Sea Ya

Voyage 1

• About Us

  Update from the Students:

  Each year, sixth-grade students at Morristown Beard School (MBS) undertake the project of building a miniboat as a part of Mrs. Swanson’s Geography class. This year, our class has been working on a new miniboat that we named Sea Ya. This year is our school’s 13th boat deployment, and some of the places past boats have landed include Norway, Morocco, Ireland, Portugal, France, and more. We hope that when we launch our boat, a school somewhere across the ocean will find her, reach out to us, and become pen pals!

  We are all assigned roles within our boat crew, and separated into teams. There are 6 crews: launch, cargo, deck, sail, tech, and hull/keel. Each group works on a specific task to build our miniboat, which is then launched into the ocean! The Launch Crew is responsible for contacting a shipping company, a research ship, or a private boat owner to help us release the boat into the ocean. The Cargo Crew is responsible for packing the cargo hold with items that reflect our school, New Jersey, and the United States of America, so a school across the ocean can learn more about us and life in the U.S. The Deck and Sail Crews both sketch and draw designs on the boat to make it look colorful and cool. Another crew is the Tech Crew, which is working on the GPS used to track the boat and helps us track its adventure. It also attaches water and air temperature sensors to collect data that our science class can analyze. Finally, the last crew is the Hull and Keel Crew, which installs the keel and applies anti-fouling paint to the hull to keep barnacles off when Sea Ya is out on the water.
  

  When asked where students would like Sea Ya to land, these were their responses:
  

  “Since the Launch Crew, of which I am a part, has been studying the ocean currents and winds, I think the boat will head north and land in either Portugal or even Iceland. I hope that it will land somewhere where the past boats have not landed, so MBS can connect with new schools, new languages, and traditions. For example, the United Kingdom, or even if the boat does not follow the Gulf Stream and starts to head south, then maybe it could land in South America, Brazil, or Venezuela.”

  “Sea Ya will be launched off the coast of North Carolina into the Gulf Stream, so I think the boat will go North along the U.S. to Canada, and then it could end up in Europe. That is where I would like it to land, in either Canada or Europe, because I am half Canadian, and Europe, because there are so many different and interesting countries.”

  “Given all I know about ocean currents, I think the boat will land in either Portugal or Spain. I would like the boat to land in Spain because when I visited Spain, it was so beautiful and I would love to learn more about their culture.”

  “I think the boat will land in Europe, possibly Portugal, but if the current takes the mini boat up to Greenland, I hope it will land there.”

  “I’m love studying French, so I am hoping for a landing in France. I would be cool to write letters to French students.”

• Sail-abrations Are In Order!

  Ahoy! Our 6th grade miniboat, Sea-Ya, is almost ready to set sail!
  On March 3rd, 2026 we held a “sailabration,” where we Zoomed with Cassie from Educational Passages to learn about launching in North Carolina. The Wicked Tuna boat Fishin’ Frenzy, captained by four-time Outer Banks champion Greg Mayer, will help release Sea-Ya into the water later this March, and our Captain (lead teacher) Lisa Swanson P’21 will be on hand for the launch!

  Our miniboat program is always a highlight of MBS learning.
  

• Launch Update and Ocean Science Data From Onboard Sensor Pack

  March 27, 2026

  Mrs. Swanson took a trip down from New Jersey to the Outer Banks in North Carolina, to drop off the miniboat. She met with Charles “CP” Perry, a world-renowned fisherman, who will keep her safe while him and Captain Greg hold off on launch until optimal weather conditions.

  April 3, 2026

  From the F/V FISHIN’ FRENZY, Captain Greg brought out Charles CP Perry on this sunny morning to launch the M/B SEA YA into the Gulf Stream from out of Oregon Inlet in North Carolina. A drifter was also launched alongside the boat so students back at Morristown Beard can learn more about wind and currents in the ocean. Thank you Captain Greg and Charles!

   

  View this post on Instagram

   

  A post shared by Greg Mayer (@frenzygreg)

  The map below is showing the data reporting from the second GPS which is connected to a custom sensor package. In addition to reporting location with a secondary GPS tracker, this system is also collecting air temperature, water temperature, and orientation of the boat. Please note that the map below will only show the last 7 days of data and may include invalid points and data. If you are interested in looking at the data in a different format from the whole voyage, contact us.

  Her onboard camera has been catching all the actions of her first few days at sea:
  
  Stay tuned for more updates!