Toms River Schools To Host Grand Reopening Of Poseidon Academy

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Students who want to pursue a career in environmental sciences will be able to do work within walking distance to the Toms River, thanks to grant-funded repairs and improvements at the Toms River Schools' Poseidon Academy.

The building, which has been undergoing repairs and renovations since last spring, will be rededicated as the School of Environmental Sustainability Poseidon Lab at a public ceremony beginning at 3 p.m. on Monday, March 26. The event begins with the grand reopening at 1 p.m., according to a flyer from the Toms River schools.

The school district worked with Toms River Township to apply for a Sustainable Jersey grant funded by PSE&G. Last May, the district was awarded $20,000 to transform the building, which suffered significant damage when it was flooded by 2 feet of water during Superstorm Sandy on Oct. 29. 2012.

The small concrete building, a former bus depot, sits in the parking lot across from the Toms River post office and along the Toms River, whose waters feed Barnegat Bay and eventually flow out to the Atlantic Ocean.

Before the renovation, the classroom fit 15 students, several fish tanks, scuba gear, and some water testing equipment. In its new configuration, it will hold up to 25 people with new technology and utilities, the district said.

The remodeled space will support the new School of Environmental Sustainability (SES), part of a STEAM Career Academy which debuted in September 2017 at Toms River High School East. Expanded courses and opportunities will continue to be led by teacher and Poseidon director Jon Hoffman.

Students from across the district will benefit from SES student outreach as well as local experts recruited as mentors, sponsors, interviewers, speakers, and guest teachers, the district said.

In addition to extensive repairs and remodeling made by the district, staff, students, local partners and volunteers will be involved in planning and running community programs in the space, including public lectures, workshops, and presentations.

The project builds on the town’s continuing recovery from Sandy, and the storm is memorialized in a a high water mark painted on the side of the building to show how the lab was immersed.

Over the past couple of years, the town has made investments into many areas of the waterfront, including major construction to the bulkhead, a pedestrian bridge, and a refurbished dock and small boat launch. Huddy Park, which was reopened last summer after renovations, is across the road.

The lab will act as an anchor for new plans being devised by the town to address the waterfront area west of Main Street, officials said.

The grant was an effort of the Toms River schools, Toms River Township and the the Toms River United Sustainability Team (TRUST).

The Toms River Regional Schools' Poseidon Lab is set to be rededicated on Monday, March 26. Photo by Karen Wall, Patch staff