Stockton University Students Mentoring Atlantic City Students Through Fishing

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GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) -- Fishing is bringing together kids from an Atlantic City school and students from Stockton University.

Knowing how to tie a hook on a fishing line isn't something many urban kids can brag about, but maybe it's something kids in Atlantic City should know – after all they're growing up on an island.

Shedding new light on the habitat where they live, students from Stockton University's Ecology and Saltwater Fishing class are linking up with 5th and 6th graders from Atlantic City's Richmond Avenue School for a mentoring program called "New Angles for Success."

"So it gets them engaged and hopefully inspired to enjoy this type of stuff," said Adam Aguiar, a biology professor at Stockton University.

For this first gathering, students got hands-on education about shark teeth and other items from the sea. They learned how to cast different rods and reels and they learned knot tying skills.

Stockton's new Atlantic City campus offers the unique experience to live next to and learn about the ocean, while also in an urban setting.

And since mentoring relationships work in both directions, the younger students get an older person to look up to and the college mentors get a fresh perspective from the kids what Atlantic City is like beyond the campus.

"This location is perfect for the program to be housed. The students who live here and go to class here really are becoming a part of the fabric of the community," said Claudine Keenan, Stockton University Dean of Education.

"We're lucky with the bay, the boardwalk, the beach – our kids can be outside doing something all the time if someone is there with them to show them and that's really what this program is about," said Jim McGinn, a science teacher at Richmond Avenue School.