More than a thousand miles from the nearest ocean, a high school in Des Moines is home to a surprising number of sea creatures. Another surprise? Each of its more than 100 saltwater tanks is cared for by a student.
Central Campus, a public magnet school in Iowa, boasts a 10,000-square-foot saltwater laboratory where students learn how to care for marine life and think like scientists.
“The program is designed to provide any student in the Des Moines area free access to learning about being a marine scientist,” said Gregory Jeff Barord, who has been the marine biology instructor at Central Campus for the last 13 of its more than 40-year history.
Each year, around 150 students take part in either the marine biology or aquarium science programs, which take your typical class pet to the next level. “A huge part of the program is maintaining the laboratory,” Barord said. The laboratory is made up of around 140 saltwater tanks, the largest of which is 2,400 gallons. The students are responsible for feeding, maintaining and cleaning the tanks. They come in on weekends, holidays and no-school days to help keep the aquarium running. The students are automatically enrolled at a local community college, so they receive college credit for completing the class’s advanced coursework…