The Department of Marine Resources in Boothbay Harbor held a Career Day seminar Nov. 8 for students from 10 schools — Washington and Monmouth academies and Boothbay Region, Cony, Wells, Hall-Dale, Morse, Waterville, Greely and Yarmouth high schools.

BRHS students Kylie Michael and JoAnna Shaw joined with 10 students from Wells High in sessions on aquaculture, water quality, geographic information system (GIS) mapping, whales, biotoxins, lobster and horseshoe crabs.

During a brief snack break, Michael and Shaw were enjoying the 20-foot-long touch tank and admiring the many invertebrates the aquarium keeps.

“What is this,” Michael asked, pointing at the retracting stomach of a starfish Shaw was holding up. The sea creature lost its lunch: A blue mussel plopped back into the tank.

“Have you girls ever been here before,” asked Elaine Jones, Maine State Aquarium educational director.

“Yes,” both said.

“I've been here several times since I was little,” said Shaw. “Every summer.”

Jones asked what the girls had learned about so far and both said,“poop samples.” Laughing, they explained they had just come from the conference on water quality and GIS mapping.

Michael said she is not quite sure what career she is considering. Shaw has always lived by the water and enjoys sailing which plays into her interest in marine sciences.

“I have a really hard time deciding between biology and marine science,” said Shaw. “I'm taking AP bio right now and that's made me realize that I like learning about it, but it's not an interest like marine sciences, so hopefully this will tell me if I really am interested in that.”

Michael and Shaw moved along from their break to labs led by Ari Leach, who taught a short class on biotoxins before bringing the group of Wells High and BRHS students outside to learn how to monitor phytoplankton.

Leach's story was one of inspiration for all the students. She studied sociology for a year at a community college, but dropped out to work in construction and wood working for a few years. She said she loved it, but that it is a difficult career to have as a woman. Then she found interest in veterinary work and later made a move toward law enforcement, but failed the bench press.

Leach became a veterinary technician for a year and decided she did not like it, so she went back to community college in New Hampshire. She saw an advertisement for Unity College, transferred there and finished her master's degree in sustainable natural resource management after a two-year hiatus to teach special education.

“I applied for a contract position here, an eight-month position with no promise of hire. Two weeks into the job, my supervisor approached me and asked if I wanted to (stay on full-time) … The rest is history. It's the best job I've ever had. I get to be outside crawling all over the state seeing cool stuff.”

The students collected samples of sea water to strain through a screen to collect phytoplankton. They were able to keep their samples to take back to school with them to view under a microscope.