EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. — Christopher Cully loves marine science. He graduated from East Stroudsburg University as an undergrad in 2019 and is now a graduate student in biology, studying coral reefs. He says he wouldn't be able to further his research if it weren't for the newly renovated aquaculture lab.
"For tanks, stands, equipment, lights, animals, the grant is crucial, essential. I couldn't do anything that I needed to do for this research without it."
Through a $100,000 grant from the Department of Education, ESU was able to upgrade the workspace.
The aquaculture lab provides students with hands-on opportunities to design, develop, and build aquariums.
On Thursday, officials toured the new lab for students on the ground floor of the Hoeffner Science and Technology Center.
Biology professor James Hunt says this upgrade has been a long time coming.
"We applied for the grant before the pandemic, and then when the pandemic came, there were two problems — one was we couldn't actually teach in person for a couple of years, but the more important issue was the whole purpose of the grant was to teach students how to set up the equipment."
The newly renovated laboratory gives students the space to be more hands-on with their research.
"It offers so much more. What we are able to do here is that every single system runs on a different setup of filtration and so students can learn with hands-on experience what the difference is between a Berlin system and a Monaco system and an R.A.S. system, the difference between growing coral and freshwater fish versus marine fish."
Prof. Hunt says aquaculture as science has really taken off in the last 15 years, and he's happy ESU can offer it to students in a state-of-the-art lab.
Check out WNEP’s YouTube channel.