NASA Names New Explorer Schools
NASA will formally announce the 50 schools representing
the next round of participants for the NASA Explorer Schools
Program. The announcement is at the Doubletree Hotel, Cocoa
Beach, Fla., at 9 a.m. EDT, Wednesday, May 12, 2004.
NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe, Associate Administrator for
Education Dr. Adena Loston, astronauts, agency officials,
students and teachers will discuss and share inspiring
stories about the innovative NASA Explorer Schools Program.
The program debuted June 30, 2003. It sends science and
mathematics teachers “back to school” at NASA Centers during
the summer to acquire new teaching resources and technology
tools. The program uses NASA’s unique content, experts and
other resources to make learning science, mathematics and
technology more appealing to students.
The announcement culminates a week of activities for
students and educators attending the 2004 Leadership
Institute/2003 NASA Explorer Schools Student Symposium, May
8-12.
Activities prior to the announcement include:
– May 8: Educator Team leaders from each of the 2004
schools attend a Leadership Institute to obtain
information about evaluation, expectations, and
communications.
– May 9: 2003 student teams present information about
science or mathematics investigations that have occurred
in conjunction with the regular classroom curriculum
during the past school year.
– May 10: 2003 and 2004 student and teacher participants
tour Kennedy Space Center and the Kennedy Visitor Center
– May 11: 2003 and 2004 student and teacher participants visit Epcot’s Mission
Space, and participate in activities/presentations by Messenger scientists and
Messenger Ambassadors.
– The NASA Explorer Schools Program, sponsored by the NASA Education
Enterprise in collaboration with the National Science Teachers Association
(NSTA), establishes a three-year partnership between NASA and 50 Explorer
Schools teams each spring.
Teams of teachers and education administrators represent
diverse communities across the country. During the
commitment period, NASA education specialists and scientists
from NASA Centers provide investigation opportunities and
professional development to the teams to spark innovative
science and mathematics instruction directed specifically at
students in grades four through nine.
The 2004 Explorer Schools teams represent 34 states. Eighty
percent of the schools are located in high poverty areas,
with 74 percent representing predominantly minority
communities. Sixty percent of the competitively selected
school teams are represented in both high poverty and high
minority populations.
The event will be carried live on NASA TV available on AMC-
9, transponder 9C, C-Band, located at 85 degrees west
longitude. The frequency is 3880.0 MHz. Polarization is
vertical, and audio is monaural at 6.80 MHz. The event will
also be available via webcast. For information about NASA TV
on the Internet, visit:
For information about the NASA Explorer Schools Program on
the Internet, visit:
http://explorerschools.nasa.gov
For information about other NASA Education programs on the
Internet, visit:
For information about NASA and agency programs on the
Internet, visit:
