Testimonials
Margaret Barlow
Algae Department Manager
Salary: $22,000-$28,000
Hi, my name is Margaret Barlow. I am the algae department manager at the largest shrimp hatchery in the world. Granjas Marinas San Bernardo, S.A., commonly referred to as GMSB is located in Summerland Key, Florida. Our hatchery supplies postlarvae to five farms located near Choluteca, Honduras on the Pacific Coast. I have worked at GMSB for 3 years. I started out in the packout department and then after a month I transferred to the algae department. Just recently I was promoted to department manager.
I knew from age 8 that I wanted to be a marine biologist when my family moved from Kentucky, my senior year of high school, Key West seemed the perfect place to accomplish this goal. I was greatly appreciative of the opportunities that FKCC and Mr. Bill Trantham afforded me in my Quest. The Marine Biology Technology Program at FKCC introduced me to the exciting aspects of marine biology I had only read about in books. The tools and techniques that I learned while attending FKCC, I use on-the-job everyday. In fact, the instructor of the Introduction to Mariculture course, Lorenzo M. Juarez, is now my boss at GMSB. Moreover, last Spring, I assisted Lorenzo in teaching this course.
In Algae, our goal is to maintain and upscale algae cultures. Using the batch-culture method, we upscale from test tubes to 20,000 liter tanks. We monitor these densities using a hemacytometer and microscope. I love my job and look forward to work everyday.
Mary E. Dunn
Assistant Curator Key West Aquarium
Salary: $26,000 - $30,000
I moved to Key West 4 years ago from Hudson Wisconsin, and have been enrolled in the Marine Biology Technology program at FKCC for 3 years. Not long after I began taking classes, I was hired by the Key West Aquarium as a tour guide. As a tour guide I was responsible for giving daily tours of the aquarium and educating the public about our local marine life. Through my training at the college and the hands on experience I obtained through my job as a tour guide, I quickly advanced to a staff aquarist position. As an aquarist at the Key West Aquarium,I was given the opportunity to learn many different skills ranging from fish husbandry to rescuing stranded and injured sea turtles. I also became proficient in the care of living reef tanks and open systems ranging in size from 1,000 to 30,000 gallons. After only one year at the Aquarium, I was promoted to Senior Aquarist. I served as the Senior Aquarist for about 2 years. Not only did I learn a great deal in this position at the aquarium, but I also expanded my knowledge through the Marine Biology Technology Program. The program taught me skills like water analysis, through the use of high tech scientific data collection equipment. Some of which are the Hydrolab H20 Submersible Probe and computer, the HACH DR 2000 Spectrophotometer, as well as Chloroform testing, and Benthic analysis just to mention a few. These skills as well as the experience I gained on the job have made me a well rounded and diversified Aquarist. I was recently recognized for my technical prowess and academic achievements when I was promoted to Assistant Curator. As the assistant curator, I am directly responsible for the overall care of the animals we have in our facility. It is an incredibly demanding position that also requires me to be a leader as well as an aquarist. I believe that my rapid advancement and promotions are due in part to my affiliation with the marine biology program.
Kara Sagar
Kara Sager, FKCC Marine Environmental Technology student, has been an employee of the Key West Aquarium since June of 1999. Her daily duties include water quality testing, tank maintenance and guiding tours throughout the aquarium.
Kara is pictured here with a juvenile loggerhead sea turtle that has been a resident of the aquarium since July, 1999. This sea turtle had several severe injuries at birth and will more than likely remain in captivity. The second larger sea turtle is a Hawksbill sea turtle which has been under the care of the aquarium since the mid 1980's.