IODP Education and Outreach: An Enduring Legacy from Two Decades of IODP programming and opportunities in the U.S. and beyond

Since 2004, the U.S. office of the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) has utilized the JOIDES Resolution (JR) and its related facilities and scientists to reach out to educators and the general public in efforts to raise awareness and knowledge about the interdisciplinary fields of the program, including climate and ecosystem evolution, palaeoceanography, the deep biosphere, sustainable georesources, deep crustal and tectonic processes, geodynamics and geohazards. Over these past few decades, IODP has strived to not just push the bounds of scientific knowledge, but also make these findings accessible to the public. Towards these goals, the program has hosted the School of Rock (SOR) professional development program – focusing on the training and education of educators – as well as Onboard Outreach Officers (professional education and outreach personnel embedded into expedition science parties). Together, these two programs have generated a vast library of resources – developed through partnerships with shipboard educators and scientists – available to educators worldwide. Topics addressed range from seafloor spreading and plate tectonics, to microbiology and climate change. The materials are easy to filter (e.g. by grade level) to meet the needs of learners in varied settings.

The JR’s Onboard Outreach (OOO) program has also served as a pivotal bridge between the scientific endeavors of the JOIDES Resolution and the public. This program evolved significantly over the past 15 years, leveraging both advancements in technology and changing needs and attitudes towards public outreach. Through the efforts of Outreach Officers, the importance of deep sea ocean drilling has been disseminated to the general public on a global scale.

School of Rock has also served as a fruitful generative vehicle for new ideas, including a community-driven, travelling informal exhibit program, and mechanisms for developing long-lasting relationships between K12 educators and university faculty.  Beyond its legacy of a significant body of educational resources, SOR has also impacted how professional development is done by serving as a template for teacher/researcher collaboration and exchange of knowledge —  spawning and inspiring new programs such as STEMSEAS and JR Academy (for undergraduate students). In this presentation, we will share highlights of this legacy, plans for the future of scientific ocean drilling education and outreach in a post-JR world, and new efforts to shape the next generation of geoscientists.