Group Data Sheet Form

Group Data Sheet Introduction

The purpose of the group data sheet is to collect further information about group leader(s) contact information, group details and logistics, course objectives, and specific requests for your time at Forfar Field Station. The itinerary summary and specific requests can be based on the lectures offered by Forfar staff, labs and activities, or they can work in collaboration with the group leader’s presentations/labs/activities. For more information on available sites and trips, please check the Sites and Sights Guide.

Current Available Lectures:

● Blue Holes
● Geology
● Terrestrial Plant Ecosystems
● Introduction to Botany
● Bush Medicine
● Coral Reef Conservation
● Coral Reef ID
● Sustainable Fisheries
● Reef Fish ID

● Mangroves
● Introduction to Birds
● Bird ID
● Invertebrate Phyla
● Invertebrate ID
● Herps of Andros (Herpetology)
● History and Culture of the Bahamas
● Elasmobranchs of the Bahamas
● Seagrass Habitats

Available Laboratory/Field Lessons

● Seine Netting
● Plankton Tow
● Lionfish Dissection (subject to availability of specimens)
● Goniolithon Lab (Cryptic Invertebrates)
● Blue Hole Water Chemistry Lab
● Bird watching (mornings before breakfast)

● Night Insect Observation with black light
● Station/ Old Schoolhouse Botany Walks
● Coral and Fish Visual Surveys
● Mangrove Surveys
● Documentary Viewings and Discussions

Other Optional Activities (additional costs may apply):

● Basket Weaving with Miss Annie: $15 per person/basket, two evening sessions – only available on Monday and Tuesday evenings.
● Night Snorkel: Must have a minimum of 8 people. $10 per guest and dive lights are required. Must bring your own dive light or rent one from Forfar for $5 a light.

● Meet Henry Wallace at Red Bays. He will perform a woodcarving demo and presentation for an additional $40 per group (plus gratuities). Advanced reservation required.

● Joulter’s Cay Day Trip: Full day boat trip to the North of the island. Popular request by geology groups for the ooids. Prices vary, contact the office for more details. $750+ for the trip.
● West Side Day Trip: Full day boat trip to the west side of the island. We hire local fisherman for transportation. Prices vary, contact the office for more details. $50 per student and $100 for teachers/chaperones.
● Kayak Trip: Available as a group activity in lieu of visiting a land or sea site and only for groups smaller than 14 people. Individual kayak rentals cost $30 for 2 hours, $10 for every additional hour when not part of a group activity.

Forfar Field Station runs a PADI Dive Shop. Visitors who are already SCUBA certified may go on early morning dives (~6 AM) before the days scheduled group activities. Check with the IFS office to see if any certification classes can be arranged as it depends on the season and available staffing resources. Review our Diving Guide for more information.

**Please note that diving is not guaranteed and is weather dependent.

Group Data Sheet

The information on this form will be shared with the Field Station Manager for trip planning purposes such as ordering food, assigning cabins, and planning staff schedules.
Group Name*
Trip Start Date:*
Trip End Date:*
Title/Name of Course:
Is the course offered for credit? If so, how many credits?
Have you visited Forfar before? If so, during what years have you visited?*
If this is your first trip to Forfar, how did you hear about us?
Do you plan on performing research during your trip?*
If yes, have you secured all the required permits?
If you are wanting to perform research but do not have the required permits, please call the office at: 614-268-9930.
Please upload a copy of your permits, including permit numbers:

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Contact Information
Group Leader(s):*
Phone Number (Personal):*
Email*
example@example.com
School/Group Name:*
Phone Number (School):

Group Breakdown (for housing purposes)

Cabin arrangements will be based on group size, gender, and cabin availability. If you have preferences please return them with the group data sheet, otherwise, the station director will assign.
Leaders:
# Males: 0*
# Females: 0*
# Nonbinary: 0*
Chaperones:
# Males: 0*
# Females:0*
# Nonbinary:0*
Students:
# Males: 0
# Females: 0*
# Nonbinary: 0
Total Number of Participants: *
For cabin arrangement purposes, if anyone in your group identifies as nonbinary, please note which gender they prefer to room with:
What is your preference for chaperone housing?*
Do you require specialized or private housing? If so, please explain below:

Scuba Diving Information

Forfar requires a minimum of 2 divers to go out on a dive and a $100 minimum payment is required. Divers must be certified prior to arrival and will not be permitted to dive without appropriate paperwork. Please contact the office or review our Diving Guide for more information
How many scuba divers are in your group?*
How many dives would you like to do?*
Any special diving information?

Travel Information
Arrival in Nassau:
(must be prior to 12:45PM):
Arrival Date: Date
Time of Arrival: Time
Airline: ex: Delta, American
Flight #: ex: AA 1234
Departure from Nassau:
(must depart after 12:00PM):
Departure Date: Date
Departure Time: Time
Airline: ex: Delta, American
Flight #: ex: AA 1234

Trip Objectives and Educational Goals
Trip Objectives:*
(Please be as specific as possible,. What you are studying, what you expect the students to come away with after the trip, etc.
Itinerary Summary:*
Knowing that we have to account for other groups and the weather, please be as specific as possible on the activities and specific sites you want to visit, or if you have something planned with someone locally that we need to build into your schedule.
Upload Tentative Itinerary Summary (optional)

If you have created a tentative itinerary or have a previous Forfar schedule that you followed in the past, please upload it here.
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For a 7-night stay, there are 5 evenings open for an evening activity/lecture (Thursday nights are reserved for a dinner out at a local restaurant). Please keep in mind that if you choose to do basket weaving, this takes place on both Monday and Tuesday evenings, which means you will only need tp pick 4 evening activities.

Evening activity options consist of lectures, night snorkeling ($10/person), basket weaving ($15/person total - 2 nights), and watching a documentary.
From the list of lectures on page 1, and from the list above of optional evening activities, please list the 5 most important for your visit. Please only list 5. *
Ex: if the Fish ID lecture and the Coral ID lecture are a high priority, please list them. There are 5 free evenings, so please list 5 activities/lectures. This will help the Station Manager prioritize these topics while creating your itinerary.
Special Requests for Returning Groups:
Ex: a special trip you want to take, a specific site/stop, a specific restaurant you want to visit, or something that would require advanced planning.
Additional Policies:
Are there any additional policies that you would like IFS staff to enforce during your trip? Ex: students will not have phones all week, students should not have the Wi-Fi password, need time set aside for your group projects/field journaling assignments, etc.
Should be Empty:

Group Data Sheet Introduction

Group Data Sheet

Contact Information

Group Breakdown (for housing purposes)

Scuba Diving Information

Travel Information

Trip Objectives and Educational Goals