GLENDALE TEACHER SELECTED FOR NASA LIFTOFF INSTITUTE

PHOENIX, AZ, UNITED STATES, June 12, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- GLENDALE TEACHER SELECTED FOR NASA LIFTOFF INSTITUTE

Bayer School science teacher Art Borja is an Arizona teacher selected for this summer’s prestigious LiftOff Summer Institute. This nationally competitive program, sponsored by NASA’s Texas Space Grant Consortium and the University of Texas Center for Space Research, selects teachers who will increase their science, technology, engineering, and math knowledge through space education.

Liftoff 2024’s theme is Growing on Earth for Space Exploration! The institute provides teachers the rare – and, for most, unique – opportunity to spend a week working with professional scientists and engineers at the cutting edge of space exploration. As human space exploration advances, so should our knowledge and expertise in growing plants on long-duration space missions, the Moon, and other planets. Participants will increase their understanding of specialized environments for growth and development on Earth, in microgravity, and beyond! “I am very excited about this opportunity as I always look for new project ideas for my students. Last year, my students built a radio telescope to observe radio waves from the sun and Jupiter,” said Borja. A NASA / Arizona State University Space grant will fund Art Borja’s local institute expenses.

PROGRAM FEATURES:
■ Presentations by NASA scientists and engineers
■ Hands-on, inquiry-based classroom activities aligned to educational standards
■ Career Exploration
■ Teacher Feature (sharing of classroom lessons and activities)
■ Opportunity to interact with researchers dedicated to space missions

LiftOff is a collaborative effort of the University of Texas Center for Space Research, Texas Space Grant Consortium members and affiliates, NASA, and industry. Teachers apply for LiftOff and are selected competitively. The workshops are organized around an aerospace or space science theme drawn from NASA’s diverse engineering and scientific research programs. The weeklong institute features a series of workshops, hands-on activities, field investigations, and presentations by NASA scientists and engineers working on various missions.

We celebrate all that NASA has contributed in the past and will contribute to the future and the engineering behind its accomplishments at LiftOff 2024. Teachers selected for Liftoff will return to their school districts to not only use materials received in their own classroom, but to train other educators. Educators selected will come together June 24 - June 28 to conduct experiments, hear from NASA subject matter experts and astronauts, and network with other educators while sharing innovative lesson plans and ideas.

The LiftOff workshops prove that the excitement teachers, and more importantly, their students, feel about Earth and space science can be used to enrich STEM education and inspire the next generation of explorers. “I feel very fortunate to have been selected for this program and look forward to interacting with the NASA scientists and engineers and with other passionate educators from around the country,” said Borja. “ The experience will translate into engaging lessons for my students at Bayer.

This nationally competitive educational training for teachers is sponsored by the University of Texas Center for Space Research and NASA’s Texas Space Grant Consortium. Teachers interested in learning more about LiftOff 2024 may visit the following URL: https://www.csr.utexas.edu/liftoff/.

Celena Miller
Center for Space Research-The University of Texas at Austin
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