Kauai Students Take Home Awards from Marine Option Program Symposium

Kauai Community College students took home two awards at the Marine Option Program (MOP) Symposium on Maui this weekend (4/13-14/2013). Leah Sausen's presentation, "Groundwater contamination of Ke'e Lagoon," won the Best Internship Presentation award and Jin-Wah Lau's poster, "Shoreline variation analysis of Kekaha Beach," won the Best Poster Presentation award. There was a lot of competition, including students from UH Manoa and UH Hilo, so this is a really big accomplishment for our students! There were only six awards total and Kauai took home two!

Leah Sausen's internship was with Dr. Carl Berg from the Kauai chapter of Surfrider Foundation, so he contributed to making this happen. (Willow Jorgenson was her faculty advisor). Here, Leah is in the midst of presenting her internship findings at the Symposium.

Jin-Wah Lau worked with faculty advisor Steve Taylor and Sedimentologist/Geoscientist Dr. Chuck Blay who also made great contributions to her success. At right, Jin-Wah (center) speaks with attendees about her poster covering changes in Kauai's westside shorelines.

Yay, Kauai students!

Posted by:

Willow Jorgenson

More information about Kauai CC's MOP

Dr. Cindy Hunter, MOP Director at Manoa emailed the following:

The University of Hawaii Marine Option Program held its 30th Annual Student Symposium at the sparkling new and spectacular Ike Le'a Auditorium and Science Facility at UH Maui College this past weekend. 

UH Maui College MOP Coordinators, Donna Brown and Frannie Coopersmith, hosted the two day event that involved students from six of the 10 UH system campuses.  The facilities, food, and fun were...fantastic. Mahalo to the Maui faculty, staff and students who helped make this event such a success.  Next year, we hope to see students and colleagues from American Samoa CC and University of Guam, as well!

Truly ALL of the students did a tremendous job in presenting their individual research and internship projects, so much so that the judges had a very tough time in selecting this year's awardees--but please see below and check next month's Seawords (http://www.hawaii.edu/mop/site/) for the full story and photos.

2013 Marine Option Program Student Awardees:

           Best Research Presentation

Kristina Tietjen (UH-Hilo)—Evidence for a new genus of Triphoridae in Hawaii based on scanning electron micrographs of the protoconch.

Best Internship Presentation

Leah K. Sausen (Kauai CC)—Groundwater contamination of Ke’e Lagoon

Best Poster Presentation

Jin-Wah Lau (Kauai CC)—Shoreline variation analysis of Kekaha Beach

John P. Craven Award (most inspired and inspirational presentation by a MOP “Child of the Sea”)

Steven Matadobra (UH Manoa)—Sea turtle responder for the Marine Option Program

PACON International, Hawaii Chapter (best paper integrating marine science and technology, with a Pacific focus)

James Berles (Windward CC)—GIS mapping of Waikalua Loko fishpond mangrove removal and pond circulation.

Anna Toy Ng Memorial MOP Scholarship (for excellence in marine scholarship, ocean stewardship and contribution to MOP; $250 award)

            Laura Knight (UH-Hilo)

Posted on behalf of:

Dr. Cindy Hunter by Willow Jorgenson