Virginia Institute of Marine Science

09/10/2026

POV: You’re diving to the bottom of the Chesapeake Bay in 1953. 👀🌊

You have no scuba gear, just a 3,000-pound steel tank with windows dubbed the Aquascope, a camera and a whole lot of curiosity. 📸

Naturalist Gilbert Klingel and National Geographic photographer Willard R. Culver descended into the Bay to document what was happening beneath the surface, capturing some of the first color photographs of Chesapeake Bay life.

Fast forward 70+ years and those historic dives are still helping us see the Bay and its creatures in a whole new way.

Ready to take a deeper dive? The “100 Hours Beneath the Chesapeake” exhibit at the Mathews Museum brings the story to life with the original Aquascope, historic photographs, dive notes and information about the marine species they encountered provided by our Office of Education & Outreach.

🔗Read the full blog post! https://www.vims.edu/blog/blog-posts/aquascope-exhibit-research.php

Photos courtesy of the Mathews Museum.

09/09/2026

🌊 Help clean our local waterways! 🧤

Marine debris threatens wildlife, human health, communities and economies around the world. This Saturday, September 12, join the VIMS & Batten School Green Team and Gloucester Clean Community for the International Coastal Cleanup, the world’s largest volunteer effort dedicated to protecting ocean and waterway health.

We’ll not only remove trash from our local waterways, we’ll also collect data on what we find to help researchers better understand the marine debris problem. 🔬📋

Bring your own gloves, drinks and snacks, and dress appropriately for the beach and weather conditions. Clean Community will provide grabbers, buckets, bags, clipboards and data sheets.

📅 Saturday, September 12
⏰ 8am–11am
📍 Gloucester Point Beach | 1255 Greate Road, Gloucester Point, VA 23062

🔗 Register for the cleanup today!

The rising tide of marine debris threatens human health, wildlife, communities, and economies around the world. The International Coastal Cleanup is the world's largest volunteer effort on behalf of ocean and waterway health.

09/08/2026

We’re diving into the latest Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (SAV) Survey results to see what the numbers reveal about the health and recovery of the Chesapeake Bay. 🌱🌊

SAV is a vital part of the Bay ecosystem, providing habitat and food for many species while helping improve water quality and stabilize sediment.

After reaching historic lows in the 1980s, Bay-wide underwater grass coverage has more than doubled. The 2025 survey offers another encouraging look at that recovery while also highlighting the challenges that remain.

👉 Watch to learn more, then head to the link to read the full story and explore the 2025 SAV Survey results.

🔗https://www.vims.edu/newsandevents/topstories/2026/2025-chesapeake-bay-sav-survey.php

09/01/2026

Somebody’s gotta hold it down in the coastal Virginia waters. 🌊

Might as well be us. 😌

08/27/2026

Meet the new students joining the VIMS & Batten School community!

This fall, 32 new students are joining William & Mary’s VIMS & Batten School, including 18 graduate students and 14 undergraduate Stravitz Scholars.

Students will conduct meaningful research as they develop the academic and professional skills necessary to address society's most pressing current and future needs. 🔬🌊

👉 Get to know the newest cohorts and learn more about the students joining VIMS & the Batten school this fall. Read the new article at the link 🔗

32 new students are joining VIMS & the Batten School this fall, including 18 graduate students entering M.A., M.S. and Ph.D. programs and 14 undergraduate students entering as the second cohort of Stravitz Scholars majoring in coastal and marine sciences.

08/26/2026

Happy FDOC! 📚✏️
 
Students, faculty and our dean & director are ready to dive into a new semester!
 
Wishing everyone a fin-tastic school year! 😉🐟

08/25/2026

🔬 What makes a scientist? 🥼

Science education is about more than memorizing facts. It’s about asking questions, investigating the world around us and discovering your inner scientist.

At William & Mary’s VIMS & Batten School, outreach and education programs are creating hands-on opportunities for learners to explore, ask questions and engage with marine science in meaningful ways.

From summer camps and K–12 field experiences to public programs and teacher professional development, these experiences can help participants see themselves not just as observers of science, but as contributors to it.

👉 Read our newest blog post to find out how immersive learning is helping inspire the next generation of scientists! https://www.vims.edu/blog/blog-posts/stem-literacy.php 🔗

08/24/2026

Summer may be winding down, but the memories will last! ☀️🎣🌊

As our summer camps wrap up, we’re sending a big good luck to all of our campers as they head back to school! We hope you had an incredible summer filled with new discoveries, hands-on learning, new friends and plenty of time exploring the amazing world of marine science. 🐟🦀🔬

08/19/2026

Our social media manager may be out in the field, but don’t worry, we still got the pics. 📸

She tagged along for Graduate Student Orientation at our Eastern Shore Laboratory and captured a little behind-the-scenes look at the newest cohort of graduate students as they met, explored and got their first taste of fieldwork at VIMS ESL. 🌊🔬

08/17/2026

🥾🌊 Breaking down barriers and breaking in boots.

For coastal and marine science students, hands-on fieldwork is an essential part of learning. But specialized gear like muck boots, hip waders and chest waders can be expensive, especially if they're only needed for one course.

Thanks to a William & Mary Provost Mid-Career Leadership Grant, VIMS & the Batten School have established Field Booteries at both the Eastern Shore Laboratory and Gloucester Point campuses. Now, students have access to over 200 pairs of boots and waders so they can focus on science and not buying expensive footwear.

This might seem like a modest addition, but behind every pair of boots is a student collecting their first field samples, exploring a barrier island for the first time or discovering a marine organism they've only seen in a textbook.

Read more the link 🔗

Thanks to a William & Mary Provost Mid-Career Leadership Grant, VIMS & the Batten School have established Field Booteries at both the Eastern Shore Laboratory in Wachapreague and the Gloucester Point campus. Together, they provide students with shared access to specialized footwear that can be expen...