Earlier this month NASA released its list of organizations to receive funding for stem education, one of which is in Connecticut.
The Mystic Seaport Museum and Planetarium is one of only two New England awardees to receive grant funding to promote student participation in STEM fields. Twenty-one museums, libraries, colleges and other groups were chosen to be part of NASA’s community anchor program.
The team in Mystic aims to engage middle school students with hands-on programs, particularly in underserved communities. Programs will be provided at no cost.
Due to the grant’s nature, planetarium supervisor Brian Koehler explains that the program will focus on two primary themes, including the James Webb telescope that's set to launch this month to succeed the Hubble.
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“Over the course of the next few years it’ll be about what the James Webb telescope is discovering and how it is discovering that,” Koehler says.
Koehler adds that another highly anticipated NASA mission will be a focal point, “the second big theme is going to be the Artemis mission. These are the upcoming manned missions to bring humans back to the moon.”
Planning, developing and testing will make up the next few months before the new programs officially start for two select schools next fall.
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