As part of his internship, Theodore McKinney, who is an elementary and middle school teacher education major in UD’s College of Education and Human Development, was able to educate Delaware’s youth on everything from horseshoe crabs to green infrastructure to the urban heat island effect.

Summer of science

Article by Adam Thomas Photos courtesy of Emily Maung-Douglass and Theodore McKinney August 18, 2025

UD undergraduate student Theodore McKinney spends summer with Delaware Sea Grant spreading science to Delaware youths

In his first week working with Delaware Sea Grant, University of Delaware undergraduate student Theodore McKinney made a splash — both figuratively and literally. Figuratively because his mentor, Emily Maung-Douglass, Delaware Sea Grant’s urban watershed specialist, could tell how enthusiastic he was about teaching science to Delaware’s youth. Literally, because he tripped and fell while out on a marsh walk.

“I thought it was so funny when I fell because I just got here, it’s my first week, and now we're in the marsh and I’m getting right into it,” said McKinney, an elementary and middle school teacher education major in UD’s College of Education and Human Development and an intern with Delaware Sea Grant's Community Engaged Internship (CEI) program. “It gave me a great first impression of what I was in store for this summer.”

While he may have fallen into the marsh during that first week, for most of his time this summer, McKinney worked at drier locations such as the H. Fletcher Brown Boys and Girls Club in Wilmington and the Route 9 Library.

It’s here that McKinney talks to youth about everything from horseshoe crabs to green infrastructure to the urban heat island effect, the phenomena where cities experience significantly hotter temperatures than the surrounding rural areas because of the lack of green spaces and trees.

McKinney, who grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, started his degree right in his hometown as a student in UD’s Associate in Arts Program. As a Delawarean, he was able to use a Student Excellence Equals Degree (SEED) scholarship to attend UD’s Wilmington campus tuition-free for the first two years of his college experience before transitioning to the main campus. McKinney said it’s great to interact with youths who have had similar upbringings and to educate them about environments inside and outside of their communities.

UD undergraduate Theodore McKinney (pictured right) worked with Delaware Sea Grant and Emily Maung-Douglass (left) as an intern with Delaware Sea Grant's Community Engaged Internship (CEI) program.

UD undergraduate Theodore McKinney (right) worked with Delaware Sea Grant and Emily Maung-Douglass (left) as an intern with Delaware Sea Grant's Community Engaged Internship (CEI) program.

“We only have one Earth, so people need to be informed about different situations that could negatively impact it and different environments than the ones that they grow up in,” McKinney said. “They need to learn about animals outside of their environment. We've been learning about horseshoe crabs, and not a lot of these kids know about horseshoe crabs, so if we bring this information to them, they can start to gain an interest in them. To be honest, I never knew much about horseshoe crabs, and I'd never seen a horseshoe crab until I worked with Delaware Sea Grant.”

As for how he got interested in teaching, McKinney said he is following in his grandfather’s footsteps.

“Like my grandfather, I’ve always been good with kids, and for me, I love to work with kids,” McKinney said. “They’re a little bit judgmental but you can’t take it too hard. I just enjoy it, and it helps fuel my inner kid as well.”

Maung-Douglass said that McKinney is a natural teacher.

“This summer, we worked up to him teaching a few solo lessons we co-designed. He relates well to kids and teens, building an easy rapport with them,” Maung-Douglass said. “Part of this is because he is good at adapting his approach on the fly to keep the material interesting and relevant to the group at hand. I am honored that I got to work with him on the front-end of what I know will be a very successful career in education.”

Working with Delaware Sea Grant this summer has helped McKinney learn important skills, especially when it comes to planning a lesson. As a self-professed “science nerd,” he is enjoying spending his summer teaching kids about all the amazing things science can uncover.

“Growing up in Wilmington, I didn't see many science educators who looked like me. This inspired me to get involved in science education, driven by the belief that science is deeply connected to everything we do,” McKinney said. “This summer, I’ve found immense joy in working hands-on with students. Seeing their faces light up when they grasp a new concept about heat, water or their local environment has been incredibly fulfilling. Helping kids in my community see science as something fun and relatable has been an honor.”