HMSC Visitor Center Survival Guide

We are delighted that you will be visiting Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) Visitor's Center and look forward to ensuring your group has a safe and exciting educational experience. Although we do not have many rules, a few are necessary to protect the safety of our visitors and the animals in the Visitor's Center. We ask that while at HMSC you observe the following procedures.

• Handle the animals in the touch tank gently and with the respect due any living creature.
  
• There are others visiting the Center. Please refrain from running, shouting or other horseplay that might interfere with others' experience or could be dangerous.
  
• Chaperones should guide the students and monitor their behavior. Chaperones, please pay attention to other visitors in the area and move your group on to another exhibit after a reasonable time.
  
• Please keep our Visitor's Center clean. Students are reminded not to bring drinks, food, or gum to the Center.
  
• Your group is not only welcome in our bookstore, but encouraged to visit. Please, no more than 5 people at a time. An adult must accompany all children.

These rules of conduct are designed to ensure that all of our visitors to HMSC enjoy their experience. HMSC staff will be available to answer any questions you might have and assist you with any problems you encounter while in the Visitor's Center. Please be advised that if the HMSC staff has repeatedly, but without success, asked a group to comply with the rules of conduct, the group may be asked to leave.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Enjoy your visit to Hatfield Marine Science Center Visitor's Center.

Self-Guided Visitor Center Tour

Self-Guided Tours require chaperone supervision. These stations must have chaperone involvement for the students to complete the activity. Please refer to the included activity guidelines for chaperone tips.

We have added three special new stations in our Visitor's Center for visiting school groups. If you are planning a Visitor's Center visit and you want to utilize these new stations, please use the activity guidelines and pre-visit activities provided in this booklet. We strongly suggest completing the pre-visit activities with your school group before your trip to the Visitor's Center. We also encourage you to provide your chaperones with the included chaperone suggestion page and the guidelines for each of the activities before your trip is begun.

We hope you enjoy your visit. If you have any comments about improving the student stations or the pre-visit activities, please drop us a note. These are new and any feedback is appreciated. Notes may be placed in the comments box found at the Visitor's Center exit, you may visit our Web site and fill out the comment page, or you can mail your comments to:

HMSC Visitor Center
Mark O Hatfield Marine Science Center
2030 South Marine Science Drive
Newport, OR 97365-5296

Oregon State Home Page | HMSC Home Page | HMSC Education

Last Update: February 24, 2004

URL: http://hmsc.oregonstate.edu/education/
Comments: sea.grant.web@oregonstate.edu