Jay Funaro, a Marine Education & Conservation Intern at REEF this summer, was drawn to REEF by the chance to work for a nonprofit while gaining experience in the varied marine ecosystems of the Florida Keys, where coral reefs meet seagrass beds, mangroves, and even the flowing grasses of the Everglades. Jay graduated from California State University, Monterey Bay, with a B.S. in marine science, became certified as an American Academy of Underwater Sciences (AAUS) scientific diver, and took part in multiple monitoring projects while cultivating a passion for public engagement.
Bring REEF's mission into your classroom with Virtual Discovery Programs! Designed for students of all ages, these one- to two-hour Zoom programs combine an engaging live lesson with hands-on activities and show students that anyone, anywhere, can be a citizen scientist.
Featured programs include:
REEF's Field Survey Trip to Bonaire in July had two special guests: Educator in the Field Fellows Erin Schmidt and Mikayla Neff. REEF Educator in the Field Fellows are dedicated educators who applied to receive a fully funded participant spot on the trip. They spent their week diving, learning fish identification, building relationships with other REEF members, and gathering ideas on how to bring REEF's citizen science programs back to their classrooms.
There are some new faces at the Ocean Exploration Center this season. REEF is delighted to welcome four new Marine Education & Conservation Interns for the fall, along with a new Marine Conservation Fellow who is no stranger to Key Largo.
Our interns spend the season working alongside REEF staff on education programs, citizen science, and community outreach, gaining hands-on experience across every part of the organization. Please join us in giving them all a warm welcome.
Ava Tidball
One of my favorite things about REEF's Campus changes with the seasons, but it has nothing to do with the weather. It's the arrival of new interns.
Every January, May, and August, we welcome a new cohort of young people — usually four — to live and work with us for a semester. They come from all over, most in their final year of college or recently graduated, and arrive through a genuinely competitive application and interview process.
Meet our September Fish of the Month, the Painted Comber, Serranus scriba, a small but spectacularly decorated member of the sea bass family. Its name says it all: the intricate scribble of blue and red lines across its head looks as though an artist signed their work, and once you have seen one up close, it is hard to forget.
Congratulations to REEF surveyor Steve Vinitsky, who recently joined the Golden Hamlet Club! This distinguished group is made up of highly dedicated volunteers who have conducted 1,000 or more REEF surveys in contribution to the Volunteer Fish Survey Project.
This school year, REEF is excited to partner with Key Largo School on a new series of eight Discovery Programs, made possible through the Art Builds Community 2027 grant. Over the coming months, more than 400 local students will be invited to explore the natural ecosystems of the Florida Keys through hands-on art and environmental storytelling.
REEF Fest 2026 is almost here, and this year mornings are all about getting out on the water. From October 15 to 17, our REEF Fest Experience Partners are offering diving, snorkeling, and marine science adventures up and down the Upper Keys, so you can build the kind of REEF Fest that suits you best. Spend your mornings underwater, then join us at the Ocean Exploration Center in the afternoons and evenings for seminars and social events.
The Great Annual Fish Count for 2026 has come to an end! Thank you to everyone who participated, and to all of our amazing partners who hosted events in their own communities.
This year, we had a total of 1,042 surveys submitted by 222 people throughout the month of July. We also had 18 events organized by volunteers and partner organizations all over the world, from Bonaire to the Maldives, and many places in between! These events actively engaged hundreds of community members in marine conservation.