For a group of local high school students, summer break has become an opportunity to step into the shoes of scientists, engineers, firefighters, police officers and other professionals.
The New River Institutes, a competitive summer program hosted by the City of Jacksonville, gives area high school students the chance to learn directly from scientists, artists, engineers, fire and police first responders through hands-on experiences and real-world learning.
Week 2 of the program has been packed with exploration and discovery.
Science students kicked off the week with a visit to the Jacksonville Land Application Site, where they stepped into a lily pond to test water quality and identify aquatic organisms. They later put their environmental knowledge to work by building reef balls for Oyster Highway, helping support local oyster habitats and strengthen coastal ecosystems.
The learning continued Tuesday with a trip to the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores. There, students explored different ecosystems and learned more about aquatic environments while connecting classroom concepts to the natural world.
Public safety students spent the week getting an up-close look at the careers that help keep communities safe.
Participants toured the Jacksonville Police and Fire Departments, learned about traffic stops and arrest techniques, and watched demonstrations from first responders. They also suited up in full firefighting gear to practice Denver and confined-space rescue drills before testing their decision-making skills in a shoot/no-shoot simulator.
City leaders say the program is designed to give students a deeper understanding of potential career paths while building skills through hands-on learning experiences.
Based on Week 2, students are getting plenty of opportunities to learn by doing.