Texas State Aquarium Earns CILC Pinnacle Award for Third Consecutive Year

CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS – The Texas State Aquarium’s Flint Hills Resources Aquavision Distance Learning program has earned a Pinnacle Award from the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration (CILC) for the 2016-2017 school year. This is the third consecutive year the honor has been given to Aquavision and the Aquarium’s in-house education team. CILC has bestowed the Pinnacle Award annually since 2008 to organizations with a remarkable quality of educational content and exceptional skill at program delivery.

The Aquavision Flint Hills Resources Distance Learning Studio uses web-based video conferencing technology to teach students located around the world about the animals and habitats of the Texas State Aquarium. Aquavision implements Texas Education Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) or Next Generation Science Standards into each Aquavision lesson, allowing teachers to add high-quality programming to their units without leaving the classroom. Aquavision is a part of the Aquarium’s Flint Hills Resources Center for Excellence in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Education, which has been supported by Flint Hills Resources since 2007.  The popular Aquavision program connects nearly daily with schools, hospitals, and libraries around the nation to give students far and wide a virtual tour of exhibits at the Texas State Aquarium and introduces young learners to animal ambassadors like dolphins, otters, sharks, and coral reef fish. Aquavision has recently expanded their curriculum by teaching students about the habitats and wildlife in the brand-new Caribbean Journey and adding 12 new high-definition cameras to give students an up-close look at animals in their exhibits.

“We are immensely proud of our Aquavision educators for once again meeting the high standards of the Pinnacle Award,” said Leslie Peart, the Aquarium’s Vice President of Education and Conservation. “Through the incredible connectivity of the Internet, we were able to reach thousands of students this past year, and want to thank Flint Hills Resources for helping us continue to deliver the very best in distance learning programs to educate and inspire the next generation of conservationists, scientists, and STEM professionals.”

With the new school year beginning soon, the Aquavision team is ramping up for another busy year of virtual discovery. To learn more about Aquavision and to sign up for a session, visit https://texasstateaquarium.org/programs-camps/aquavision-distance-learning/.

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