Marine Science

He ranks as one of the finest teachers ever to ply his trade in Orange County — or the universe, for that matter! Scholarly, dynamic and witty — as well as a showman and adrenaline junkie — he’s given far more large lecture hall presentations than, say, the legendary Kingsfield (John Houseman in the 1973 film, “The Paper Chase”) or just about any other college professor you could name. A lecture hall warhorse, he’s Tom Garrison, OCC’s marine science professor who’s putting the finishing touches on his 40th year at the college.

Christine Carrillo Many people dream of one day owning an island of their very own. An island where they can seek refuge from the hectic world they find themselves in every day. Rarely, does anyone ever find themselves the recipients of such a gift. But last month, the college did. Orange Coast College received Rabbit Island, a 36-acre British Columbia island worth about $750,000, school officials announced Tuesday. The donation, which came from Southern California yachtsman Henry Wheeler, was the second of two major gifts the college received in January.

Lindsay Sandham There's no need for Orange Coast College students to go all the way to the beach to get an education about ocean life. The student-operated aquarium at OCC, located in the Lewis Center for Applied Science, features numerous aquariums, including a living coral reef tank. "Each exhibit displays different parts of the Orange County oceans," said OCC marine science professor and aquarium director Dennis Kelly. A marine science class offered by the college teaches students the ins and outs of starting and operating an aquarium by allowing them to operate and maintain the school's aquarium exhibits.

Marine science professor Dennis L. Kelly was named Orange Coast College Faculty Member of the Year. Kelly has taught at the college for 30 years and chairs the school's marine science department. Kelly is the director of the school's 1,600-gallon aquarium and teaches courses on oceanography, marine biology, marine mammals and other subjects. He was nominated for the award by two other professors in his department, and was one of seven candidates considered for the award.

Alicia Robinson It was a cold and spiny day for visitors to the Orange Coast College marine science department Saturday. Well, it was cold and spiny for anyone who stuck a hand in the marine science lab's touch tank and had a brush with a sea urchin. The department offered an open house, as it does once every semester, and invited the public to look at its cold- and warm-water aquariums, check out displays of scuba gear and marine life, and touch sea stars and urchins.

Their home was once the Pacific Ocean off Dana Point, about 400 to 500 feet below the surface. These days, it’s inside a plastic container at Orange Coast College, where the marine science department plans to embalm them before taking them into the classroom for dissection. Last week, a pair of Humboldt squid — one weighing 45 pounds, the other 18 pounds — were caught by the crew of the Clemente, owned by Dana Wharf Sport fishing. The crew then handed the squid over to Morgan Richie, an adjunct professor in marine science who helps narrate whale-watching tours for the crew.

Starting its 60th year in existence, OCC opened its doors to 2008 fall semester students Monday by mixing the old with the new. One of the biggest premiers for the school going into the 2008-09 school year is the re-opening of the Lewis Center for Applied Sciences. Construction on the center, which was fully gutted, began more than a year ago. During construction, classes were held in portable classrooms. But the center has reopened this fall, housing marine science, physics and geology.

With the snip of an oversized pair of scissors Friday, the son and daughter of Charles Lewis cut the ribbon on a radically overhauled Lewis Center for Applied Sciences at Orange Coast College. It was right in the spirit of their late father, a science professor who was there at OCC’s founding, son Glen Lewis said. “My father would be amazed at the level of technology here,” he said. “I know he would have been thrilled.” The new $9-million center, built in the style of the new library next door, began about three years ago when school officials started planning a major remodel.

More than a dozen Costa Mesa High School students Tuesday operated high-power microscopes, checked the levels of acidity in samples of ocean water, then got their first gander at sea urchin eggs. It all took place inside an 80-year-old historic cottage that now serves as one of the premier state marine research facilities in Orange County. The students were the latest in a wave of high school marine classrooms to hit Crystal Cove State Park’s Marine Research Facility to learn about global warming’s detrimental effects on ocean life and water.

Their home was once the Pacific Ocean off Dana Point, about 400 to 500 feet below the surface. These days, it’s inside a plastic container at Orange Coast College, where the marine science department plans to embalm them before taking them into the classroom for dissection. Last week, a pair of Humboldt squid — one weighing 45 pounds, the other 18 pounds — were caught by the crew of the Clemente, owned by Dana Wharf Sport fishing. The crew then handed the squid over to Morgan Richie, an adjunct professor in marine science who helps narrate whale-watching tours for the crew.

He ranks as one of the finest teachers ever to ply his trade in Orange County — or the universe, for that matter! Scholarly, dynamic and witty — as well as a showman and adrenaline junkie — he’s given far more large lecture hall presentations than, say, the legendary Kingsfield (John Houseman in the 1973 film, “The Paper Chase”) or just about any other college professor you could name. A lecture hall warhorse, he’s Tom Garrison, OCC’s marine science professor who’s putting the finishing touches on his 40th year at the college.

With the snip of an oversized pair of scissors Friday, the son and daughter of Charles Lewis cut the ribbon on a radically overhauled Lewis Center for Applied Sciences at Orange Coast College. It was right in the spirit of their late father, a science professor who was there at OCC’s founding, son Glen Lewis said. “My father would be amazed at the level of technology here,” he said. “I know he would have been thrilled.” The new $9-million center, built in the style of the new library next door, began about three years ago when school officials started planning a major remodel.

Starting its 60th year in existence, OCC opened its doors to 2008 fall semester students Monday by mixing the old with the new. One of the biggest premiers for the school going into the 2008-09 school year is the re-opening of the Lewis Center for Applied Sciences. Construction on the center, which was fully gutted, began more than a year ago. During construction, classes were held in portable classrooms. But the center has reopened this fall, housing marine science, physics and geology.

If you head down to the tide pools at Corona del Mar's Little Corona, don't worry if you're confused about what marine creatures you're looking at. On most days, high or low tide, the tide pools are staffed with friendly and helpful tide pool rangers who work to educate visitors and protect the marine environment. "The tide pools are a very delicate environment and delicate ecosystem," said Marine Life Refuge Supervisor Amy Stine. Newport's tide pool ranger program is unusual.

Michael Miller When Shana Jenkins graduated from Pacifica High School in Westminster two years ago, she imagined herself attending an expensive college back East. Financial limitations got in the way of that dream. "I had no idea I would attend a community college, so I went into Coast blindly and without direction," Jenkins said Thursday at Orange Coast College's 57th commencement. Whatever direction Jenkins may have lacked coming in, she made up for it during the next two years.