WAGNER, S.D. — Carrie Tucek fell in love with the ocean during a trip to California two years ago, realizing the coast was not as far away as she had always felt.
Now, Tucek is on a mission to share her passion and help others, especially students, discover the wonders of the sea. Inspired by her transformative trip to California, Tucek, a science teacher in the Wagner School District, has now brought the ocean closer to six of her students. “The ocean is just amazing,” Tucek said.
“We want kids and other teachers to realize. You can start from pretty much anywhere. You don’t have to be near the ocean.
You can go to it.” South Dakota holds a unique distinction with oceans: it is home to the point farthest from any ocean in North America. This remote location, situated near Kyle, South Dakota, is 1,025 miles away from the nearest coastline.
To bridge the gap between the concept of ocean waves crashing against the shore and the reality of this phenomenon, Tucek and her students, along with 14 teachers from South Dakota and North Dakota, embarked on a journey to the New England coast in June. ADVERTISEMENT This trip was made possible thanks to the efforts of Spencer Cody, a secondary science teacher in the Edmunds Central School District in Roscoe, S.D.
The trip was part of the Ocean Dakotas Institute, an educational program created by Cody that is focused on promoting ocean science curriculum development and student interest in ocean science careers. “We want to i.