Spring 2024

On March 14th, thanks to all the Chesapeake Bay Fellows, but especially Lee Acra and Peter Galiotos, the NA Upper School enjoyed an oyster roast on a beautiful day. The event planners organized the food with our refectory staff, designed and ordered T-shirts, and acquired several sponsors for the oyster roast. As of this writing, we are still balancing the books while we settle any remaining bills. All in all, the event was a huge success. 

Fellows have been at work this semester on new projects and presentations. Some of the topics have included derelict boats, microplastics, off-shore wind, fast fashion, and fish. In January, we visited the “SWIFT” facility in Suffolk, an innovative water treatment project to protect the region’s environment, enhance the sustainability of the region’s long-term groundwater supply and help address environmental concerns such as Chesapeake Bay restoration, sea level rise and saltwater intrusion. The SWIFT process pumps treated water back into the underground (Potomac) aquifer in a trial to see if we can replenish aquifers and slow/stop ground subsidence. This coming summer we will return to the Maine Island Trail from June 14 - 21, 2024. We will experience a near-pristine ecosystem while learning from fisheries scientists and lobstermen. After putting in in Stonington, we will be paddling and camping from island to island. We are finishing our reading. Each grade level of Fellows has chosen a book to read - sophomores, Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert, juniors, A Poison Like No Other, and seniors, inconspicuous consumption (sic) by Tatiana Schlossberg.

Fall 2023

The Chesapeake Bay Fellows have involved themselves in several different pursuits this fall. All Fellows are working on projects of their own design. These projects include planning this spring’s oyster roast, building a bench for the Brock Center, restoring fish populations in a retention pond, teaching in the Lower School, creating a children’s book, and planning a tree planting project.

We also spent an afternoon in October bagging oyster shells at the Brock Center to be used for oyster restoration work.

Each grade level has also read a book of their own choosing. The seniors read Beautiful Swimmers, the juniors read How to Avoid a Climate Disaster, and the sophomores read The Most Important Fish in the Sea.  Each grade level presented book summaries to the entire group.

We have firmed up our plans for our summer trip / adventure.  From June 14-21, 2024 we will be paddling a portion of the Maine Island Trail.  Fellows will experience a different watershed, environment, and culture as well as different fisheries.