I'm Madeline Walden, and this is Aquarium of the Podcific, a podcast brought to you by Aquarium of the Pacific, Southern California's largest aquarium.
Join us as we learn alongside the experts in animal care, conservation and more. Welcome back to Aquarium of the Podcific. My name is Erin Lundy, and I am the manager of conservation initiatives here at the Aquarium of the Pacific. I
love hearing your new title. I am Madeline Walden. I'm the Aquarium's digital content and community manager. We have really long titles and also co host of this podcast, true. Erin Lundy,
we both pod at the same time, podding together. Today we have two guests, which is a very exciting episode for us. And we are going to be talking about a very exciting scholarship program that the aquarium administrates, and it is called our kelp scholarship, that's right.
And if you want to learn more about this program, you will in this episode, but afterwards, you can head to our show notes, or head to our website, aquarium of pacific.org. To learn more about the kelp scholarship program and even apply if you are so intrigued. Yeah,
at the time of this podcast coming out, our applications are open. That's exciting, yeah, and there is a financial award associated with this scholarship, but it also encourages there to be a community of scholars who engage with each other for years to come. And so it's really exciting to see some of the barriers to animal care and marine science and those types of jobs being addressed by programs like this kelp scholarship. Today, we have on Alie LeBeau, who is the director of STEM pathway initiatives, and Leslie Nguyen, who is one of our animal care specialists, and both of them are going to be talking about their experiences with that program, as well as their experiences helping to develop that program from the ground up when it started in 2020 as our African American scholarship program, all the way to now here in 2024 where it is the kelp program, which stands for community equity, learning and persistence. So that kelp program is meant to address some of the barriers to being a part of Marine Science and being a part of the marine science community, and also to build a community for people to engage with over time, it's been really lovely to watch that program develop, and also to have Leslie, who is actually a scholar in the original iteration of the scholarship program, all the way back in 2021 be a part of our team now she is one of My favorite frog people, and I say that lovingly, sounds weird, but Leslie, I
think by this point, everybody knows that that is a compliment. If you're calling some of my frog people,
she's my frog people. But also Leslie is just one of the most wonderful humans, and she has been integral in the development of this program. And so we get to hear a little about her story and her involvement, and we also get to hear from Alie, who helped to develop this program, sort of from the ground up. It's a really cool episode. Thank you for listening. Thank you for learning about our scholarship program, and thank you for applying if you're interested,
yeah, and if you are listening to this podcast episode in the beyond future, check out our website, and there might be a application session open soon too.
Today we are joined by Alie LeBeau, who is the director of STEM pathway initiatives, and Leslie Nguyen, who is one of our animal care specialists here, here to talk about our CELP scholarship program. So Alie, do you want to give us a little bit of an introduction into what that program
looks like? Yeah, absolutely. So our STEM pathways is a portfolio of equity programs aimed at broadening participation in marine science. So a couple years ago, the aquarium identified that a handful of new initiatives had launched that had some shared objectives, and there was an opportunity to unify them under one umbrella. And they said, Hey, Alie, why don't you name that and figure out what that looks like? And it was a really great opportunity to figure out how we can do paid internships, career exploration efforts, early childhood programming and our scholar program.
It's been a really cool program to watch grow sort of from the ground up. Do you want to talk a little bit about the history of, sort of, how we established that program?
Sure. So back in 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd, the aquarium looked at what they could do in the landscape of the time. And I think it was really incredible that the aquarium decided to really put some money towards the effort to address the lack of diversity in marine science, and specifically looking at the number of PhDs that identify as Black or African American, which is phenomenally lower than the percent of the population across the United States. And so at the time our CFO, Anthony Brown developed an idea to launch our African American Scholar Program, and it was still in the pandemic, so there was not as much opportunity to come together and be together in person. But at the root of it, it was driven by the idea of providing financial support as well as community development and networking opportunities, so that students could come together and be in a room and not again, have a place where they felt like they're the only one who looks like them. And it was phenomenal. And one of the reasons was we got to meet Leslie, and we got Leslie in our lives, which is world better? Because. Yes.
Well, it has been lovely to watch that program grow and also to meet Leslie and to work with Leslie, and Leslie has become one of my favorite frog people here at the Aquarium, but certainly you started getting to know us as one of the African American scholars when that program started out. And how has your growth trajectory looked here at the Aquarium? Well,
firstly, I Erin just admitted that I'm one of her favorite frog people. So let's start the let's start there. Does
that mean you're part frog? I
People I currently identify as 50% frog, 50% Leslie, I'm sorry. What was your question?
You're like, I got very distracted. I am a frog. How has your development with the aquarium been like? How did you transition from scholar to working here and working in our animal care department? Yeah. So
I started off as an African American scholar back in 2021 applied in 2020 when I was still graduating college, of course, trying to figure out what I wanted to do. And that was also a time when I was unsure of what I was capable of. And so getting into this program was a big milestone for me, I would say, in my early career, and ending my academic career at the time. So when I got connected with a group of people that identified with similar struggles I had to go through in college and just navigating marine science, it felt very comfortable for me to start opening up to being a professional and marine science, and understanding that, yes, no matter what trajectory I kind of go in in this field, even though it will feel lonesome in some cases, I always know that there's a community of people that I can kind of lean on to have that comfort in. And so that allowed me to really dive a little bit deeper into my professional capabilities. And through the scholarship, I gained a lot of confidence, and I started applying to things that I didn't necessarily think that I would qualify for beforehand, and that led me to being able to get an internship at reef, which is in Key Largo. And it was an unpaid internship, but the funds from the African American scholarship program was able to help me support my internship for the full duration, and then once I came home, after six months of living in the keys, I actually applied for the animal care specialist position, which is what I work as. Now, fun fact, I didn't get it. Yeah, I didn't get it the first time around. And, well, previously, before even going to that. I met with Megan, who is currently one of my managers as just through the African American scholarship program, I came just
arranged a visit. Yeah, come and visit and hang out. We haven't seen you for Yeah, I was,
I was down bad, and I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. So I was like, I just need to talk to people. So I connected with Alie, and I came to the aquarium. Talked to a bunch of different people from different departments. Me and Megan really had a connection, applied for the position, did not get it, emailed her, like, two days later, after sobbing about the fact that I didn't get it, and then I was like, Okay, well, can I volunteer at least? Because the main thing was the experience, and because I was able to just at least ask her if I could volunteer, and I was able to do that. So then a couple months later, they offered me the full time position here, because another position to opened up. So that is how I transitioned from the African American scholarship program, just as a scholar at AOP into working full time here.
That's awesome. I love that you were able to sort of rely on a network of people to help you overcome the existing barriers that exist in working with animals and working in science. And I know that especially animal care, is a really hard field to get into, because you sort of need experience to get into a position that would give you the experience that you need to get into that position. And so it just becomes this vicious cycle. And so I really love that you were able to lean on the network of people that you met through the scholarship program that you had program that you had. And I think addressing some of those barriers is really the point of this CELP program. And what you've been working to develop, Leslie, I understand you are also helping to develop the new CELP program as it is sort of rolling out as well. Yeah,
my involvement with the development of CELP has been more than I would have expected it to be. I mean, I mean that in the best possible way. Last year, PK, the CEO of the aquarium, asked me if I wanted to be involved with just kind of rebuilding what this program is going to look like, because of the fact that I part of the the original African American scholarship cohort, and being as connected as I am with some of the scholars, I think, and also working here, I had a lot of different angles and perspectives to input into what CELP is now currently and so what that looked like for me was coordinating with all the scholars, because I wanted to make sure that I was not just allowing my voice and my perspective to show in this new program, but I wanted to make sure that the reflection of other scholars from previous cohorts, not just my own cohort, was also reflected in what CELP is now. And so it was months of trying to meet with people, sending out a bunch of emails like, Hey, I have this doc. If you have any comments, or if you have any input on this or that, please feel free like if you want to meet. And honestly, over the course of like, what. Three, four months or so, I got really close with a couple of scholars, and it eventually led to a few of us giving a presentation at the January board meeting at the aquarium, which was a huge professional development for me, just to coordinate all of that and then try to figure out what it is that we wanted to message, how we wanted to message it. How are we really going to reach the people in that room, and yeah, it was a very gratifying experience. And just to see what CELP has become now, and seeing the work that me and the other scholars have put in alongside ally, it's very surreal. Even now to this day,
I have to say that the alumni involvement in the pivot from African American scholar to CELP is one of the things that I'm most proud of, it came out of a challenging time, and the fact that there's so much input on what we're keeping, what we learned from the three cohorts of the African American Scholar Program, what we could improve on, what we could provide the experience for it, is by far the thing that I am most proud of because we know the value of the community that we're developing. And as we continue to add more cohorts of CELP scholars, the relationship with the alumni is just really essential. And there's something so special that started in 2021 obviously, having Leslie part of the aquarium staff is one amazing byproducts, but there are so many. So I am so grateful that you really took on that role and that you let me go. Leslie, I'm going to share this with you. What do you think about this? And you were able to even participate in the selection process for the first cohort of CELP scholars. So it wasn't like you just contributed to sort of this idea, but you were directly responsible for saying, I see these applicants, and I can help identify who's a good fit for the program. That's really cool,
even me now, as Leslie signature, did not realize how much involvement and how much work has gone into it from your end, and I think it's amazing to see you go from someone who is a scholar to being such an integral part of the development of how this program is continuing to
grow. I mean, I would say that it's such a great example of what we're trying to do with STEM pathways. So Leslie, obviously, is in the animal care team. Her main job is to be part of our animal care department. I think that's one of the ways that we know stem pathways can be most successful is by working across departments. Obviously, we rely on external partners, community partners, academic partners, but we really can't be successful in STEM pathways if we don't have buy in from other departments. So Leslie's supervisors approval of her time with us to support the development of CELP was crucial, and then that continued support. So Madeline's interest in, hey, let's try to do a podcast on CELP. Let's feature all these different people who can give us a little bit of time to meet CELP scholars. It's really essential. So I'm so grateful that there's continues to be that buy in across departments.
That's wonderful. Leslie, would you mind sharing a little bit about kind of what your role has been at the aquarium since you started. I know that you really were integral to the frogs gallery that just opened up in May. Can you tell us a little bit about
that? Yeah, so my official role, as I mentioned, is an animal care specialist. So I work on our bird, mammal, amphibian team. When I first started working here. A lot of my a lot of the area that I covered was with birds, and it was a great opportunity to get to work so closely with a different with such a large variety of different birds. And then slowly, Erin the AOP Crazy Frog lady, put together this little team of frog fanatics, and we slowly started to learn more about just how to care for our frog gallery. And by the end of last year, we got news that we were the next big renovation at AOP, which we were all extremely excited about, because we at that point, we were all wildly obsessed with frogs, probably more than Erin is at this point. That's a lot. So by the end of last year, we got word that the frog gallery was going to be the next renovation. We were all really excited about it and what that looked like for us, all of us, but especially, like the other ACS, is animal care specialists. It was a lot of running around, still having to cover other areas while managing our time to make sure that we are building the tanks for our new frogs. We had frogs in quarantine, so having to also help people that were new to like taking care of frogs in quarantine and like walking them through how that looks, and then also just taking care of the frogs that we already have in our gallery on the daily. So it was crazy for about four or five months. And even after that, with the new gallery up and running, which it looks great. Go look at it. It's beautiful. Not biased, not biased whatsoever, to get new frogs in the gallery and see frogs that we've already had in our collection, seeing new behaviors from them, because of the fact that they all got brand new exhibits, and they got upgrades. They got larger homes. Homes, and they are very dynamic, and to also be a part of the process of building that and seeing the effects of our animals, it's just something that, like, I go into the gallery every day now and I'm like, What are little babies? They're thriving, and, yeah, I would say, like, my favorite part of that is continuing to figure out how we can breed some of the species that we have here. So it sometimes feels like a game where you have to figure out, what does this frog need, what do they need as a species to produce the suitable environment so you can produce some eggs, because we are trying to grow our collection by breeding our own frogs in a sustainable
way.
We practice sustainability.
But how cool? Like two years ago, we were not having these conversations. Two
years ago, I didn't, literally didn't even bat an eye. Never saw a frog. And I'm, I will not say that in shame, but
how amazing. Yeah, that you it's all about these opportunities and connections and connecting with people who are excited, and now you're like, let me tell you about the cult of the frogs. It's kind
of crazy how I feel, like a lot of my friends now refer to me as a Crazy Frog lady. I know it's a little bit too close to Erin. I just told her the other day. I was like, I think I need to stop hanging out. I'm following too many footsteps. They're
little webbed foot.
I think it's been cool, like people don't often get an opportunity to build something in an aquarium from the ground up, and to have this group of people who are so passionate, and to have Leslie as part of it, and honestly, a very huge driver in that Leslie did all of the research for all of the species. She knew every single thing about what exact temperature parameters they need for every season. Like there was so much thought put into that, and it was really impressive to just see people, especially people who are pretty new to the aquarium, put so much forethought and planning and then build these gorgeous exhibits. It's been cool. And not only were you doing that, but you're also helping with our sea otter surrogacy program, and you're just a very integral part of a lot of our programs here. And that has happened really fast for someone who joined us two years ago. I'm
not like not even two years ago, but how wonderful, because I think that that's would be our hope with programs under stem pathways and the CELP Scholar Program, is that we're giving more opportunity, and it's about those connections and those networks and those experiences to then say, Whoa, look, I found my inner frog nerd, and now inner frog contribute. In this way. We all
have an inner frog, an inner frog nerd. Yeah, I love it. Backing up a little bit, Alie, I think you might have mentioned it in the very beginning. But could we talk about, what does stem stand for, and what does CELP stand for Yes,
I love acronyms. Yeah, STEM is science, technology, engineering and mathematics. You sometimes see steam as well in the education world. And so that is adding the A for art, which is integrating both visual and performing arts with sciences. And so at the aquarium, we often get asked by our donors or by our supporters, do you do STEM? And I would say that so much of what we do is stem, and lots of different ways of doing STEM. And so we think that everybody can be a scientist. Little kids are the best scientists. They make observations and ask questions and experiment by touching things over and over again. And so our goal across the education department is to encourage all of our learners to build their own stem identity and see themselves as being capable of being a scientist. And again, with our STEM pathways, it's just sort of a smaller portfolio within the education team that's identified that there are historical boundaries to some participants seeing themselves as belonging, and so as part of the ACA community, as part of the zoo and aquarium industry, we have a new drive to address those barriers, and own some of those barriers, and acknowledge that we haven't always served the community in which we situate, which we are situated, as Well as we would like to so what are the ways that we can have new initiatives to bring in new people, and that includes at all levels. How can we do it at the early childhood level? How can we do it in high school? How can we do it in that college level, when people are trying to determine what their next steps are? And then in terms of CELP, so CELP stands for Community, Equity, learning and persistence. So C, E, L, P, I kind of like it because it is CELP, like Southern California algae, which is, I'm kind of a CELP nerd, but this Southern California iconic species, and the CELP scholar program is specifically targeted at Southern California students. So undergraduates and graduate students that are enrolled in Southern California classes, we have this foundational environment, habitat that people grow, that fish and invertebrates grow in, and our CELP scholar is also a habitat where our students can grow. Do
you think that with the CELP program? So from. Coming from someone who has historically been involved with marine mammals. That is a very hard field to get into. It. Typically, historically involved unpaid internships, and usually two or three of them, which is really not sustainable for most people. And I was only able to do that because I was able to live at home, and happened to live near where there were marine mammals, yeah. And so I think it's really heartening to see that we are trying so hard to address these things and these barriers to the field that I work in and I care so much about, because the diversity is lacking, I would say, oftentimes, in really the animal care field in general, but especially working around marine sciences and especially especially marine mammals. So it's been really cool to watch this program be developed and address some of the barriers that have always, historically been a part of every internship, every job that I've ever seen. Do you anticipate that this CELP scholarship program serves outside of just working, you know, here at the Aquarium? What else can this scholarship do for people?
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it would be great, right? If everybody's the world could use 1000 more Leslies phenomenal. I think Leslie has this amazing story of starting as a as a African American scholar and then working at the aquarium. But we also know there aren't that's not everyone's trajectory. So I think the goal isn't necessarily that everybody finds their way to an organization like the Aquarium of the Pacific, but that they find their own path. We hear a lot from some of our students, or from some of our CELP scholars, their interest in being a role model for other people. And so that might look like staying in academia, but that might not be the right fit for everybody. Academia has its own opportunities and challenges, and so just exposure to others that are in the same place, others that are working in the field. Because I really think with all of these career explorations or networking experiences, you can learn something that you like, and you can learn, wow, that was a really great experience. I learned something from it, but that's not a great fit for me. And so that's one of the things that CELP Scholar Program provides for our students. So for those who are interested in science communication, yeah, I really would like to talk to people. I wonder what that's like. They can come and volunteer at Family Science night. They can interact with guests on the floor. They can shadow a school program. And you can learn a lot by just doing two hours at a family science night. And it's amazing to see the scholars that are jazzed and energetic and oh my gosh, I can't wait to do that again. I'm going to try it differently next time I really want to do more of this. And then there are others that are like, that was fun. I don't know if that's for me. I'm not really sure if that's what I want. And just that two hour experience is a really, really valuable opportunity to gain a little bit more knowledge about what you like and what you don't like, and to be introduced to more potential jobs, because we always say you don't know what you don't know. And so if we can introduce a little bit more background, then maybe you have different questions, bigger questions, better questions to keep exploring.
Yeah, to add to that, I will say, like, from my perspective, seeing the other scholars kind of find their path and over the past couple years has been really interesting and also just very reassuring on my end, because I see what some people were doing when we first got into this program together, and how some of their trajectories have shifted by taking on opportunities that they've been able to have, either through the scholarship or just by meeting someone through the scholarship. But even for myself, through the scholarship, I have done things and gone in a direction that I honestly would have never expected to have gone in I did not realize that I would be such a big person on community beforehand, when I was still in college, I was like, I really don't care to work at a community level. I don't really know if I want to work with people as deeply, and that's exactly what I'm doing now, which is kind of crazy, and it's one of my biggest passions. And so just to see from the scholar side of things, how people have taken the opportunities that they've had with the scholarship, or through this scholarship, and seeing where it's taken them, and just seeing the person that they're also developing into has been really beautiful to watch, and also like being alongside as well. And
that's what we hope for our scholars, that there is a continued engagement throughout the years, because we hope that there's connection and relationships and valuing of that time together, and what I love is I try as much as possible to not put myself like I don't need to be involved. I'll turn my camera off, or I'll sort of step back and let the scholars really focus on each other, because I'm old. I'm not like, I don't know like, won't have as much to
oh boy, but
we know that there's, there's the value of those near peers, and there is this, no one says, Hey, make sure you encourage each other. You should really cheer each other on. It just happens naturally. We share on the. Zoom, who wants to share something, who wants to say how they're doing, and everyone's like, Oh my gosh, it's so amazing. I'm so proud of you. Tell me her about that. We want to look at that. We want to show us your art. Show us your film. What did you make? It's just this joy that comes from it. And so if that continues, that can continue to be a source of pride and connection to face those challenges in the future is really important. So that's the C in community, right? Like, that's the C in CELP, that community we're trying to build
that's amazing. It must kind of feel like you're a senior and the freshmen are coming in. Like, does it kind of feel like that a little
bit, in a way, time fiction. Yeah, I'm like, even last night, we had a check in for the alumni and for the new CELP cohort. And for the most part, I didn't want to say too much, because I'm like, you know, this is a catch up. Like, I want the people part of this new cohort to talk about what they're doing and, like, give them basically the platform to talk about what's going on with them. And all like, you know, dabble in when I feel like it's necessary, or just like, you know, if I have anything really to say. So, in a way, yes, but also no, because I very much feel equal to them, like we're all in a space of just trying to figure it out. But I feel like, in short, to explain what this program is, this and the African American scholarship program is, it is just a space to allow a community of people that are in very similar spaces to support each other, like in very simple terms, I feel like that's what this program is meant to be. There's resources, but the biggest resource is each other. And yeah, just seeing new faces come in every year is refreshing, because new perspectives, new ideas, new things that you get to see other people that you get to walk alongside are doing, and it's very inspiring. Like every time I go to the scholarship symposium, I walk out from that day feeling extremely inspired expired.
I do feel expired as well, inspired and expired. My heart is so happy that is, yeah. I love that,
yeah, especially the first symposium I went to with Max Bracey, because I didn't make it to my first the first symposium which I was a part of, was supposed to be a part of, but I was in Florida, so I went to the previous year, 2022 and I got to see basically, a lot of work that I had put in kind of come to fruition right in front of my eyes. And I think that's the first time I fell first time I felt that feeling and that experience, and that was at the symposium. And it's a safe space. You're in a room full of people that get it, that are going through it with you, but they're all on their own journeys as well, so just seeing all of that and everyone in their own spaces and flourish and thrive, and also talk about the struggles that they go through. You feel very seen, but you also just feel very inspired and expired by the end of the day, a lot of inspiration. You get expired. That's
awesome. So what is the sort of like age group that you typically see within the CELP scholarship program?
Yeah. So for CELP scholars, applicants can be community college students, undergrads or graduate students. So we want to prioritize undergrads because we know that that's where we likely will have the most influence on exposing people to different careers. The grad students, our PhD students, are phenomenal, and so we want to include them, because we know that they serve as a near peer for some of our undergrads, and they really identify their interest in developing those mentor experiences. So for the 2024 cohort of CELP scholars, we named 15 students, 10 of them were undergrads, two of those 10 were community college students, and five were graduate students. Two of those five were PhD students. So it's really in that undergrad and graduate student level. And when we look at the applications, we compare undergrads to each other, and compare grads to grad students to each other,
who's eligible? What? What are the requirements for someone who's interested in applying for the scholarship? So
for students to apply to the CELP Scholar Program, we ask that they are enrolled in a community college undergrad master or PhD program in Southern California. We don't have a line in the sand that we call Southern California, but the reason we're focused on that region is because now that we are in 2024 we have the opportunity to come together more frequently. So there's more in person opportunities. Our African American scholars were from throughout California, which was phenomenal, especially in 2021 but having a more local focus allows us to pull students together. We are looking for students that are studying any STEM related field that has to do with the ocean or coastal environments marine conservation. There is not a specific major that you have to be because we know that there are lots of paths that start in different places, but we would love that interest. Marine Science that interest in the aquarium environmental science, oceanography. There's lots of different names that they could be, and we really are looking to students who identify as a member of groups that have been historically underrepresented in STEM and marine science. We really encourage them to apply. That's not a requirement any member of our community, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, veteran status, anyone is welcome to apply, but we're really hoping to increase the representation of those historically underrepresented in STEM when can people apply? Our next round of CELP applications will launch this fall. Leslie mentioned our scholar symposium, so on September 28 folks can watch remotely. It will be streamed live. Our scholar symposium will feature the 15 CELP scholars doing each doing a five minute lightning talk and then doing a Q, a session that will be streamed live and available to watch later on demand. We're hoping to have our application ready, if not the day of the symposium. Soon after that, in mid October, there'll be an online application. There's a portal. Ask you some questions, some information, and we definitely recommend that you watch our live or afterwards session for we're going to link
to it, because this is going to come out after the symposium. Okay, so we're going to link to everything you're talking about is going to be in our show notes. So check it out if you are interested. Okay, linked in our show notes. But yeah, that's I love symposium days. They're really amazing. So I'm excited that we get to stream them, and our audience can view
them, and we will host a session to help answer questions about the CELP application, and so we walk through it. We introduce some FAQs, things that people usually want to know. We share some suggestions for the essays, and that's posted afterwards to encourage people to learn more and make sure that they're doing their research about the program. So cool.
This is fantastic. I think it's such a cool program, and I think it's cool to remind our audience too, like you don't have to want to work at the aquarium to apply for this program, and so all are welcome. That's amazing. What
is for both of you, I guess, what is your ultimate long term dream or long term goal to what outcome Do you want to see out of this program?
You're asking a mid 20 something right now. I thought you
were asking what I want to when I grew up.
What did you want to I want to know that
my ultimate goal for what CELP and previously, the African American scholarship program would be, is to have a worldwide network of people that can lean on each other for resources, connections, network building, professional development, personal development, really whatever they need, and so they always have someone and something to rely on and lean on, and a safe space to have as well. I think that's something that we are continuously navigating, creating safe spaces. That is something that I have recognized coming from a marginalized community, not just in marine science, but just in general. And when you walk through life, you recognize that you're looking for safe spaces. And so specifically in marine science, that's exactly what this scholarship program is meant to be. And we see how connected the CELP and African American scholars already are. Like, Hey, I saw you at VIMS week last year, or, Hey, I saw you at this conference. Or, hey, I have some data. Like, maybe we can collaborate our research. Like you already see so much of that connection between the scholars. Now we're only in our fourth year. So imagine where we're going to be four or five years from now, and we already have scholars that are traveling across the world doing absolutely mind blowing amazing things in marine science, and that connection is just going to continue to grow, because naturally those connections will then connect with other people, which will then connect with other people and continue that pattern
for sure, science can't happen in a vacuum. And I think that's probably the biggest takeaway of my entire job in my career, is that there is no project you can do by yourself. And so finding that community and finding the people that you can ask for help, and also that are approachable and easy to talk to and you have resources available to you, is wildly helpful well,
and then it also builds on itself. So it's not just the community, but imagine, in 10 or 15 years, there are people who are even further along in their profession, and so then they become the role models for new CELP scholars. And so the ultimate way that I see CELP being successful is that we are addressing the challenge that launched the program in the first place, and that's a that's a big challenge to overcome, so it will take a really long time, but we know that the success will be in the individual stories, and so I would love to continue to find ways. To tell these stories, to connect those scholars with each other as they proliferate around the world and are making these strides in conservation and science and aquarium care, and that also it kind of becomes the standard for our industry. People are really excited when we talk about it. I'm going to talk about it at ACA. We have a lot of people that are interested in these kinds of things, but I feel like we're just in the baby steps. How do we fund it? How do we make it part of what we do every day? How do we explain it? How do we get across the organization, even people to know and be proud of it? And so I think that kind of PR opportunity, right? That bigger story being told in more ways is another opportunity. Leslie shared when she first started, she was a couple people were like, Oh, you were a scholar. What does that mean? And so we're like, yeah, kind of scholars action item, make sure people internally know what we're talking about. So things like, things like this podcast, things like the all staff needing opportunities to share the story and to get people to say, Oh, I'm happy to meet a scholar. I'd be happy to help with that. I could host somebody for a job shadow. The more easy those things become, the more the system works for us.
Yeah, you mentioned that we're sort of in, like, the beginning steps of developing the program and, like, really building this connection, but not even just to AOP, I would say, just worldwide in marine science, in sciences in general, like, I think globally, we are in a space of trying to now create space for people of marginalized communities to be able to integrate themselves into previously unwelcoming spaces like marine science and other types of STEM career paths. And so I think the aquarium picked the perfect time to open a program to tackle this issue, and you're starting to see more nonprofits pop up. You're starting to see more programs from other organizations pop up that are meant to tailor and cater to people who come from communities that previously did not have the resources or the people to rely on, to even just allow themselves to make a career out of these types of pathways. And when
you see connection between those nonprofits and scholar alumni. Oh, you're going to Bims week, oh, you're in bleems. Oh, you work in this lab. Or you did, you know? And so there's already these connections, and that strengthens all of the work that we're trying to do collectively.
Yeah, it's funny. You'll see, you'll like, see a non profit that popped up, and they all kind of started in the same time frame of, like, 2016 2017 or probably 2018 19. And so you can tell that genuinely, this is a relatively new thing that I think we are all collectively trying to tackle, which is great, but like the time is now. And so it's an honor on my end to be able to be a part of that first initiation of really trying to make space for everyone to be a part of ocean science and just stem in general. Beautifully
set. Okay, so to clear up the details of the scholarship, before we wrap up, what is the financial award if you do apply and you are chosen as one of the CELP scholars?
Yes, so we know that there are lots of benefits to being named as a CELP scholar. You are included in this growing community. You get individualized, curated networking opportunities with aquarium staff members and others outside of our network. You come to the symposium, have this energizing day. But there is a financial award as well, and that financial award is $10,000 and that is given to the scholar to use at their discretion. Many scholars use it to support their tuition costs. Others have used it for housing. Some of our grad students have used it to provide undergraduate research opportunities to support their work. Some have bought dive gear, field collection gear. It is really up to the individual student to determine how that money can be best used. And what we've heard is that it alleviates just a little bit concern. No one is necessarily applying for it solely, or we hope that they are not solely applying because of the dollars, but we know the reality is that financial support is really important as they make choices about their time and their commitments. That's
amazing. As a nonprofit, I know this program is supported by many of our donors. How can if someone's listening to this, how can they support the program?
Absolutely, we're so grateful to the foundations and the individuals and the families that believe in this program. Our board has been a big supporter of it since it launched in 2020 as the African American Scholar Program. So if anyone is interested in supporting we definitely recommend that you visit pacific.to/celp to learn more about the program. And there is a link there to give directly to this program. And no gift is too small, every bit. Helps us support our scholars. Amazing. We'll
link that in our show notes too.
It's CELP with a "C", C, E, L, P. Thank you both so
much for joining us today. This was so much fun. I love getting to learn more about the program. It's something that I've gotten to know some of the scholars over the past couple years. It's so cool to watch this program grow and develop, and in so many ways, we're
excited about it more to come. Can't
wait to hear everyone's stories as our scholarship continues to develop and we continue to build our community, I think it's going to be really cool. And I think year to year, we may even have more stories, success stories like
frog Leslie, more frogs, more frogs.
It is not a funnel into frog. Everyone to tell you exactly
what this is, Community, Equity, learning and phyllo. Babies,
that's a good frog. That's a nerdy frog. Amazing. Can't
get better than that. Thank
you guys. The aquariums CELP scholar program seeks to broaden participation in marine sciences. Help more students find their own community and see community in STEM and support students persistence in the field. Eligible students are enrolled in a community college undergraduate Master's or PhD program in Southern California through at least December 2025 studying any STEM field related to ocean and coastal environments, marine conservation or informal science education. Majors may include life science, biology, marine science, oceanography, environmental science and others and are able to complete a w9 or w8 to the aquarium for award processing. The aquarium believes everyone is welcome in the work we do and strives to cultivate a workforce that reflects the diverse communities in which it is situated, applicants of any race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age or veteran status. Are welcome to learn more about our CELP Scholar Program. Visit aquarium of pacific.org or reference our show notes on this episode.
Aquarium of the Podcific is brought to you by Aquarium of the Pacific. A 501, c3 non profit organization.
Keep up with the aquarium on social media at aquarium Pacific on Tiktok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
This podcast is produced by Erin Lundy and Madeline Walden. Our music is by Andrew reitzma, and our podcast art is by Brandy Kenny. Special thanks to Cecile Fisher, anitsa valez our audio visual and education departments and our amazing podcast guests for taking time out of their day to talk about the important work that
they do. Podcific is impossible without the support of the Aquarium's donors, Members, guests and supporters. Thanks So much For Listening. You.
The Aquarium of the Podcific is brought to you by Aquarium of the Pacific. A 501, c3, non profit organization.
Keep up with the aquarium on social media at aquarium Pacific on Tiktok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
This podcast is produced by Erin Lundy and Madeline Walden. Our music is by Andrew reitzma, and our podcast art is by Brandy Kenny. Special thanks to Cecile Fisher, Anita valez, our audio visual and education departments and our amazing podcast guests for taking time out of their day to talk about the important work that they do. Podcific is impossible
without the support of the Aquarium's donors, members, guests and supporters. Thanks so much for listening. You.
