When students have opportunities to learn more about aquatic science, technology, and science careers, it helps create a Great Lakes literate population. Students who can collect and analyze real water-quality data with actual equipment used by scientists in the field are especially well served.

Along with the EPA Great Lakes National Program Office, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant coordinates the Limno Loan program that allows educators to borrow Hydrolabs for classroom and field use—this equipment is used by scientists to monitor water quality. Educators also have access to resources and in-person training and in 2024, we offered data-sharing and visualization workshops for 13 educators. We joined with BSCS Science Learning and FieldScope to develop these advanced learning opportunities.

Since 2011, over 100 educators and 15,650 students have engaged with the Limno Loan program. In 2024, 28 educators borrowed a Hydrolab, reaching almost 1,000 students, with 16 of these educators new to the program. Five teachers created new classroom lessons or enhanced their lessons to incorporate Hydrolab opportunities. Most educators, 80% in fact, reported integrating Great Lakes content into their curriculum, and seven spent extra time teaching about aquatic science as a result of using a Hydrolab—from 1 day to 5 weeks.