Stone Lab workshops to help students, job seekers, professionals gain new skills
Stone Laboratory, The Ohio State University’s island campus on Lake Erie, is offering two- and three-day workshops this summer and fall for students, working professionals and job seekers. The seven different workshops span various science topics for learning and professional development.
“Through Stone Lab’s workshops, anyone can come to Gibraltar Island for two or three days to learn a new skill and grow professionally without enrolling in a college,” said Dr. Chris Winslow, director of Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Lab. “Students, recent graduates, natural resources professionals, municipal workers, and more are all welcome to participate in hands-on, immersive learning here.”
Students and professionals interested in Ohio’s wetlands can strengthen their resumes and gain new hands-on skills by attending the Lake Erie Island Wetland Plant Identification and Field Vegetation Index of Biotic Integrity (VIBI) Workshop (June 1-3, 2026). Through three days of place-based learning on Gibraltar Island, participants will learn how to identify wetland and aquatic vascular plants. They’ll also receive field instruction for conducting VIBI, an important tool for assessing wetland ecosystem health.
Algae Identification (June 4-5 and Aug. 17-18, 2026) and Dealing with Cyanobacteria and Emerging Contaminants of Concern (Aug. 19-20, 2026) offer water and natural resource professionals hands-on experience, lectures, and laboratory and field work. Both workshops are offered with Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) certified drinking water and wastewater operators contact hours and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection contact hours.
For anyone ages 16 and up hoping to learn more about arthropods, Understanding Spiders (Aug. 21-23, 2026) and Introduction to North America’s Crayfish (Aug. 24-26) offer in-person instruction on Gibraltar Island. In both workshops, students will take away basic skills needed to explore and understand their local fauna, providing a launching point for future employment or research into conservation.
Educators, amateur naturalists and natural resource professionals alike can learn about Moss Identification and Ecology (Aug. 14-16, 2026). Participants will learn how to identify specimens using the hand lens and microscope, as well as how to field-recognize common genera.
Additionally, Fish-Sampling Techniques (Oct. 3-4, 2026) was developed with the help of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and is taught with staff from ODNR and OEPA to give job seekers experience with techniques needed for agency employment. The intensive, two-day workshop is designed to demonstrate commonly used fish-sampling gear to undergraduate students interested in seasonal agency work and fisheries biology professions.
A complete list of 2026 workshops can be found at go.osu.edu/SLworkshops. Applications are due two weeks prior to the workshop's start date, and early application is recommended to reserve a spot.
Ohio Sea Grant is supported by The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) School of Environment and Natural Resources, Ohio State University Extension, and NOAA Sea Grant, a network of 34 Sea Grant programs nation-wide dedicated to the protection and sustainable use of marine and Great Lakes resources. Stone Laboratory is Ohio State’s island campus on Lake Erie and is the research, education, and outreach facility of Ohio Sea Grant and part of CFAES School of Environment and Natural Resources.