Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher Program

The Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher Program engages certified educators to share their successful strategies for implementing Long Island Sound into existing curricula with their peers in professional development workshops. All workshop lessons and activities designed for use in the classroom or field are aligned to the content standards of the Connecticut/New York Science Frameworks and/or the National Science Education Standards, in a format that can be easily implemented into existing curricula. The Long Island Sound Mentor Teachers plan interdisciplinary sessions that include a participant field component within the Long Island Sound watershed.

Upcoming 2024 opportunities:

This year we will be hosting three Mentor Teacher Workshops, all teachers from New York are invited to attend one or more of the listed workshops.

Become a 2025 LIS Mentor Teacher in Queens, the Bronx, Westchester County, or Long Island!   

New York Sea Grant (NYSG) and The Long Island Sound Study (LISS) are seeking educators (PK-12) for this year’s Mentor Teacher program. Working together, partner teams prepare and lead a Teacher Professional Learning Opportunity (PLO) with workshops focused on Long Island Sound. Climate change adaptations, sea-level rise, water quality, environmental justice, and ecological health topics are encouraged.

NYSG staff will offer guidance, support, and funding to the selected Mentor Teachers to help them plan the location, develop, promote, and prepare for a workshop. Mentor Teachers receive a $1,200 stipend, a programming budget, and access to Long Island Sound Study resources for their workshop and participants.

How to apply: 

Complete the application form, with a workshop description, no later than May 17, 2025 . Workshop description should answer the following questions:

1) Why would you like to be a Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher?

2) Where and when would you like the workshop to take place? (All workshops must take place before October 30, 2024).

3) What would you like to cover during the workshop? (Include topic, activities, format, and correlation with New York State or Next Generation Science Standards).

Want Feedback?  Email us your idea !

Questions? contact:

Jimena Perez-Viscasillas, Long Island Outreach Coordinator, at jbp255@cornell.edu or 631-632-8730.

Lillit Genovesi, NYC/Westchester County Outreach Coordinator, at lg543@cornell.edu or 718-874-0120

Connecticut teachers please see the flyer HERE for more information.

Past Workshops

LISS Watersheds and Estuaries: October 22, 2023 at Marine Education Center in Mamaroneck. Mentor Teachers: Jonathan LaRosa, Hugenot Academy and Carmen Glenn, New Rochelle High School

Testing the Waters for a Healthy Long Island Sound: September 24, 2023 at SUNY Maritime. Mentor Teachers: Carmelia Rodriguez, PS 583 and Denise Aikens, PS 583

Biodiversity Exploration and Engineering on the Mighty Nissequogue River: Want to learn how to bring the classroom to the field? Join us on the Mighty Nissequogue River to learn how to teach biodiversity and engineering practices while canoeing! Together we will canoe the river while exploring various tools used to measure the biodiversity of the river. CTLE credits and participation certificates will be made available upon request. The workshop will be led by educators Kimberly “Ly” Williams and Nicole Carone. Join us at Paul T. Givens County Park on August 1, 2023 from 9AM-1PM.

From Your Yard To The River: Teacher Workshop for Upper Elementary and Middle School Teachers
Saturday, October 5, 2019 from 9:00am-1:30pm, with optional seining until 2pm. Marine Environmental Stewardship Center, Cedar Beach, 231 Harbor Beach Road, Mount Sinai NY 11766.

Plot Studies Of Coastal Ecosystems on Long Island’s North Shore
Saturday, October 12, 2019 from 9:00am-3:00pm. Sands Point Preserve Conservancy, Sands Point, NY.

Unlocking the Mysteries of the Mighty Nissequogue
Saturday, August 11th from 8:30am-2:30pm. Paul Givens County Park Smithtown, NY. Followed by a trip to Sunken Meadow State Park.

Be in the K.N.O.W.
Saturday, September 22, 2018 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Northport High School 154 Laurel Hill Rd. Northport, NY 11768. Followed by a site visit to Twin Ponds in Northport.

Geo-science Outdoor Research Program
Saturday, October 17, 2015 from 9am-3pm
Stony Brook University’s Calverton Business Incubator in Calverton, NY followed by a site visit to Wildwood State Park in Wading River, NY

Long Island Sound: Past, Present, and Future
Saturday, October 3, 2015 from 9am-3pm
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary in Rye, NY followed by a site visit to The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk in Norwalk, CT

Long Island Sound Workshop
Saturday, September 19, 2015 from 8am-3pm
Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, CT

Geo-science Outdoor Research Program
Saturday, September 27, 2014 from 9am-3pm
Stony Brook University’s Calverton Business Incubator in Calverton, NY followed by a site visit to Wildwood State Park in Wading River, NY

Seine the Sound
Friday, September 26, 2014 from 8:45am-3:15pm
Meigs Point, Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, CT

Marine Debris
Saturday, September 20, 2014 from 9:00am-3:00pm
Pelham Bay Park in Bronx, NY

Learning’s a Beach
Saturday, September 28, 2013 from 9am-3pm (rain date: September 29th)
West Meadow Beach in Stony Brook, NY

Seine the Sound
Monday, September 23, 2013 from 9am-3pm
Meigs Point, Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, CT

Awesome Estuaries
Saturday, September 21, 2013 from 9am-3pm (rain date: September 22nd)
Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park, NY

Seine the Sound
Friday, September 21, 2012
Meigs Point, Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, CT

Marsh Madness
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park, NY

Teach at the Beach
Saturday, May 12, 2012 from 8am-3pm (rain date: May 19th)
Wading River Beach Club, Creek Road in Wading River, NY

Watershed Connection Workshop
Saturday, May 7, 2011 from 8am–2pm (rain date: Sunday May 15)
Caleb Smith State Park in Smithtown, NY

Seine the Sound
Friday, May 6, 2011 from 8:30am–3pm
Meigs Point, Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, CT

Wonders of the Wetlands Workshop
Saturday, April 30, 2011 from 9am–3pm (rain date: Sunday, May 1)
Cedar Beach in Mt. Sinai, NY

Integrate Long Island Sound Into Your Curriculum 
Saturday, April 23, 2011 from 8am–3pm
Hammonasset State Park in Madison, CT

Teach at the Beach, Sail on the Sound!
Saturday, May 21, 2010 from 8am–3pm
Lighthouse Point Park/On-Board the Quinnipiack

Background

Connecticut Sea Grant developed the Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher (LISMT) program in 2002. Since then, high quality, creative, and respected teachers have been recruited to assist their peers in incorporating Long Island Sound content into curricula within the scope of the current education standards, which are now the Next Generation Science Standards. In 2010, the LISMT program was expanded to New York through New York Sea Grant. Since 2002, the 53 LISMT workshops in CT and NY have utilized 59 Mentor Teachers to reach 684 formal and informal K-12 educators, and through them, more than 54,860 students in over 101 Connecticut and 27 New York cities, towns, and regional school districts.

Mentor Teachers

New York and Connecticut Sea Grant periodically seek pairs of teachers to serve as Mentor Teachers. With oversight from Sea Grant, each pair works together to plan a professional development session for their peers. There is funding for each pair to provide an outdoor component (shore or boat excursion) as part of the session. Each Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher receives a stipend and Long Island Sound resources for their classrooms. Please contact Diana Payne at diana.payne@uconn.edu (CT) or Jimena Perez-Viscasillas at jbp255@cornell.edu (NY) for more details on how to apply to be a Long Island Sound Mentor Teacher.