still formulating ideas about the exact role Sea Grant 
should play in this field; early recommendations 
focus on a liaison and coordination role for the na- 
tional Sea Grant office and curriculum development 
and liaison roles for the Sea Grant colleges. 
In stating the position of the Office of Sea Grant 
on precollege education, Director Ned A. Ostenso 
wrote to directors of Sea Grant Colleges, Institutions, 
and Programs in March 1977: 
“The Office of Sea Grant strongly endorses 
the position that marine topics are an im- 
portant element of a balanced pre-college 
educational program and recognizes that 
no single curriculum or program is ade- 
quate to the needs of the Nation. 
“The expertise and infrastructure of the 
Sea Grant system can and should con- 
tribute to improving the marine content 
of pre-college education through coopera- 
tion with and support of local, regional, 
State, and national organizations and agen- 
cies that foster and are responsible for pre- 
college education. 
“These Sea Grant-sponsored activities sup- 
porting pre-college marine education will 
be conducted through existing administra- 
tive procedures. No special guidelines will 
be promulgated.” 
Precollege education now is considered an integral 
part of the Sea Grant Program, and in fiscal year 
1977 Sea Grant increased its spending in this area 
by 300 percent. On August 25, 1977, the U.S. Com- 
missioner of Education and the Administrator of 
NOAA signed a “memorandum of agreement.” In 
the words of an accompanying press release, its pur- 
pose is “to help develop a coordinated marine en- 
vironmental education program at Federal, State, 
regional, and local levels.” Under the agreement, the 
agencies will share information and the Office of 
Education will encourage State departments of edu- 
cation, educational organizations, and colleges to 
work closely with existing marine-oriented institu- 
tions and programs such as the Sea Grant colleges. 
Special emphasis will be placed on Sea Grant projects 
dealing with the marine education of inner-city and 
minority children.*° 
Sea Grant officials emphasize that this will not 
result in a new spending program, but rather is aimed 
at redirecting existing programs and improving co- 
ordination between the two agencies. 
At this point, it is unclear what specific direction 
these efforts will take or what will result. To date, 
the proponents of the new approach in general ma- 
rine education have focused on developing a rationale 
and a basic strategy; we will have to wait for the 
details. In addition, if proponents want increased 
Federal funds for this effort, they will have to con- 
vince the Government that there is a pressing need 
for a larger Federal effort and that it deserves higher 
priority than other educational programs. 
Public Information 
Federal Policy 
Two basic concepts underlie the public informa- 
tion programs of the ocean agencies. One is the 
traditional concept tnat the Government should make 
information on its programs avaiiabie to help inform 
the citizenry. However, there are certain difficulties 
here, reflecting tension between the overall objectives 
of providing Federal assistance while at the same 
time assuring that the Federal role remain limited 
and controlled. There is the question of who should 
present this information to the public; by-and-large, 
the traditional American approach has been to let 
intermediate institutions such as the press filter the 
Government-supplied information. There is also ten- 
sion over the related question of when the legitimatg 
efforts of an agency to publicize its actions become 
an effort to propagandize. In general, the present 
American answer to this dilemma again is to let the 
press and others select what they will and will not 
be passed on to the public. 
Results of the first concept are the traditional 
public information programs of the agencies, which 
focus on issuing press releases, facilitating interviews 
and giving other assistance to the press, answering 
requests from the public, and issuing some general 
brochures or providing speakers that describe the 
agency and the importance of its mission. One vari- 
ation on this theme is the Sea Grant Communica- 
tions program which uses radio and other media to 
distribute educational materials. 
However, in recent years another, often contro- 
versial, concept has influenced the agencies. This is 
the notion that Government offices should help, or at 
least not hinder, efforts by the public to participate 
in Government decision making. This concept itself 
is a reflection of citizen awareness of the size 
and impact of new Government programs, such as 
those in the marine field, coupled with what one 
author calls “the primary purpose of citizen par- 
ticipation-—increasing the responsiveness and ac- 
countability of Government to the citizens affected 
by public decisions.” “° 
The concept of Government aid to public par- 
ticipation appears to have two parts: increasing ac- 
® U.S. Department of Commerce. “NOAA, Office of Education 
Sign Marine Education Pact,’ News Release NOAA 77-281, 
November 15, 1977 
“Nelson M. Rosenbaum. Citizen Involvement in Land Use 
Governance. Washington, D.C., The Urban Institute, 1976, p. 1. 
VII[-28 
