Pitch: 

For my pitch I decided to do Professor of marine affairs Susan Faraday. I decided to choose her because I know her passion and dedication about the conservation of the marine environment and wildlife have inspired me and so many other students. When she teaches her class you can tell that she truly cares about the subject and her students. For the profile I think my angle will be what got her interested in marine affairs in the first place and how she has translated that into her work. I think this approach will allow me to gather some useful information on her perspectives on the complexities of marine conservation, governance and sustainability. I want Professor Faraday to feel comfortable and to let her know I’m interested in this conversation beyond the class of journalism and I think the questions I have will help to do just that. She’s one of my favorite teachers and I would honestly love to know more about her story and be able to share it with others. 

Interview Questions:

Who were your heroes growing up? 

What motivated you to specialize in marine affairs, and what aspects of the field are you most passionate about?

Why did you decide to do a semester at sea? 

Can you provide insights into the current state of marine ecosystems worldwide and the key challenges they face?

What is your favorite class that you are teaching/taught and why?  

How does climate change impact marine environments, and what are some strategies for mitigating its effects on ocean ecosystems?

If you could form a policy to help protect the ocean what would that policy entail? 

Can you discuss the role of marine protected areas in conservation efforts, and how effective are they in preserving biodiversity and ecosystem health?

In your opinion what are the main drivers of overfishing and habitat destruction in marine environments, and how can these issues be addressed?

How do marine affairs intersect with social justice issues, indigenous rights, and community-based conservation efforts?

If you could tell everyone in the world one thing about Marine conservation, what would you want them to know? 

What work have you done that was the most meaningful to you personally and why? 

What was the most successful project you have been apart of? 

What do you feel is the impactful thing that you have accomplished in the face of marine conservation?

What are you currently working on? What do you hope that will accomplish? 

Early Draft 200 Words:

Title: Susan Faraday’s Maritime Education: Insights from a Semester at Sea. 

Professor of marine affairs Susan Faraday is a beloved faculty member of the UNE community. Faraday’s passion and dedication about conservation of the marine environment and wildlife have inspired so many. When she teaches her class you can tell that she truly cares about the subject and her students. 

Throughout her years of teaching Faraday has frequently advocated the opportunities that a semester at sea would bring to her students. When asked to talk more about the experience she said that “My semester at sea quite literally changed my life, in so many ways.” 

During a semester at sea, students have the opportunity to study and live onboard a ship while traveling to various destinations around the world, often across multiple continents and oceans. 

This unique academic program offers a blend of traditional classroom learning and experiential education, allowing students to engage with course material while also gaining firsthand experience. Faraday explained that  “The basic intent is that you spend time in the classroom ashore learning about the ocean, learning about sailing, and learning about the specific topic of your choice whether that be climate change in the oceans, marine conservation of biodiversity, or colonization in the Caribbean.” 

When it comes to being offshore on the ship Faraday said that students were expected to “work closely with their peers to learn about science, learn about maritime history, navigate the ship, cook, run the engine room, conduct 24 hour bow watches and so many other tasks to help keep the ship running smoothly”  

“There’s nothing like seeing the world from a boat….  

400 Word Draft: 

Title: Susan Faraday’s Maritime Education: Insights from a Semester at Sea. 

Professor of marine affairs Susan Faraday is a beloved faculty member of the UNE community. Faraday’s passion and dedication about conservation of the marine environment and wildlife have inspired so many. When she teaches her class you can tell that she truly cares about the subject and her students. 

Throughout her years of teaching Faraday has frequently advocated the opportunities that a semester at sea would bring to her students. When asked to talk more about the experience she said that “My semester at sea quite literally changed my life, in so many ways.” 

Faraday got involved with Sea semester when she was looking for internships her junior year and ended up getting into the program the summer after her senior year. 

The program is designed to take students from colleges all over the country and some international as well. Students spend six weeks ashore in a very intensive academic experience. There are different kinds of programs and academic curriculums that are offered but Faraday explained that  “The basic intent is that you spend time in the classroom ashore learning about the ocean, learning about sailing, and learning about the specific topic of your choice whether that be climate change in the oceans, marine conservation of biodiversity, or colonization in the Caribbean.” 

This unique academic program offers a blend of traditional classroom learning and experiential education, allowing students to engage with course material while also gaining firsthand experience. 

During a semester at sea, students have the opportunity to study and live onboard a ship while traveling to various destinations around the world, often across multiple continents and oceans. 

When it comes to being offshore on the ship Faraday said that students were expected to “work closely with their peers to learn about science, learn about maritime history, navigate the ship, cook, run the engine room, conduct 24 hour bow watches and so many other tasks to help keep the ship running safely and smoothly while simultaneously designing and conducting their own research projects ”  

“There’s nothing like seeing the world from a boat it’s just a completely different experience than hopping on a plane or hopping in a car” 

“ I worked on boats for four years afterwards while i was getting my act together and thinking about the next step” 

“I also recommend to students it will never be easier of cheaper for you to travel and do crazy stuff than at this point in your life either as a college student or right afterwards because your willing to not have a shower for a couple of days your willing to not have much money in your pocket, your willing and energetic to be open to new experiences and new people and it’s just really worth it”  

“You can’t get away from your roomates you are all trapped together on the boat for six weeks” 

“You become very close to nature, you become very close with your shipmates and the crew” 

“That was my expanding into the world and I don’t regret a minute of it”  

Workshop Draft. 

Kayleigh Peer Review Profile Draft (I am Group 2 for peer review)

Title: Susan Faraday’s Maritime Education: Insights from a Semester at Sea. 

Professor of marine affairs Susan Faraday is a beloved faculty member of the UNE community. Faraday’s passion and dedication about conservation of the marine environment and wildlife have inspired so many. When she teaches her classes you can tell that she truly cares about the subject and her students. 

Throughout her years of teaching Faraday has frequently advocated the opportunities that a semester at sea would bring to her students. When asked to talk more about the experience she lit up and said that “My semester at sea quite literally changed my life, in so many ways.” 

Faraday got involved with Sea semester when she was looking for internships her junior year and ended up getting into the program the summer after her senior year. Since then she has also worked with the organization as a crew member and an advisor. 

The semester at sea program is designed to take students from colleges all over the country and some international as well. Students spend six weeks ashore in a very intensive academic experience. There are different kinds of programs and academic curriculums that are offered but Faraday explained that  “The basic intent is that you spend time in the classroom ashore learning about the ocean, learning about sailing, and learning about the specific topic of your choice whether that be climate change in the oceans, marine conservation of biodiversity, or colonization in the Caribbean.” 

This unique academic program offers a blend of traditional classroom learning and experiential education, allowing students to engage with course material while also gaining firsthand experience. 

During a semester at sea, students have the opportunity to study and live onboard a ship while traveling to various destinations around the world, often across multiple continents and oceans.This experience exposes students to diverse cultures, languages, and customs. They can explore iconic landmarks, historical sites, and natural wonders in each destination, broadening their understanding of the world. In Faraday’s words ““You become very close to nature, and you become very close with your shipmates and the crew” 

When it comes to being offshore on the ship Faraday said that students were expected to “work closely with their peers to learn about science, learn about maritime history, navigate the ship, cook, run the engine room, conduct 24 hour bow watches and so many other tasks to help keep the ship running safely and smoothly while simultaneously designing and conducting their own research projects ”. While this may sound like a lot of work to some, professor Faraday insists that it is time and money well spent. Faraday said that  “There’s nothing like seeing the world from a boat it’s just a completely different experience than hopping on a plane or hopping in a car” 

When asked about some of the most memorable things that she saw during her time as a student of the sea semester program she said that it was hard to pick but there were two memories that were particularly impactful for her. One being the first time she saw whales in the gulf of Maine she said that “Someone had to hold me back from going over the rail and my nickname became right there because I kept saying over and over again their right there!”. The second experience that she shared and said was one of the most beautiful things she has ever seen was when she was on bow watch in the middle of the night in the Caribbean and saw dolphins riding in the wake of the bow in the bioluminescent water in the dark. “Dolphins in the glow in the dark water in the middle of the night. It doesn’t get much better than that.”  She added that “Anytime you see an animal like that out in the wild it’s just unbelievable”   

Editorial Team Reflection:

My group Tony, Phoebe and Caitilin all had our profiles analyzed. We went one by one and shared our opinions and critiques of others’ profiles. First Tony went and the general consensus was that there were multiple small grammatical and spelling errors and that there could be other perspectives added like more quotes from different football players that have had positive experiences with Viall. Next Phoebe went and the critiques that I picked up on were there were some run-on sentences and the paragraphs were too long. We also suggested that Phoebe paraphrased some of the quotes that she included as well as some structure changes to increase the readability and the flow of the overall piece. The main critique that I got from my peers was to try to find ways to condense and to definitely add the quote about how Professor Faraday worked on boats for 4 years after her sea semester experience. The last person to get their profile analyzed was Caitlin for Caitlin the main comments were to add a tile and to be more specific about the who,what,when,where,why,how of the organizations that Morgan is involved in, What the organizations do, where they are based and what specifically is Morgan’s role in these organizations.    

Profile Story Reflection 300-400 Words: 

Overall I think this project was really helpful for me to expand my writing skills and my knowledge in writing for journalism. Every assignment we have done in this class has helped me get one step closer to understanding how to see and write stories through the eyes of a journalist. Before doing this assignment I have never thought about what a profile is or what they are supposed to convey. I am sure I have read many profiles in my lifetime but just didn’t realize it or pay attention to the style and format that profiles usually have. Now after writing a profile I am aware of the style and techniques that they use and will be able to pick them out easily in the future. For my Profile I decided to talk to Mrs. Faraday, who is one of my favorite teachers on campus. The fact that I already have a good relationship with Faraday made it easier for me to interview her and more interesting for me to write as I love learning things about my teachers that they do not normally share. She was also a very reliable interviewee and got back to me very quickly after reaching out to her about the interview. At first when I knew I was going to do Faraday I thought of a lot of different potential angles that I could take with her and my story emerged from the responses to the questions that I asked her during the interview. I ended up switching my focus from how she became interested in Marine Affairs to her experience with the organization Sea semester. I chose to switch my angle because I could tell when I was interviewing her she was super passionate about the topic and gave me a lot of good information that I could work with about it. While writing the profile I still had to keep reminding myself to switch from academic writing to writing for journalism. I still have a hard time with this especially when It comes to evenly breaking up the paragraphs. I also really enjoyed the peer review experience and getting to see how my other classmates approached writing the profile. I think this project was useful and expanded our Journalism tool box.