Port of Los Angeles, School Boat Tours and Education Programs
The Port of Los Angeles is run by the City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. It says it is committed to educating people, locally and around the world, about its operations (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.a). Its education work aims to build understanding of the marine environment, shipping and cargo operations, and international trade (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.b). It serves school students and teachers, college students, researchers and community groups (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.b). Community programs are paid for from the Harbor Department budget, which comes from shipping and lease revenue, not taxes (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.e).
Approach
Free school boat tours. The port offers free one-hour educational boat tours to school groups from fourth grade through college. The tours run on Harbor Breeze Cruises boats and show how daily world trade works at the port. Qualifying schools can get up to $300 in transport assistance (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.c).
Classroom resources. Teachers at elementary, middle and high schools can download activity books, maps and videos. These include STEM activity sheets, a port infographic, a link to the Think Earth environmental curriculum and virtual tours of local museums (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.d).
Partner network. The port works with local education partners. These include AltaSea, the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, the Los Angeles Maritime Museum, the Los Angeles Maritime Institute (TopSail) and the Port of Los Angeles High School (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.b).
Public events. The port promotes free public harbor boat tours and open houses at AltaSea, a marine research campus at the port (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.g).
Resident contact and grants. Community Advocates act as primary contacts for residents of San Pedro and Wilmington, and residents can sign up for eAlerts. A Community Investment Grant Program funds nonprofit events and programs that benefit harbor communities (Port of Los Angeles, n.d.f; n.d.e).
Results
The school boat tours, teacher resources and partner network are standing, free offers listed on the port website. The port publishes a yearly list of grant recipients. The pages checked do not report numbers of tour participants or learning outcomes, so reach cannot be confirmed from these sources.
Transferability
DMC ports can start with low-cost measures: free harbor tours for schools, simple downloadable classroom materials, and partnerships with existing museums, aquariums and maritime schools. Covering transport costs helps schools from poorer areas take part. Named community contacts and an alert list give residents a direct line to the port. Ports should also track participant numbers and feedback, which this example does not publish.
Sources
All information used for this case study was based on publicly available resources.
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.a. Community. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.b. Education. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.c. School Boat Tour Program. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.d. Educational Resources. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.e. Community Investment Grant Program. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.f. Residents. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)
- Port of Los Angeles. n.d.g. Events. City of Los Angeles Harbor Department. (opens in new tab)