Weslaco A converted shrimp trawler, the R.V. Karma, recently chugged out of Port Isabel, up the Intracoastal Waterway and back to her home port in Matagorda Bay for a much-deserved rest. The floating classroom had spent two weeks in the Lower Rio Grande Valley doing what she does best, teaching land lubbers about the fascinating underwater universe of the Texas coast. The Marine Advisory Service's Floating Classroom Program targets young Texans, helping them discover the delicate balance between shore and sea. It's a joint program of Texas Cooperative Extension and the Texas Sea Grant College that combines the sciences of biology and ecology with reading, social studies, writing and math. To date, several thousand children and adults, including 500 from the Valley, have climbed aboard the 57-foot refurbished fiberglass shrimp boat to get a close-up view of marine life. Among the local adults making the trip were members of the Rio Grande Valley chapter of Texas Master Naturalists. On one of the many trips it made into the Laguna Madre during its 10-day run here, marine experts talked to some 25 home school and 4-H kids about the unique body of water they were in, an estuary where fresh and salt water mix to create one of the world's most productive areas for marine species. But eventually, shrimp nets dragged up the marine life they were all waiting to see. "Oh, cool, a jellyfish!" yelled one kid. "Look, there's a sting ray," yelled another. "Eeww! What is that thing?" One by one, Adrian Watson, a program assistant aboard the Karma, dropped the safer species into observation tanks that kids could put their hands into and actually touch the swimming creatures. "We toss out anything harmful, then talk about the different species, how they live, how they swim, how they contribute to the food chain. But eventually, we just step back and turn the kids loose on the tanks," Watson said. Tony Reisinger, a Texas Cooperative Extension marine agent, said both kids and adults are fascinated by what they learn aboard the Karma. "It takes a tool like this trawler to really expose people to the amazing underwater world. And with nets, it brings up both the larger species with the shrimp net, and the smaller species with the plankton net. With a view scope, they can see the microscopic plants and animals." But Reisinger thinks there's a bigger view of the world that can be seen from atop the Karma -- information about nature that will help this and future generations make critical decisions about our environment. "Do we close the Intracoastal Waterway because of a lack of where to put the dredged spoils? That would have major impacts. What about dredging the sea grasses of the Laguna Madre? That affects the food chain. What's the impact of shrimping, of fishing? Do we limit sport fishing because of our increased population? There are increasing pressures on marine resources and critical decisions to be made about its future. By teaching from a tool like the Karma, we can help people make better, more informed decisions," he said. After a two-hour trip and as the Karma was making its way back to port, three of those future decision-makers, now about 10 years old, were chasing a crab across the deck of the ship after the creature had fallen from their grasp. "These decisions may well fall to these kids or others on board who vote by contacting their legislators about these very important issues," said Reisinger. Willie Younger, an Extension marine education specialist, said, "If we can get kids interested in science, technology and the environment by what we do during the cruise, we've had a good day. If it results in enhanced school performance or increased environmental stewardship, we've succeeded in our overall mission." For now, the Karma is in home port for a thorough cleaning, maintenance and repairs. "Hopefully, we can get the Karma back here next year," said Reisinger. For more information, call Younger at (979) 863-2940. | 
