Visiting Toyon Bay: Catalina Island Marine Institute
When I was in middle school, there were certain field trips that was only available for certain students. Majority of these special field trips were offered only to the gate students at my school, which I felt was unfair. The biggest trip, which I desperately wanted do to go to in middle school, was a trip to the Catalina Island Marine Institute (CIMI) at Toyon Bay. This field trip featured learning experiences in the marine sciences, which at the time, my dream job was to be a marine biologist. My sister was on the gate team when she attended middle school, and she was able to go on this field trip. Today, I still love the ocean and geek out about marine sciences. My mom is a science teacher at the middle school that I attended, Clement Middle School, in Redlands. She had planned a field trip to CIMI. Unlike my years as a student, when only the gate kids can go, any 7th grader and 8th grader was able to apply to go on this field trip. My mom was in need of male chaperone