Roundhouse Aquarium Invites Public To ReOpening Celebration

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — The Roundhouse Aquarium is inviting the public to attend a festive celebration of their re-opening on June 19, the Oceanographic Teaching Stations, Inc—the non-profit corporation that manages the Roundhouse Aquarium Teaching Center (OTC) on the Manhattan Beach Pier—announced in a release.

The festivities will take place from 12-6 p.m. Advanced reservations are recommended.

To comply with public health orders, OTS had suspended in-person classes and public hours in March 2020.

“We expect relaxation of the public health orders and a gradual return to normal operations due to progress in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, " John Roberts, OTS president, said in a statement."We want to celebrate that progress. Please join us.”

The reopening celebration will include outdoor activity tables, crafts, and live performances by two local jazz and classical guitarists, the Two Guitars duo of Jefferson Graham and Paul Ellis. Graham will perform solo at 3:30 p.m. and he will be joined by Mr. Ellis at 4 p.m. for their combined musical performance.

Entry to the aquarium will be based on allowed capacity as determined by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

During the closure, Aquarium staff developed technology and lesson plans and began conducting marine science classes using various virtual platforms. In 2020, Aquarium staff taught classes to more than 25,000 students, counting remote classes, and live classes conducted in January and February.

Aquarium staff is currently conducting 38-40 remote classes each week. Word has gotten out through social media and as a result, additional schools are requesting remote classes. Aquarium teachers have presented classes to students as far away as Reno, New York City, and India.

"Our Roundhouse Aquarium is a wonderful community asset,” OTS board member Mark Burton said. “The Roundhouse Aquarium has an educational equity policy and long-standing practice to provide free classes to underserved children and Title I schools. These classes teach the children about the sea animals that live off our coast and the importance of protecting their environment from pollution,” he added.

Following the aquarium’s renovation led by the Harrison Greenberg Foundation with broad community support in 2018, the Roundhouse Aquarium was able to continue its commitment to educational equity for underserved children during the pandemic by providing virtual programs to more than 25,000 students in greater Los Angeles and from across the country and the world. Of these students, 85% were from Title 1 schools.

For more information, contact info@roundhouseaquarium.org or call 310.379-8117.

About the Roundhouse and Oceanographic Teaching Stations, Inc.

For the last 40 years, Oceanographic Teaching Stations, Inc., a private, non-profit organization that operates and manages the Roundhouse Aquarium Teaching Center, has worked to educate all generations about the importance of our oceans, beaches, and tidelands. The Roundhouse has provided life-changing experiences for people of all ages, from a child touching a sea cucumber for the first time, to adults learning how their daily actions affect the ocean. OTS offers a series of immersive, hands-on, and standards-aligned education programs.