Special to the
Opelika Observer
Auburn’s Education Director for the Fisheries Learning Center Stanley C Arington and aquaculture specialist from Alabama Cooperative Extension System and Auburn University’s School of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences David J. Cline, will host OLLI’s Aug. 20 Brown Bag Lunch & Learn at the E. W. Shell Fisheries Learning Center which is located at 2101 N. College St. in Auburn.
The Fisheries Learning Center Programs promote conservation and sustainability through education, research, and outreach. By increasing public awareness and understanding of Aquaculture, Aquatic Sciences and Food Sustainability, the center aspires to represent and serve Alabama’s vast water resources in the hopes to help sustain the most valuable resource on the planet: water.
The program will start with an overview of the E. W. Shell Research Station and the importance of the research that is conducted at the station as well as Auburn University’s role and impact on the science and research of aquaculture around the world. Next there will a tour of the facilities where guests will get up close and personal with some of the scaly, slimy and wet residents.
The tour will present behind-the-scenes research areas generally not open to the public.
Arington works with schools, civic and community groups and organizations to promote aquatic conservation and sustainability through education, research and outreach.
He is an award-winning teacher with 21 years of classroom experience. Now retired from Auburn City Schools, Arington was an Aquatic Science and Marine Biology instructor at Auburn High School and Director of the Aquarium at Auburn High outreach program which was named the Best Environmental Education Program in 2016 by the Alabama Environmental Educators Association.
Cline specializes in aquaculture and aquaponics education, freshwater fish production, small-scale marketing, and recreational and ornamental pond management. His involvement for nearly 30 years in both the commercial and educational sectors of aquaculture give him a broad perspective on the issues and opportunities facing the aquaculture industry. He is passionate about expanding awareness of the importance of the U.S. aquaculture industry and he works to create a favorable environment for industry growth and to promote the development of aquaculture-literate consumers and policy makers.
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Auburn University (OLLI at Auburn) hosts its Brown Bag Lunch & Learn from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The event is open to the public and there is no charge for attending.
OLLI at Auburn is a program of the Office of the Vice President for University Outreach at Auburn University. OLLI administrative offices and select classes are held at the historic Sunny Slope property which is located at 1031 S. College St.
For more information regarding this event or to learn about becoming a volunteer faculty member, volunteer service assistant or sponsor, call Shawnee McKee in OLLI Administrative Support at 334-844-3146 email olli@auburn.edu, or visit www.olliatauburn.org