The event, titled “Dolphin Challenge,” is one of 25 competitions held nationally by the main branch of the National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB).

Dr. Robert Stickney of the Texas Sea Grant College Program said that the purpose of the event is to raise awareness of the value of ocean science research among the younger generation, and encourage them to increase their knowledge of marine sciences.

Stickney added that the competition, while fun, is very challenging.

“Sometimes we can’t answer some of the questions that we get,” Stickney said. “They come in from all over the country from the national branch, so some of them are off the wall!”

The Texas A&M Department of Ocean Sciences has been a regional NOSB sponsor since its inception eight years ago.

Maureen Reap, Facilities coordinator for the College of Geosciences was the coordinator of the event from 2003 to 2005. Reap said that while the organization of the event has been challenging in the past, she realizes the value of the final product.

“When I am there on the day that everything is happening, it’s a blast,” Reap said. “It is a ton of fun, and you can see the students and coaches are getting a lot out of it. They aren’t just learning about science, but they are discovering the different facets of ocean science.”

She said that aside from the patent benefits, the NOSB is also a potent tool to recruit future Aggies.

“The event has been a good recruiting device for attracting young scientists to A&M. we have had a significant number of (NOSB) participants apply to the College of Geosciences and other colleges at A&M, and I tie that back to their experiences at NOSB.”

Whitaker said the outreach efforts for this year’s bowl have been more comprehensive, and therefore the roster of competing high schools will contain some new names.

“The students are very excited to compete and we are excited to have more students. We have some different and new things planned for the event this year as well,” Whitaker said.

Whitaker said that volunteers or this year’s event are currently needed. While the volunteer positions vary, and Whitaker said that all the positions will make positive impacts in the students’ lives.

“There is still a lot of work left to do,” she said. “It’s a great program and I am proud to be a part of it because the students are our future.”

The winners of this year’s NOSB will attend the final NOSB in Montery, California. Other winners will receive gift certificates and A&M memorabilia.

For more information on this year’s NOSB, or to get information on how become a volunteer, contact Bianca Whitaker at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it