TIDES Texas Integrated Diving and Ecological Studies Laboratory

The Texas Integrated Diving and Ecological Studies (TIDES) laboratory is a multi-institutional undergraduate research program that focuses on student driven marine research projects on the Mesoamerican Coral Reef System between McLennan Community College and Texas Tech University. Texas Tech University at Waco offers a Biology degree on the MCC campus and this lab was designed to bring both student populations together. The TIDES lab is a collaborative effort between professors Stephanie Randell (Professor of Biology; MCC) and Dr. Stephanie Lockwood (Assistant Professor of Practice; TTU).

Students take courses through their respective universities, yet work together on novel research projects. Faculty from several different universities and colleges lead students through concepts and research techniques of coral reefs: Dr. Stephanie Lockwood and Stephanie Randell, as well as Dr. Donna Hamilton, University of North Texas – Dallas and Dr. Traesha Robertson, College of Coastal Georgia. With faculty from across different biological disciplines, students receive information from faculty with expertise in those fields. The courses focus on concepts in oceanography; marine biology; including coral reef ecology, coral biology, zooplankton, marine algae, coral disease, common reef organisms, as well as marine research techniques.

Students are mentored in research design, develop testable novel research ideas, and conduct their research on the coral reefs of the Bay Islands, off of the coast of Honduras. Faculty dive with and monitor students while completing research projects and ensure that students are following proper protocols when it comes to dive limits and diving logs. Upon return to campus, the data is statistically analyzed and results compiled into professional research papers and posters for submission to professional conferences. Travel funding is available from institutions to present at professional conferences.

Our students have been very successful in their professional endeavors; many submissions have been accepted to the National Conference for Undergraduate Research and Texas Academy of Sciences – Annual Meetings. In addition, our researchers have even won awards at some of these conferences. These professional experiences have enabled our finest researchers to win competitive research internships to medical schools and the Roatan Institute for Marine Science.
By developing a professional resume, our students are now competing well against more privileged students who have traditionally only completed standard science course work.