Saturday at Goleta: UPSAC and the Scouts

Posted by ken Jones (Skipper - Posts: 9909)
on Jun-11-07 6:03pm

In June of 2006, United Pier and Shore Anglers of California (UPSAC) was awarded a grant by the “Channel Islands Marine Sanctuary Foundation.” The grant proposal, titled “Goleta Pier, A Platform For Education and Conservation,” stated, as its premise, the following: “The project is primarily an educational and outreach program designed to (1) teach local youth the importance of piers to the aquatic community, (2) teach them rules and regulations pertaining to saltwater angling, and (3) give them the opportunity to experience first hand the beauty and mysteries involved when dealing with our saltwater friends.” 

The initial endeavor was the development of six lesson plans:

Lesson 1 - Introduction to Goleta Pier
Lesson 2 - Responsible Fishing
Lesson 3 - Managing The Resources
Lesson 4 - Data Collection 
Lesson 5 - Pier Fishing Basics 
Lesson 6 - Fishing, Research and Observation

The initial introduction of these lessons took place Saturday, June 9, at the Goleta Pier. The teachers/mentors were a group of individuals from the United Pier and Shore Anglers of California (UPSAC). The local youth were Boy Scouts from several different Santa Barbara troops.

Teachers and mentors were Ken Jones (The Pier Fisherman), Ben Acker (Dompfa Ben), James Liu (GDude), Hashem Nahid (Mahigheer), Mike Spence (Santa), and Boyd Grant (Pierhead). The Science Advisor was Carrie Culver.

Goleta in a nutshell: I believe I can truly say everyone had a good time, both the old guys who were forced out of their normal day-to-day, humdrum duties and the padawan's who got a chance to learn a few facts and catch a few fish. There was lots of food, lots of handouts and books, and lots of goodwill both from the teachers and the students and their parents who came out to the pier. 
We're now going to revise the lessons with a second presentation slated for September/October. The lessons then will be distributed to California teachers for their enjoyment—and hoped for use.