{"id":142605,"date":"2026-02-03T23:25:29","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T23:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/142605\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T23:25:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T23:25:29","slug":"st-petersburg-science-festival-marinequest-return-to-spark-curiosity-and-spotlight-careers-shaping-tampa-bays-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/142605\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Petersburg Science Festival, MarineQuest return to spark curiosity and spotlight careers shaping Tampa Bay\u2019s future"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Sarah Sell<\/a>, University Communications and Marketing<\/p>\n

Exciting hands-on experiments, interactive exhibits and direct connections to emerging
\n careers will take center stage at this year\u2019s St. Petersburg Science Festival<\/a> and MarineQuest<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The side-by-side events on Feb. 7 are expected to attract more than 10,000 people
\n along the waterfront at USF St. Petersburg and outside the Florida Fish and Wildlife
\n Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Through more than 150 immersive exhibits and live demonstrations, attendees will explore
\n careers in marine science, biology, chemistry and related fields. Highlights include
\n drones used for wildlife tracking, a touch-a-truck display featuring law enforcement
\n vehicles, a mobile seagrass aquarium and tours of USF marine research vessels.<\/p>\n

“The St. Petersburg Science Festival and MarineQuest have been event staples of our
\n campus and community that showcase the incredible science and environmental work taking
\n place all across our region,” said Thomas Smith, interim regional chancellor at USF
\n St. Petersburg. “For many kids, this yearly event introduces them to new ideas and
\n innovations that could inspire them to pursue careers in these fields.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

While the festival is known for its fun and engaging exhibits, it also emphasizes
\n workforce development by showing students how science, technology, engineering, art
\n and math (STEAM) skills translate into high-paying, future-focused careers in the
\n region. It features the Junior Scientists program, where middle and high school students
\n work alongside science professionals throughout the event. Rising interest in STEAM
\n subjects and expanding hands-on learning opportunities for students were key motivations
\n for creating the festival.<\/p>\n

The festival is rooted in the St. Petersburg Innovation District<\/a>, home to a diverse mix of science, technology, healthcare, education and research
\n organizations and businesses. The district supports a growing local economy driven
\n by emerging careers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis event is really about showcasing the jobs that are here,\u201d said Lauren Bell,
\n chief operating officer for the city\u2019s innovation district. \u201cSome of these careers
\n are very niche or emerging, and you don\u2019t know about them unless you\u2019re exposed to
\n them. This is a way for people to see what\u2019s possible in their own community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Experts from USF\u2019s College of Marine Science and College of Arts and Sciences, The
\n Florida Aquarium, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Geological
\n Survey (USGS), General Dynamics and many other organizations are participating.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Interactive and immersive exhibits for the 2026 festival include:<\/p>\n

Drone demonstrations that track wildlife<\/p>\n

Accident investigations using math and technology for real cases<\/p>\n

A touch-a-truck exhibit allowing guests to explore city and state law enforcement
\n vehicles, including the St. Petersburg Police Department\u2019s robotic dog, Spot<\/p>\n

Tours of ocean research vessels from the Florida Institute of Oceanography at USF<\/p>\n

An instrument petting zoo featuring guitars, ukuleles, percussion and a roll-out piano<\/p>\n

On Feb. 6, more than 800 4th and 5th graders will preview the St. Petersburg Science
\n Festival and FWC\u2019s MarineQuest through organized field trips, exploring ways to engage
\n with STEAM fields and discovering a variety of career paths. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do this for two reasons. One is kids and families get familiar with science and
\n tech in our everyday lives. They get a chance to get immersed in it, and hopefully
\n be inspired,\u201d said Alison Barlow, executive director of the St. Petersburg Innovation
\n District. \u201cSecond, they may have a real interest in fields that are highlighted at
\n this event, and think this could be a career for them and they begin really picturing
\n that future for themselves and how to get there.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year’s sponsors include:<\/p>\n

City of St. Petersburg<\/p>\n

Clear Channel Outdoor<\/p>\n

Carollo<\/p>\n

Challenge Island<\/p>\n

Duke Energy<\/p>\n

Eckerd College<\/p>\n

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission<\/p>\n

General Dynamics<\/p>\n

\u00a0Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital<\/p>\n

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration<\/p>\n

Ocean Conservancy<\/p>\n

Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital- St. Petersburg<\/p>\n

Pinellas County Schools<\/p>\n

St. Petersburg College<\/p>\n

St. Petersburg Innovation District<\/p>\n

Science Festival Alliance<\/p>\n

Sea Us Rise<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay Estuary Program<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay Times<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay Water<\/p>\n

U.S. Geological Survey<\/p>\n

USF College of Marine Science<\/p>\n

USF St. Petersburg<\/p>\n

Wing Drone Delivery<\/p>\n

Women in Defense- Greater Tampa Bay Chapter<\/p>\n

WMNF<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Sarah Sell, University Communications and Marketing Exciting hands-on experiments, interactive exhibits and direct connections to emerging careers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142606,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[202,204,203,199,201,200],"class_list":{"0":"post-142605","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-st-petersburg","8":"tag-st-pete","9":"tag-st-pete-headlines","10":"tag-st-pete-news","11":"tag-st-petersburg","12":"tag-st-petersburg-headlines","13":"tag-st-petersburg-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142605\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}