I just spent the last semester of my life at a semester school called Coastal Studies for Girls. It is a school with rigorous core classes, but its main focus is marine science and leadership adventure classes.
The school is for sophomore girls and is offered for a fall or spring semester. CSG is located in Freeport, on Wolfe’s Neck Road, right next to the water.
CSG is not like many others; it is a school with 15 girls per semester, living and learning in a little yellow farm house. The girls come from all over. For example, in my semester, we had girls from Texas, Wisconsin, California, Rhode Island and from Maine and many other states.
The small group of girls and staff create a community worth getting to know. I felt right at home with everyone there, laughing, learning and creating amazing bonds with these girls and the staff.
Before Coastal Studies for Girls, I had never heard of a leadership class. I learned so much because it was a magnificent class and I will forever look back on the lessons I learned. We spent a lot of time learning about the connections to others, the world and yourself.
I found that everyone can be a leader; some people just have different styles.
The class leads up to two huge events. The first is a weeklong outdoor adventure trip where we used the skills we learned while living with the 14 other girls. The second event is a presentation about our work and growth during the semester. This gave us a chance to re-introduce ourselves after being away for 16 weeks away from homes. It helped me figure out how I have changed, and what I wanted to bring back home with me.
The marine science class is another class I had never taken before. I am so glad I took it. It turned out to be an eye-opening opportunity for me. I learned so much about the big blue ocean I didn’t know.
The class starts out by teaching a lot of marine life and skills to use out in the field for research. We went on many trips to learn about different species and habitats. This all leads up to working in small groups to do a research project.
My group chose to study the phytoplankton of the Freeport area. Others studied micro-plastics in the water or species that live in the mudflats or invasive species like European green crabs.
After we finished our research project, we gave a presentation about it. It felt amazing to show off all of the hard work we had done and all that we had learned. These presentations were given to an audience of families, friends and those interested in marine science in Maine.
This school takes a lot of field trips in each class; it is a very experiential school. Each of the classes has its own weekend when the teacher decides how to continue the learning outside of the class. During the weekends, we also had time to relax and do activities that were not school related. One Sunday we went to visit a goat farm, held baby goats and played with them.
The low student number allows teachers to work with each student and help them to achieve their best work. In the language classes, each girl has her own plan to further her education in the language. Although the class comes together and participates in group projects, each student participates on her own level.
For example, one project was a news broadcast. A beginner-level student might do the weather because that is what they have talked about. During my semester, I started out taking Spanish level one because I took German at my regular high school and CSG only offers Spanish and French. I didn’t have to take a language, I could have done my German independently, but I decided to try something new. Another class that does this is math. While some girls are studying geometry, others take algebra II or pre-calculus.
When you arrive at CSG, the math teacher discusses what you have done at your school and makes a plan just for you so that you will stay on track.
CSG has given me a chance to explore leadership and learning in a different way. I would recommend Coastal Studies for Girls for 10thgrade girls who are ready for a challenging, exciting, wonderful change in their lives.
LAUREL STREETER, of Bowdoinham, is an incoming junior at Mt. Ararat High School.
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