The students tentatively grip their scalpels. The herring lie waiting on the lab tables.

“Alright, let’s look at some fish,” calls one of the instructors. They set to work, gently scraping scales from the flesh.

“We start on the outside,” says a second instructor, moving from group to group. “Let’s get a good look at the fins, scales, mouth. Then we’ll open it up.”

There are a few giggles and whispers. But by the time they get into the internal organs, the whole room is deep in concentration.

Fish dissection is one of the tasks for these students from Holy Trinity High in Torbay. Before their visit to Memorial University’s Ocean Sciences Centre (OSC) is over, they will also identify and classify invertebrates, learn about water quality and marine habitats, and do a training session with the harp seals.

Danielle Nichols would like to be part of it all. Leading the high school groups used to be part of her job.

Instead, she’s in her third-floor office, planning tomorrow’s visit by a class from Discovery Collegiate in Bonavista.

“I get so much pleasure out of teaching those kids,” she says. “It’s great that our graduate students have taken it over, but I miss it. I’m more the administrator now. But I still like to go down and stick my hand in a tank and tell them something about a particular fish or a sea cucumber.”

It’s largely due to her efforts that the high school program is thriving. It began with 130 students in 2013, and expanded to take in 400 students from twelve schools in 2014.

As the OSC’s research marketing manager, her responsibilities are many. But the school visits have a personal connection for her.

“I came here with a school group when I was a student, and I always remembered that visit. It stuck with me.”

A self-described “people person and problem solver,” Ms. Nichols has a master’s degree in marine studies from Memorial, and began her career working in the fisheries and aquaculture industry.

Since joining the centre, she has overseen a renewed commitment to bring the ocean, in all its spectacular diversity, to the larger community.

The OSC’s Public Education Program draws more than 18,000 visitors every summer. Its travelling touch tank keeps up a steady itinerary of summer camps, daycares and community events. Marine science staff, faculty and students also visit school science fairs and take part in public events like World Oceans Day.

The high school program was designed in collaboration with the Oceans Learning Partnership, a network of scientists and educators from Memorial, the Marine Institute and Parks Canada, and supported by the Hebron Project. Teachers from participating schools were involved as well, incorporating the program into the science curriculum.

To ensure each student a hands-on learning experience, two OSC lab spaces were refitted for school visits. The OSC is currently seeking funding to upgrade the labs.

“Kids today want to work with equipment like digital scopes and high resolution cameras. They want to project images on smart boards and tablets, and they want to be connected. The student in Labrador should be able to go online and talk to the student in St. John’s, and say, ‘Could you zoom in on the sea snail?’ and so on.”

Another priority is to make the Ocean Sciences Centre more accessible, which would allow visitors with disabilities easier access to the harp seals and touch tanks.

As an internationally recognized research centre, the OSC is always buzzing with projects initiated by marine science students, faculty and visiting scholars. Supporting that work is a big part of Ms. Nichols’ job.

Watching a first-time visitor pick apart a fish or hold a hermit crab offers a different reward. For Ms. Nichols, it’s a reminder of the spirit of curiosity and adventure that lies at the heart of ocean science.

“Just to see the delight on their faces when they touch those animals, I thrive on it. In order to teach someone you have to have a passion for it. You have to be elbows deep in it, right there with the kids. You have to be excited about it. This is my passion.”