About Foghorn
Foghorn Education Center offers camps, field trips and school visits featuring hands-on and place-based learning in marine biology and oceanography. Our beach education curriculum uses a multidisciplinary, STEAM approach to foster a lasting connection to the ecology, history and culture of the Pacific Northwest. Whether it’s an expedition at a local beach, or creating artful representations of sea life, students immerse themselves in a memorable way in the natural world of our region’s beautiful shore and sound.
The Foghorn Curriculum
The Foghorn STEAM Curriculum is a growing body of work which aims to centralize the Pacific Northwest’s history, ecology, restoration, and future. Led by Henry Wetzel with partnerships from fisherman, educators, marine biologists, and research assistants, the curriculum is presented through speaking engagments, summer camps, and field trip expeditions at the beach. The curriculum orbits a central mission to engage our community with the nature world in a way that inspires personal and professional connections.
A firm believer that it is just as important to connect with the natural world as it is to connect with other people, Founder Henry Wetzel created Foghorn with the intention of sharing and demonstrating the wonder of nature.
“Nature is a place of reflection, understanding and companionship. It has the power to amplify a person’s sense of home and belonging. But just as nature can help us shape ourselves, it needs our help to shape its future.”
Restoration efforts, scientific research, and habitat maintenance are all centered in a love and respect for the natural world. Foghorn aims to foster that reverence through a free-spirited curriculum that immerses students in the science, history, art and knowledge of the land and water of our Pacific Northwest region.
“We help our students develop the tools to become prideful artists, historians, scientists, and admirers of this beautiful land and sound we all call home.”
Initially offering camps, Foghorn’s offerings soon expanded to school visits and field trips.
“I envisioned a place where students could learn through an enjoyable, immersive experience. Marine biology is a subject taught in school, but oftentimes it falls flat for students because they learn through tests and worksheets in a classroom. I wanted a place where students could have a worksheet in their hands, standing on the beach, finding exactly what they were learning about at their feet.”