Niceville High students need your help to present marine research at conference in Japan
By Collin Bestor
A group of Niceville High School students need your help getting to Japan.
Of the 100 students in Niceville High School's gifted program, eight are part of a marine biodiversity study initiative called Natural Geography In-Shore Areas (Nagisa). Led by their longtime teacher, Richard Hernandez, these students will represent Okaloosa County and be the only high school in the United States to present at the 2nd World Congress of Marine Stations conference in Shizuoka, Japan, this November.
The Niceville High NaGISA program offers graduate-level research opportunities to young students and conducts a wide variety of operations to monitor marine biodiversity, including beach and dive operations, that add information to a global database that researchers use worldwide.
"These students represent not only Niceville High School but the Okaloosa County School District with a lot of pride," said Okaloosa County School District Public Information Officer Catherine Card. "It's really exciting for them to be a part of this program, and we look forward to what they are going to accomplish, what they have accomplished and representing us on a global scale."
The trip to Japan follows a trip to England in 2023, where students conducted diving and beach collection operations. According to Craig Falzone, a senior who heads the dive team, this selection of Niceville High for the upcoming conference was a "big shock" to him.
"Just to see that our group of eight or nine (students) are going to present as the only high school in the world to be doing this. It's really like a small town feel in a big world," said Falzone.
As Hannah Castor, another senior in the program, noted, the announcement of Niceville High NaGISA being chosen to take part in the conference adds to the list of other programs at Niceville High receiving notice as being one of the best in the nation. For example, she referenced Niceville High's marching band taking part in the Rose Bowl parade earlier this year.
When asked how the community can help get the Niceville High NaGISA program to Japan, Hernandez told the Daily News that most of his students had to dip into their college funds to cover the cost of their biggest expense: airplane tickets.
However, some costs remain, such as the conference registration fee, posters that will be used in their presentation, and hotel and food expenses. Hernandez said that the remaining costs are about $4,500 per student.
To help fund the Niceville High School NaGISA Project, visit insatraise.com/nicevillehs/nagisa or email Hernandez at hernandezr@okaloosaschools.com.
Collin graduated from The University of West Florida with a B.A. in Communications in 2019. Before his tenure at the Northwest Florida Daily News, he was a radio host for the local CBS Sports Radio affiliate in Fort Walton Beach. Collin then moved on to cover motorsports events, from the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500 and the Snowball Derby.