “I proudly christen this vessel Study Hull,” Macalle-Holly said at the christening. “May all who journey on Study Hull be safe and learn all about protecting Lake Hopatcong today and for future generations.” The vessel was built by Sightseer Marine based in Hudson, Fla., and is a project of The Lake Hopatcong Foundation.
Photo courtesy of Lake Hopatcong Foundation.
“We are so excited to bring the floating classroom experience to Lake Hopatcong for students and the public,” said Macalle-Holly. “It will provide an interactive, hands-on educational experience to study the lake ecology, to understand why improving water quality is so important and to learn what can be done to protect the lake.” The purchase of the floating classroom was made possible from the Gannett Foundation- “USA Today” network’s “A Community Thrives” program; the James P. Verhalen Family Foundation and the Szigethy family, according to a press release. Macalle-Holly said she received the news about winning the Gannett Foundation $50,000 grant last spring which allowed the foundation to move forward with the vessel’s acquisition. Total cost for the vessel totaled $148K, she says. The LHF found inspiration for the floating classroom from other on-the-water educational programs such as its visits to the Lake George Association Floating Classroom in New York, the Hackensack Riverkeeper Eco-Cruise and the SPLASH Steamboat Floating Classroom on the Del-
aware River. Currently, 800 fourth and fifth graders are scheduled to participate in the foundation’s educational field trip program. Seven trips are so far planned with students from Hopatcong, Jefferson and Mt. Arlington school districts, says Macalle-Holly. There is limited availability this May through June for additional schools to participate in this fee-based field trip which includes the floating classroom, macro-invertebrate sampling in the Musconetcong River, a discovery hike and a watershed model to demonstrate water pollution concepts and their prevention. In July, fourth and fifth grade teachers interested in a future voyage for their students can board the Study Hull the second week in July to see what is entailed. Field trips will begin at 9:30 a.m. and end around 1:30 p.m., says Macalle-Holly. Students will arrive at Hopatcong State Park for their four hour lesson. For the floating classroom portion, students will learn how to protect the lake through scientific experiments on water quality. The hike on the Musconetcong will incontinued on page 4