NC Space Grant Announces STEM Pre-Service Teacher Education Scholars 2020-21

NC Space Grant is pleased to announce the recipients of the STEM Pre-Service Teacher Education Scholarships for the 2020-21 academic year. These teachers-in-training will experience unique access to NASA education specialists and materials, to prepare them to bring NASA knowledge and resources into their classrooms in the future. 

The STEM Pre-Service Teacher Education Scholarship program is designed for students enrolled in STEM-related teacher education degree programs at the undergraduate level – pre-service teachers. The program is designed to meet multiple objectives at once. First, these scholarships promote science education in the K-12 classroom, focusing on improving pre-­college perceptions and interests in science, science education and science careers. Second, they assist in teachers’ preparation for entering K-12 science classrooms. Lastly, the program equips future teachers with NASA content and tools to use in the classroom.

Scholarship recipients have the opportunity to complete a series of NASA STEM Digital Badges, participate in two cohort webinars and attend at least one Educator Professional Development Webinar offered by NASA Educator Professional Development Collaborative (EPDC). The NASA STEM EPDC digital badge content was developed for teachers and students in grades five through nine and is aligned to Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core. Each badge challenges educators to complete a classroom teaching component to demonstrate their mastery of the content and to adapt it to engaging classroom activities. 

Students will participate in a field trip to NASA Langley Research Center in Virginia in Spring 2021, where they will present a poster of completed module activities at the NASA Langley Office of Education, contingent upon travel guidance from NASA related to COVID-19 precautions.  

New scholar, Lauren Kooistra, says, “Going to the NASA Langley Research Center has been a dream of mine for several years and this scholarship is making that a reality. As a future middle school science teacher, I look forward to learning more about space, technology and the exploration NASA has done, and to one day sharing that with my students.”

The NC Space Grant team is pleased to award STEM Pre-Service Teacher Education Scholarships to the following students, and looks forward to the knowledge and experience they will bring to their future classrooms. 

Cameron Baute attends Lenoir-Rhyne University. He is majoring in elementary education.

Ashley Caldwell attends Queens University and is majoring in elementary education.

Ariel Glosson is an inclusive education major at Western Carolina University. 

Nicole Horton attends the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is majoring in elementary education. 

Lauren Kooistra attends Western Carolina University and is majoring in middle grades science education. 

Maggie Lally is a technology, design and engineering education major at North Carolina State University. 

Johnathaun Lee attends Fayetteville State University. He is majoring in forensic science. 

Victoria Norton attends the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. She is majoring in elementary education for grades K-6. 

Allison Patrick is a elementary education major at High Point University. 

Maia Tice attends Elon University. She is majoring in mathematics with a teaching licensure. 

Kayla Wetmore is an elementary education major at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. 

Mikayla Wright attends the University of North Carolina Asheville. She is majoring in mathematics with a teacher licensure for grades 6-12.

NC Space Grant is proud of all the new scholars and is excited to see how they transfer their new knowledge and skills to their future classrooms.

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Photos at top of page, left to right: Maia Tice, Ariel Glosson and Cameron Baute