CJTU Trout in the Classroom

Trout In The Classroom 2010

There are now 106 schools participating in the Trout in the Classroom program. Our chapter now has 5 more schools added for a total of 16 schools and 18 classrooms -- see the list below.

Volunteers from our chapter are always on call to assist the teachers with any concerns regarding the welfare of their trout. Chiller failures are the most serious problems since the aquarium temperature must be kept between 50 and 55 degrees fahrenheit. Plastic bags filled with ice cubes are then floated in the aquarium until we replace the chiller -- promptly!

The Brook Trout eggs were delivered on the last week of October and at this time ( December ) all the eggs have hatched. After hatching, and the trout have absorbed their egg sac, the fish must be fed on a regular schedule. There are times when a teacher's conference or a holiday occurs after the eggs have been delivered -- no problem! The teachers can control the time the eggs hatch using a formula that is based upon water temperature -- colder water delays the hatching so that the students can witness this natural phenomenon.

Central Jersey TU Schools
2010 - 2011 School Year

Hammarskjold Middle School - 200 Rues Lane, East Brunswick 08816 ( 2 classrooms)
Warnsdorfer School - 9 Hardenburg Lane, East Brunswick 08816
Middlesex County Vo Tech - 112 Rues Lane, East Brunswick 08816
Somerset County Vo Tech - 14 Vogt Drive, Bridgewater 08807
Van Holten Elementary School - 360 Van Holten Rd, Bridgewater 08807
Wachung Hills Regional High School - 108 Sterling Road, Warren, 07059
South River Middle School - 7 Mongomery Street, South River 08882
Voorhees Elementary School - 11 Liberty Street, Old Bridge, 08857
Wardlaw- Hartridge School - 1295 Inman Avenue, Edison, 08820
Angelo L. Tomasao Elementary School - 46 Washington Valley Road, Warren, 07059
Old Turnpike School - 171 Old Turnpike Road, Califon, 07083
Crossroads North Middle School - 635 Georges Road, Monmouth Junction, 08852 ( 2 classrooms )
Edmund Hmieleski ECC - 925 Amboy Avenue, Perth Amboy, 08861
North Plainfield High School - 34 Wilson Avenue, North Plainfield Avenue, 07060
Dunellen High School - 411 First Street, Dunellen, 08812

Trout In The Classroom 2009

The Start of a New Season

On October 21 Rich Post, Jon Burgess and I travelled to the Pequest Hatchery to pick up the brook trout eggs and accompanying materials which are to be used in the 2009 Trout in Classroom project. We met members of all of the NJTU chapters who also were there to get their eggs. One familiar guy was Ken Devory, past Director and President of CJTU. Ken now is a Director for the Jersey Shore chapter and he was picking up supplies for 23 schools in his area.

Jessica Griglak, hatchery coordinator for this project gave us all a quick overview of the project as well as directions for establishing the initial introduction of the eggs. We received a bag of eggs, three different kinds of feed, Vibert boxes, and instructions in a huge box for each school. I am still wondering why the "stuff" came in such a large box. Someone must have gotten the boxes for a huge discount. Of course, we had to keep the eggs cold in a cooler while we travelled with them.

CJTU was responsible for sixteen schools. Rich and Jon handled eleven and I was responsible for the other five. Since the eggs were given to us in the inverse order of the distance we had to travel, South Jersey got their's first. And the process did take time. This tended to create a bit of nervousness on our part because the eggs had to be delivered to all of the schools by 3:00 PM, closing time. It was approaching 11:00 AM and we were still at the hatchery. However the eggs had to be transferred to our bags slowly to insure that they remained viable.

But your heroes were successful. We did get the eggs to all of the schools before they closed. We expected the first eggs to hatch on Nov. 3 and as I write this on Nov. 4 I have not heard any report. Hopefully the chillers will all continue to work and there will be a successful program in all of the schools. One last comment makes me smile. When I delivered the eggs to each school the students treated me as a celebrity and hero. Then I went back to my real life.

Dick Turse

Trout In The Classroom 2010

Central Jersey TU Schools 2010 - 2011 School Year

Trout In The Classroom 2009

The Start of a New Season

Central Jersey TU Schools 2009/2010 School Year

Central Jersey TU Schools
2010 - 2011 School Year

Central Jersey TU Schools
2009/2010 School Year