Leeila Ochoki-Bargman's dad called her a fish when she was younger.
"I just the ocean so much," she said. "I just love how we barely know anything about it, and how there's so much diversity in it."
This summer, Ochoki-Bargman is preparing to start ninth grade at Richard O. Jacobson Technical High School in Seminole. She wants to be a marine biologist, and at the Oceanography Camp Especially for Girls (OCG), she's diving into the ins and outs of research on the water.
For 35 years, the University of South Florida College of Marine Science has hosted OCG, a three-week crash course in all things marine science.
Teresa Greely is a USF marine science educator and the camp's director. She said the camp aims to dismantle barriers young women still face in STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — education. For starters, it's tuition-free.
"We never wanted anything to keep a young lady from being a part of the program," Greely explained. "Everyone can be a scientist. We need to make sure the door's open to say, 'Let's go be a scientist.'"
Each summer, 30 Pinellas County eighth-grade graduates get to study water samples, do toxicology labs and even run their own mock commercial fishing companies.
The first week ends with a voyage aboard the R/V ANGARI, a 65-foot research vessel outfitted with lab workspaces, probes and instruments that oceanographers use day-to-day.
The girls had spent the days prior to the cruise learning at the Clam Bayou Marine Education Center, picking up skills and knowledge before an expedition that let them put their hypotheses to the test.
Throughout the day, the girls cycled through three stations, analyzing dissolved oxygen, pH levels, cloud cover and surface depth from the USF marina in St. Petersburg to Egmont Key. Marine life — plankton, sea dollars, and even a family of dolphins — also had starring roles on their trip.
13-year-old Audrey , who is homeschooled, is an aquatic fanatic. When her family first moved from Washington, D.C. to Florida, they'd go out on a boat every week. The last couple of hurricane seasons derailed the tradition, but she hasn't lost her budding passion for oceanography.
"I might go to the Florida Aquarium and then be a veterinarian or a trainer for the puffins they have there," she predicted.
Greely said that OCG teaches campers to value and appreciate the ocean, even if they don't go into marine science.
"The ocean is so much bigger than just the science," Greely said. "It's what connects us globally."
She added that Florida business colleges are now offering concentrations in the "blue economy," which includes topics like marine renewable energy, coastal tourism and sustainable fishing practices.
Marine science itself is a multi-disciplinary field, combining physics, biology, geology and chemistry. OCG's curriculum incorporates all of this — there's also a career day where campers find out where a love of the water can take them.
OCG's instructors are female graduate students from the USF College of Marine Science, which recently suffered a devastating fire that destroyed critical research.
Camp staff expressed gratitude that, despite the tragedy, this year's OCG could continue uninterrupted.
SEE ALSO: After lab fire, USF researchers rejoice at recovered samples. But there's still 'a long road ahead'
The ANGARI's crew is also a majority-women affair. The boat belongs to the ANGARI Foundation, a West Palm Beach-based nonprofit that supports marine research and education. ANGARI is the brainchild of sisters Angela and Kari Rosenberg.
The partnership between OCG and ANGARI began in 2017, with the camp serving as one of the R/V ANGARI's first expeditions.
Angela, also the boat's captain, said the camp aligns with her organization's commitment to public-facing research.
"When I was coming up in science, people weren't as excited to share what they were doing in research outside of the industry," Rosenberg reflected. "Now, people care a lot more about broader impacts."
When OCG launched, it was one of few similar offerings for young women. In 2019, the U.S. Department of State included OCG in their "Hidden No More: Empowering Women Leaders in STEM" exchange program.
Greely said the idea for the Oceanography Camp — Especially for Girls — came from two Tampa Bay area teachers, who'd noticed that fewer girls went on to advanced science classes in high school.
Eli Gilchrist was a camper in 2020, before becoming a peer counselor during high school. They joked they didn't initially believe marine science as male-dominated since they'd been surrounded by USF's female researchers as a teenager.
Gilchrist, now a marine science major at Eckerd College, said the program is even more essential for pre-teen girls than it was five years ago.
"Now there's even more young girls on social media, and there's even more people getting on social media, critiquing young girls," Gilchrist said.
Gilchrist says the camp emphasizes self-love, confidence and friendship as much as science education.
Every time a camper says something negative about themselves or someone else, they have to give two compliments back. Also, the girls aren't allowed to be on their phones.
"That rewired my brain when I was fourteen," Gilchrist said.
