Groton — Tessa Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant/UConn Extension aquaculture educator at the University of Connecticut, has been awarded a grant totaling $315,240 to enhance the growth of Connecticut aquaculture and shellfisheries, Connecticut Sea Grant announced Monday.

The project, titled “Listening, Learning and Leading to Support Shellfish Aquaculture Growth in Connecticut and the Nation” is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Sea Grant College Program’s Aquaculture Technology Transfer Initiative.

The effort will allow Connecticut Sea Grant, UConn Extension staff and key partners including the Connecticut Bureau of Aquaculture and the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Milford Laboratory to carry out activities meant to enhance public awareness of Connecticut’s shellfish resources, Sea Grant said in a news release.

The work will support the ongoing Connecticut Shellfish Initiative, a multiyear effort to bring commercial and recreational shellfishermen, municipal shellfish commissioners, academics, nonprofit groups and state and federal resource managers together to grow the shellfish industry, increase recreational shellfishing opportunities and enhance natural shellfish populations.