Planetary Sciences (2 year award).

Josh Emery's Fellowship is co-sponsored by the Department of Planetary Sciences.

He summarizes his Space Grant outreach project as follows:
My feelings are that the major obstacle standing in the way of public knowledge of space science is not lack availability of information or resources, but rather is lack of interest and knowledge base. Coverage of space science in the popular press has been greatly improving as late and will most likely keep improving. Most urban areas already have fairly impressive outreach programs in place or at least under construction, especially Tucson with Kitt Peak and the UofA both working hard to contribute to the community. The problem is that in order to reach out to people they have to be interested. People are generally more interested in topics about which they already have some knowledge base, even if that base if rudimentary. If people know a little about space science, then they will be more tempted to read that magazine article or attend that community space science function. Following this line of reasoning, I believe that it is extremely important to introduce children to space science (and all subject matters really) very early in thier lives. Pre-schools and elementary schools generally do an excellent job of teaching the basics (i.e. reading, writing, arithmetic) but generally don't cover other subject areas. When time is found to introduce students to the non-basics, science is usually the last to be covered. If time is found to teach thechildren science, it is almost invariably not in the form of space science. A large number of students make it the whole way through kindergarten to 12th grade without ever learning about our solar system let alone our universe. I therefore believe that it is imperitive that we introduce our children to space science early, when their minds are still hungry for knowledge of all types. This way, when the oppurtunity comes to them later in life to learn more, they will have the base of knowledge and the interest to do so.

Over the past year I have been trying to improve myself so that I can be competent to do the job I outlined above. I have been studying early childhood teaching methods and talking to some elementary and pre-school teachers in order to learn from them what children are being taught today, what they believe their students are capable of and also to get some feedback on my own ideas. I have tried a few times to go into some pre-school and after school programs and give the children a sort of science day with a focus on space sciene. I quickly learned that I was in a bit over my head. The children were eager and excited, but excited children in large groups are tough to handle, something that seems obvious but I learned the hard way. Also the time needed for organizing and preparing such a project is infinitely greater than I had anticipated. I also realized that children respond much more effectively to a person or group who return on a fairly regular basis. So a one-shot science day is not going to be nearly as effective as an organized, regular program. Because of my utter over failure this past year, my plans have changed a bit. For the upcoming year I plan to participate in a program which is already organized, and I hope regular. This way I can get more experience with teaching and I can hopefully see what is needed for a successful implementation of my ideas.

A graduate student in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering (AME) was awarded a 2 year Space Grant Graduate Fellowship beginning in the Fall of 1996. AME, his nominating department, is co-sponsoring Jeff's award. Jeff has the distinction of being the first UA Space Grant Undergraduate Research Intern (1993-94) to continue on to graduate school at UA and to be awarded a Space Grant Graduate Fellowship!

Jeff describes his Space Grant outreach project as follows:
I am working on a site on the internet where people of all ages and backgrounds can come explore the impact that the space program has on their everyday lives. The American space program has produced thousands of "spinoffs" through a process of technology-transfer; many of these are revolutionary and most are taken for granted. My site will educate people about high-technology research as it relates to the space program, and to how it relates to us here on Earth. There is much to be learned and this is a very important topic for all people to understand.

Also, as part of my outreach project, I am working with organizations to provide web services for public, mainly student use. I have already created:

A web page for the AIAA SSTC (Space-Systems Technical Committee) which describes what the committee is about; and biographies on all memebers.
A help page for two AIAA student design competitions sponsored by the SSTC. This help page is for students putting together proposals for the design competition who have questions about any aspect of the proposal preparation process. URL: http://ares.ame.arizona.edu/ That's it for now. There may be some more projects as the semester progresses...

Renewable Natural Resources (1 year award)

Jake's Space Grant Fellowship is co-sponsored by the Department of Renewable Natural Resources and The Institute for the Study of Planet Earth (ISPE).

He describes his Space Grant outreach project as follows:
I am working to establish an interactive science outreach program with students in science classes in southeastern Arizona. Elementary-, middle-, and high school students will be involved in a large-scale, experimental research project designed to assess the effects of potential climate change on the ecosystems in which they live and are active. In particular, students will help me investigate potential scenarios of anthropogenically-induced changes in precipitation distribution (i.e., amount and seasonality) on the recruitment of trees at a woodland/grassland boundary. Students will help apply simulated precipitation at predetermined, experimental rates, and will help assess the effects of different treatments on tree and grass populations. We will discuss our results in terms of potential effects of climate change on vegetation distribution, with a focus on subsequent ramifications for residents of southeastern Arizona.

Progress report (February 22, 1996):

My outreach program is moving along at great speed: I met with my first set of students (and parents) during the first week of February - we all had a great time. Their knowlege and interest amazed me. I am quite excited about the curriculum (e.g., we wrap Saran-wrap around the globe to simulate carbon dioxide; students fill out and interpret their own data sheets in the field), and support from teachers, parents, and students has been quite high. I will be conducting at least three field trips in the first two weeks of March with students from Tucson and Sierra Vista. My goal is to talk to and conduct field trips with at least 150 students (plus parents and teachers) by the end of the semester. And, I am looking into working with community groups (of adults) under a modified curriculum - education is a process that doesn't end with school.

June 1996 update:

It's the end of the schoolyear, so I'm planning on putting my outreach program on the summer back burner (not like it's cool outside or anything - yikes!). Overall, the year was a great success. I spoke with a total of about 330 students ranging in age from 8 to 13, including a Tucson Home School Group, Daughters on Campus, and 6th and 7th grade science classes from Smith Middle School, Fort Huachuca Military Reservation. In addition, most of these students joined me on a total of six field trips to my research site at Lower Garden Canyon. There, we discussed the effects of global climate change on ecosystems and ecotones, and collected, summarized, and analyzed data from my research plots. I enjoyed being grilled about my experimental design and research methodology by kids about half my size! I've also found out I like teaching - so that's a big change for me. My wife, the teacher, is delighted. So, I look forward to next year. I've already got speaking requests, and want to expand up to include the eighth grade.

Update: 7 Feb 1997

I will be going to my outreach demonstration site for the next several Saturdays to get things set up for the first groups of students. The main task is going to be getting some seedlings established and growing in the plots - we lost them all in last fall's drought! (How's that for a demo of reality?). The first three sets of students will be from Sunnyside High School. And, Sunnyside is picking up the travel tab by using their own buses! The next set will be from Mountain View High School or Salpointe. And, I'll be speaking to and field tripping with the AZ Sonoran Desert Museum junior naturalists later this month and in March.

Update: 26 Feb 1997

I went to the Desert Museum last weekend (February 22-23), and will this weekend, to talk to the Junior Naturalists and a Climate Change/Science Teacher Training and Curriculum Symposium. I will travel locally on the 6th and 7th of March (Desertview speaking and field trip), and to the study site (field trip with Junior Naturalists) on the 8th. I may travel to Benson and the study site on the 13th and 14th. I travel locally on the 20th and 21st (Desertview again). I have a field trip for my global change class scheduled for either the 12th or 19th April. I will be local on the 17 and 18th of April (Sunnyside HS).

Space Engineering Research Center (SERC) (1 year award)

Steve describes his Space Grant outreach project: As a start I'm planning to massage the paper I wrote for my planetary science class. The topic is oxygen as a resource on mars. The paper deals primarily with where oxygen can be found and how you would go about getting it. I will work on bringing down the reading level so that highschool students will be able to enjoy it. I plan on putting it on the SERC website in both the original and re-written forms so that people will be able to learn more about the work we are doing at SERC.

Planetary Sciences (2 year award)

Cynthia's award is co-sponsored by the Department of Planetary Sciences.

Here's a brief summary of my outreach project: I'm working on developing the Galileo Satellite Science objectives into a set of curriculum modules adaptable for grades K-12. These modeules will be available on the Galileo educational web pages, as well as in stand-alone format for teachers without web access.

http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/~phillips

Hydrology/Water Resources (1 year award)

Bob's Space Grant outreach project: I'm organizing a presentation for K-12 grades on water. It covers some show-and-tell type physics (polarity, dissociation, phase changes, latent heat), plus some basic hydrology such as the hydrologic cycle, ground water flow, water quality, and ecology. I'm also assembling some scientific review documents regarding the San Pedro Basin, with the intent of being able to put together a field trip to the San Pedro sometime this spring.

Space Engineering Research Center (SERC) (2 year award)

Steve Brod is a graduate student in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering. His award is co-sponsored by the University of Arizona's Space Engineering Research Center (SERC).

Steve describes his outreach project as follows: Our lives are dominated by technology. Science is the key to understanding that technology. My project, the writing of a short book for kids, attempts to make the connection between the science learned in the classroom, and the way we use that science everyday. I also want to demonstrate the science we use everyday is the foundation of all science, including the front page sort of stuff that everyone thinks is so great. (My hope is, of course, that students will think that the everyday stuff is exciting, not that the exciting stuff is now boring.)

I am in my second year of the Masters program in Educational Psychology at the University of Arizona. My greatest interest is in technology enhanced learning environments in the STEM fields. I work closely with my institutional partner, the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum (ASDM) and its Education Director to design and develop an online student built interactive web based portal. The interactive portal allows teachers to easily manage classes, create groups, and evaluate students’ work. Students use NASA aerial and satellite temporal images and other resources to investigate a geographical area on such topics as water resources, urban heat islands, wild fire impact, and others. Once an investigation is complete the students report significant findings and present before/after images of the area using intuitive tools of the interactive web based portal.

I will develop 2 or 3 complete lesson plans that will cover topics such as water cycle, urban water use, wild fires in Arizona and others (the exact topics will depend on the needs of the ASDM). The lesson plans will be project-based and include the latest findings in educational research.

My previous experience in working on technology enhanced learning environments and what I learned in the first year of my Masters program lead me to believe that it is very important to understand how teachers evaluate and use available technology for educational purposes. I am developing a questionnaire that will shed light on the process teachers go through when evaluating technologies for educational purposes. The design and functionality of the web portal and the findings from the answers to the questionnaire will form part of my Maters thesis. 

Monica will be working with the US Environmental Protection Agency, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and the towns of Dewey-Humboldt, Arizona to determine the quality of vegetables grown in home gardens neighboring the Iron King Mine and Humboldt Smelter Superfund Site (IKMHSS).

Monica has developed the Gardenroots project is in response to community concerns regarding the quality of produce from home gardens. She will be working with local vegetable gardeners to determine if their soils and vegetable gardens have been impacted by the mine tailing waste from the IKMHSS. Monica will carry out a citizen science program that will actively engage community members in the sampling collection process and in the design of project's outreach materials. Citizen Scientists of the Dewey-Humboldt, Arizona area will be:

• Trained in how to collect water, soil and vegetable samples from their gardens for micronutrient and metals analyses,
• Better informed regarding the quality of the vegetables they grow, and issues related to soil and water quality in Arizona and the Southwest US; and
• Empowered, as they will communicate the information revealed by the project and be ambassadors for the environment in their community.

My outreach program aims to incorporate San Carlos Apache high school students participating in the Bylas and San Carlos summer youth program, sponsored by Mount Graham International Observatory, in my doctoral research on the process of natal dispersal and settlement in federally endangered Mt. Graham red squirrels. My goal is to provide important hands-on experiences with spatial technologies such as radio telemetry, map and compass, GPS, GIS, and remotely sensed imagery for students to help us understand what landscape features influences where juvenile red squirrels explore and eventually settle. In the field we will see different squirrel behaviors, forest types, and conditions, and in a GIS we will be able to examine home ranges and other spatial data such as roads, fires, and forest damage due to tree death, that may impact squirrel space use. I will use hands-on, inquiry-based approaches to field study in combination with visiting speakers from federal agencies and universities to instill excitement about ecological research and increase appreciation regarding the value of STEM-based education, particularly among students traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields.