24 Teachers from 13 States to Become NASA Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors

24 Teachers from 13 States to Become NASA Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors PRESS RELEASE DATE March 1, 2022 CONTACT Rebecca McDonald Director of Communications SETI Institute rmcdonald@seti.org Dr. Dana Backman AAA Program Lead SETI Institute March 1, 2022,... More

24 Teachers from 13 States to Become NASA Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors PRESS RELEASE DATE March 1, 2022 CONTACT Rebecca McDonald Director of Communications SETI Institute rmcdonald@seti.org Dr. Dana Backman AAA Program Lead SETI Institute March 1, 2022, Mountain View, CA — The SETI Institute has selected 24 teachers dbackman@seti.org from 13 states as 2022 NASA Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors (AAAs). AAA is a professional development program for science teachers to improve science teaching and enhance student learning and STEM engagement. The AAA program includes teachers in middle schools, high schools, and community colleges. AAA teachers receive training in astrophysics and planetary science, including a week-long STEM immersion experience at a NASA astronomy research facility such as the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) based in Palmdale, California or the Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea in Hawaii. After their training, the AAAs teach a phys Less