Scholarships
MARCO ISLAND SHELL CLUB
EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS
The Marco Island Shell Club, a 501 ( c )(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the study, conservation, science, history, and appreciation of seashells and mollusks in all their forms, has awarded $20,000 to deserving undergrad and graduate students who are studying marine sciences as well as notable non-profits who further our mission to educate and inform our community including the Bailey National Shell Museum, Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center, Hideaway Beach’s Buddy Day, and St. Mark’s Preschool.
The Marco Island Shell Club raises money for these scholarships through donations and the sale of unique shell art both at in-person events and our website www.marcoislandshellclub.com
This year’s scholarship winners include:
· Stacy Sanderlin received $5000 to apply towards her master’s degree in Environmental Science at Florida Gulf Coast University.
· Denise Garcia Salas, a student at Florida Gulf Coast University, received $2500 towards her pursuit of a BS in biology with a concentration in marine biology.
· David Rue, a student at Florida Gulf Coast University, received $2500 towards his degree in Marine Science at Florida Gulf Coast University.
Please contact us to make a donation toward future scholarships.
In addition, the Club also has two endowed scholarships at Florida Gulf Coast University which continue to provide, each year, one undergraduate research scholarship and one graduate competitive research scholarship to students majoring in marine or environmental science. Club members are pleased and proud that their efforts enable the club to support such outstanding young adults who will hopefully be our future researchers, teachers and scientists. The Club’s endowment research scholarships were awarded to the following recipients for the 2023-2024 academic year:
The undergraduate endowment was awarded to Grace Markell, majoring in marine science research, and is a junior. She is interested in shellfish and benthic ecology, hydrodynamic modeling, GIS, and remote sensing. She would like to continue with research opportunities in shellfish ecology and eventually become a university faculty member continuing her research endeavors while mentoring students.
Our graduate student endowment went to Robert Smith. He is interested in marine science and water quality research. He is in his second year of his Environmental Science Master of Science program studying changes in water quality in our region of the Gulf of Mexico with regards to seasonality (wet vs. dry season) and the impacts that Hurricane Ian had and how the region has recovered. He became interested when he was involved in research opportunities available to students. He started assisting in monitoring the health of oysters in Estero Bay. There he learned invaluable marine science skills like water quality sample collection and laboratory processing, small boat handling, scuba diving, and management skills. He plans to continue researching water quality and ways to reduce human impacts on coastal communities.
Education/Grants
The Club depends upon the proceeds from the Holiday Sale in late fall and the Spring Expo & Shell Art Sale in March to underwrite other educational programs and grants. Because of very successful sales the past few seasons, we are able to expand our philanthropic activities.
Our grants require applicants to focus on activities that promote the study, conservation, science, history, and appreciation of seashells and mollusks in all their forms.
They are available to teachers and educators working with children from PreK through high school. A Grant Application is available here on our website. We ask for information about your activity, who will benefit from the activity, materials needed for your activity, and a breakdown of costs for those materials. If awarded a grant, we will need an invoice with the costs listed so we can pay the company directly and have items shipped to you.
An example of a PreK grant is one from St. Marks Preschool program on Marco Island. Their activity was An Introduction to Seashells. The materials requested included 4 Preschool level books about seashells and stories about who lives in a seashell, including beautiful pictures for the children to enjoy. They also asked for a chart of local seashells with pictures and names of shells, and an assortment of shells to match to the chart, sort by color, size, shape, etc., providing for lots of math and science activities as well as literacy skills enhanced with beautiful books. They can also do some art activities with the shells by decorating them with paint or markers and adding a magnet to hang them.
Middle school and high school may want a fish tank for the classroom, or a field trip to the Bailey’s Shell Museum. Bailey’s Shell Museum also offers a wonderful program across all grade levels called Mollusks on the Move. The museum will bring a van to your school with shells, activities with shells, and live shell animals in tanks. Most children have never seen a live shell animal or had a chance to experience the beach. We have given grants to schools or classrooms for this valuable experience. The children learn so much and love the activities.
In the Community
On Tuesday, March 12, 2024, members of the Club gave a talk at the Emerald Beach Condos. Attendees listened as members covered topics such as the different types of shells found on our local beaches, tips for successful shelling (where, when and how to shell) as well as how to be a responsible sheller. Attendees were able to see examples of most shells and some sea life found on our Marco beaches and were given a shell identification guide to take with them.
On Monday, February 19, 2024, members of the Marco Island Shell Club participated in the Hideaway Beach Buddy Day. Approximately one hundred 2nd graders from Immokalee, enrolled in the Guadalupe Center’s After-school Tutoring Program, visited the Hideaway Beach Community and participated in a variety of fun activities, including shelling! Members of the club arrived early to make sure the beach area was filled with a variety of our local seashells. Each child got to search for shell treasures then bring them to the members who helped them identify their finds. Each child got to take home the treasures they found along with a printed shelling guide and bag of local shells.
The Shell Club partners with other organizations and the City of Marco Island in conservation and educational efforts. Many members volunteer at Rookery Bay Estuary Reserve, give talks and guided tours at Tigertail Beach, and share their knowledge of the local ecosystem with various clubs in the area. The Club has partnered with Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum to fund the Mollusks on the Move programs at various Collier County schools.
Marco Island Center for the Arts in partnership with the Marco Island Shell Club supported an art supply distribution program in an effort to support underserved children of all ages who cannot come to the Art Center. Free bags of art supplies were distributed in conjunction with Al’s Pals and the mobile food pantry. The Shell Club designed projects, supplied photos and directions for the projects along with the shells to complete the work.
Also, in the past members of the Shell Club have provided educational programs at DISCOVER TIGERTAIL at Tigertail Beach, at Rookery Bay's National Estuaries Day, and at the local libraries, and have presented educational programs for condo associations and other clubs and organizations