Bay of Islands marine education program spared the axe

The award-winning marine education program Trading Books for Boats will return to the Bay of Islands this school year, after months of doubt over its future in the wake of funding cuts.

In the spring, the non-profit group ACAP Humber Arm learned that $8,100 in funding, provided by the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District, had been cut following the provincial budget — a third of the program's overall funding, and vital to keeping the program running.

But on Monday, ACAP Humber Arm announced the province had come through with $15,000, giving Trading Books for Boats the green light for 2016 and allowing the organization to upgrade some of its equipment.

"So not only will the program be offered again this year, but it will probably be bigger and better than it has been in past years," said Sheldon Peddle, the executive director of ACAP Humber Arm.

2016 marks the 15th year for Trading Books for Boats, which takes Grade 8 students out on the water for hands-on teaching in conjunction with the marine science they learn about as part of their classroom curriculum.

"Nothing replaces experiential learning. I think all of us, regardless of age, learn better by doing," said Peddle.

Last minute save

The new funding is coming not from the Department of Education, but from the Department of Business, Tourism, Culture, and Rural Development. Peddle said it came through not a moment too soon, as the group had gone as far as it could with preliminary planning and exploring options to perhaps offer a scaled-back version.

"Another week or two and we would have definitely had to pull the plug on the program," he said.

"We couldn't see this program ending and we were determined to make it happen."

Trading Books for Boats has been recognized with national and provincial awards in the past, and Peddle said its reputation has never been in doubt.

"The uncertainty over whether or not we'd be able to offer the program this year had nothing to do with the real merit of the program itself, it's purely the financial times we find ourselves in now as a province."

Trading Books for Boats begins the first full week of the school year in September, with about 500 students from across western Newfoundland participating.