O’Neill Sea Odyssey (OSO) engages 4th - 6th grade youth with a hands-on science education field trip on a 65-foot catamaran on Monterey Bay and in a shore-side education center, in addition to ocean science curriculum provided for use in the classroom. It is free, and each class completes a community service project. Our mission is to provide a hands-on educational experience to encourage the protection and preservation of our living sea and communities. The program achieves educational standards using ocean concepts, while teaching youth about watersheds that flow to the sea and their responsibility to protect them. In 2004 OSO received the California Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award in Children’s Environmental Education and in 2005 Senator Barbara Boxer’s Environmental Champion award. In 2009 the Adam Webster Memorial Fund received the Community Spinners award for its work with special needs youth. In 2013 the Silicon Valley Business Journal bestowed its Community Impact Award.
