Bell Creek Academy will be hosting a Seas and Stars event on Thursday, October 24 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. This unique experience will allow the community to come in and learn about astronomy and biology and see what the students at Bell Creek Academy are learning.
The astronomy portion of the night will feature two giant telescopes for viewing that are being provided by MOSI. A representative will be on hand to talk about what is available for viewing on that particular night.
“One year, we saw the rings of Saturn!” said Event Coordinator Catherine Gregos.
Gregos is a biology and science teacher at the school and has been involved in this extracurricular event since she started teaching there in the school’s second year of opening. The event originally centered only on astronomy, but Gregos has expanded it out to include learning about the seas.
“The school has a 200-gallon touch tank that it purchased three years ago, so I’ve added access to that as part of the night,” said Gregos.
Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about the sea life in the touch tank, which currently includes sea stars, serpent stars, horseshoe carbs, hermit crabs, feather duster worms and sea urchins. The Seas Club students will be there to talk about these creatures and answer questions. In addition to the telescopes and touch tank, guests can view students’ science experiments, which will be on display.
“We love this opportunity to bring the community in to see all that Bell Creek Academy has to offer,” said Gregos.
Kona Ice will be serving up tasty shaved ice treats and the PTSO will also be hosting a book fair during the event. Access to Seas and Stars is just $5 at the door, with a portion of proceeds being donated to the American Red Cross for hurricane relief efforts.
Bell Creek Academy Middle and High School is a local charter school whose mission is to create a challenging program for students with a focus on STEM. It is located at 13221 Boyette Rd. in Riverview. For more information on the school, please visit bellcreekacademy.com.
