By Catherine Spearnak

In less than a year, City Heights-area students who have never seen the beach will be working in a 12,000-foot lab that will provide programs in marine science and environmental education.

The lab is a partnership between the San Diego Unified School District and the Ocean Discovery Institute, a Pacific Beach-based nonprofit that offers elementary and middle school students a chance to have access to more science education.

“The Institute’s research has shown increased student performance in science, increased college attendance, and increased pursuit of science and conservation degrees,” said Cynthia Reed-Porter, school district communications supervisor.

The founder of the Institute, Shara Fisler, was nominated in April for a CNN Heroes award for creating the institute and her work with underprivileged students in the City Heights area.

The Ocean Discovery Institute provides classroom and field-based science education aligned to San Diego Unified’s current state science standards for upper elementary and middle school students, as well as professional development and resources for classroom teachers.

“In addition, the institute provides district students and families with out-of-school programs that foster rigorous science learning and prepare young people for post-secondary education and careers in STEM fields,” Reed-Porter said.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and math.

The lab is currently under construction on Manzanita Canyon in City Heights, off Fairmount Avenue, near the Florence Joyner Elementary School and Monroe Clark Middle School. Students are so close, they can walk to The Living Lab, as it has been named.

The lab was designed by renowned San Diego architect Rob Wellington Quigley, who created the now iconic San Diego Central Library in East Village.

Reed-Porter said the lab is 15 percent completed and scheduled to open in March 2017. The district has contributed $11.8 million to The Living Lab, and the Ocean Discovery Institute has raised $15 million for construction.

The institute is currently giving tours of the construction site, and a construction party is planned 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 4 at Florence Joyner Elementary.

“We hope to get 750 community members for the construction party, and we think we will,” said MacKenzie Sandy, the institute’s director of philanthropy. “We want people in the community to start getting a taste of The Living Lab.”

The Living Lab will be used to provide unique marine science educational opportunities to more than 10,000 students per year. The learning spaces include an amphitheater for larger classes and student presentations, stormwater demonstration projects where students will conduct water quality testing, atmospheric instrumentation that will allow students to gather data, plots to develop outdoor experiments, outdoor lab space for teacher professional development, and access to the adjacent canyon that will provide research opportunities for students.

The Living Lab is the brainchild of Fisler.

”As executive director, Fisler envisions what Ocean Discovery Institute can achieve and how we can make the greatest difference possible,” Sandy said. “Her leadership ensures that the organization has the resources and guidance needed to carry out the mission of transforming young lives through science.”

Fisler has been recognized with numerous commendations, including the CNN Hero Award, the California Society for Ecological Restoration President’s Award, KPBS Union Bank Women’s History Month Local Hero Award, and Sunset Magazine Coastal Hero Award.

Fisler holds a bachelor of science degree in environmental science from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a master degree in marine resource management from the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, and previously served as adjunct faculty at the University of San Diego.

“Because of my role, I am often in the position that belongs to our students, families teachers, staff, board, volunteers, scientists and supporters,” she said. “This is always an honor. Of course each of them have made significant contributions and been part of what leads to these recognitions.”

Fisler was honored by CNN with a nomination on-air on the cable news network on April 7 and a profile on her work. She is one of only 25 honorees in the country. If she is chosen as the winner at the upcoming CNN Awards, she could win $50,000 for the institute. The awards will be hosted by CNN anchor Anderson Cooper.

“During the filming of the CNN profile, it was clear from every perspective that while City Heights is a community where poverty is high and inequities exist, it is foremost a community bursting with talent, and ready for opportunity,” she said. “I am proud that people across the country will know this about City Heights and make think differently than they did before about similar communities.”

—Catherine Spearnak is a San Diego-based freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].