Virtual Trips to Extreme Environments
This NASA-funded program leverages the excitement of NASA research at extreme environments with a virtual mentoring program to increase student interest in STEM careers and STEM identity.
VIRTEX will connect Boys & Girls Clubs with researchers who study unique extreme environments. Students meet virtually with these “NASA Mentors” who conduct exciting research in unique laboratory settings and at remote field locations. Through dialogue before, during, and after a virtual fieldtrip with NASA Mentors, students develop an increased understanding of the mentors’ backgrounds, motivations to do research, problem-solving skills, and career pathways, while learning more about unique NASA research and these extreme environments that their mentors work in.
Events
VIRTEX Co-Design Workshop
On October 19 – 20, 2023, VIRTEX will hold a 2-day co-design workshop at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, TX to begin to develop this curriculum, with input from education staff at Boys & Girls Clubs. Travel stipends will be provided to those selected to attend.
Apply now to participate.
Application deadline: September 10, 2023.
Co-Design Workshop goals:
- Explore a variety of hands-on activities that connect to STEM careers, NASA research, problem-solving skills, and communication and collaboration.
- Gather input from Boys & Girls Clubs staff on student interests, skills, and experiences.
- Brainstorm modifications and new activities that will be useful, exciting, and of interest for BGC students ages 10-15.
For more information, contact Christine Shupla at [email protected].
VIRTEX will connect students with researchers working in extreme environments such as:
- Planetary analog and astrobiology, and Earth science field sites
- Research posts in Antarctica
- Astromaterials Curation and Research Laboratories at NASA Johnson Space Center
- Poker Flat Research Range in Alaska’s icy interior
- Haughton Mars Project Research Station on Devon Island
VIRTEX Team Members and Partners:
Principal Investigator: Dr. Lisa Gaddis, LPI Director
Project Manager: Christine Shupla, LPI Science Engagement Manager
Evaluator: Dr. Sanlyn Buxner, Planetary Science Institute
Education and Engagement Specialists
- Dr. Grace Beaudoin, LPI
- Kevi Duty, Texas Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs
- Paige Graff, Jacobs at NASA Johnson Space Center, ARES
- Daniella Scalice, NASA Ames
Lead Mentors
- Dr. Justin Filiberto, NASA Johnson Space Center, ARES
- Dr. Robert Herrick, University of Alaska Fairbanks
- Dr. Pascal Lee, Haughton-Mars Project, SETI Institute
- Dr. Kennda Lynch, LPI
- Dr. Prajkta Mane, LPI
Partners
- Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET), Dr. James Karner
- BlackInAstro, Ashley Walker
- Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, Dr. Graham Lau and Julia DeMarines
- GeoLatinas, Dr. Frances Rivera-Hernandez and Dr. Cindy Bergeron
For more information, contact [email protected].
Funded Partners:
Collaborators:
VIRTEX is supported by NASA Next Gen STEM, a project of NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, under cooperative agreement award number 80NSSC23M0078. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
