Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association (CIAA) staff participated in a job shadow day recently. This program stems from a decades-long partnership between Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Kenai Central High School. This year CIAA hosted two juniors interested in salmon aquaculture.
The day started with me picking up the students from the high school, followed by a tour of the CIAA Headquarters and an introduction to onsite staff. Peter Toggwiler, Fisheries Technician III, assisted me with the presentation and activities throughout the rest of the day.
Learning about CIAA
The presentation started with an overview of the salmon life cycle, focusing especially on points where aquaculture is involved (egg collections, fry and smolt rearing, releases, and counting of juveniles and adults). We next talked about what CIAA is as a private non-profit aquaculture association; how we differ from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G), but still partner on projects; and where in the Cook Inlet region we operate. The students were especially excited to learn that CIAA operates outside of the Kenai area.
Next we talked about pathways to working for CIAA and the skills necessary to work in different positions. We discussed that a college education is not needed for all positions, like a Fisheries Technician or Fish Culturist, but there may be a need for a college education for some positions, like a Biologist. Peter and I encouraged the students to consider what path they might enjoy more, but stressed that experience gained as an entry-level Fisheries Technician is important and can help them decide what they might like to do in the long term.
Hands-on skills
After this presentation it was time to get hands-on! Peter walked the students through how to set up a video weir, while I talked about the advantages of using this type of weir to count salmon. The students followed the same manual that technicians in the field receive and got their hands on the same equipment that we use in remote projects.
After setting up the weir, we talked about otolith and scale samples that we collect from juvenile and adult salmon. We covered what otolith marking is, and how hatcheries across Alaska are assigned unique marks by ADF&G that can be used to determine a salmon’s origin.
We also talked about the differences between using scales and otoliths to determine the age of a fish. The students then looked at scale samples collected from adult sockeye at the Bear Creek Weir and adult coho at the Paint River Fish Ladder. They were excited to see the bands on the scales that marked winters and summers, and to see the morphological differences between the two species. Next, we showed them how to extract otoliths from sockeye smolt taken from the Trail Lakes Hatchery raceways. Even though it was a little messy, they enjoyed being able to practice a skill used by fisheries professionals.
Wrapping it up
After cleaning up from extracting otoliths, we talked about the various opportunities in fisheries across the state. I showed the students a map of the locations of the hatcheries in Alaska and discussed how other hatchery operators used both hatcheries and biology/field projects to help provide and protect salmon resources. We talked about finding an organization that matched their personal ideals, and not being afraid to make a change if something wasn’t working. To wrap things up I asked the students what they thought their future plans might be. One student said she wasn’t sure, but she really liked biology and what she did while at CIAA. The other said she wanted to go to tech school in Washington, but that a biology career wasn’t off the table.
Final thoughts
I thoroughly enjoyed hosting the students! Looking back to my high school days, even though I was pretty sure I wanted to work in the hatchery system somewhere, I would have loved the chance to do a job shadow in my desired field. I think the partnership between the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and the Kenai Central High School is a key component in setting students up for success.
