NASA formally announced the next 50 schools chosen to participate in the NASA Explorer Schools Program. The schools were named at the conclusion of the 2004 Leadership Institute/2003 NASA Explorer Schools Student Symposium May 12 in Cocoa Beach, Fla. NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe, Associate Administrator for Education Dr. Adena Loston, astronauts, Agency officials, students and teachers were on hand for the announcement.
This year’s 50 Explorer School Teams are from 34 states. These schools were selected from Kennedy Space Center’s district area, which includes Florida and Georgia. The schools are: Immokalee Middle School and Pine Ridge Middle School, both in Naples, Fla.; Howard A. Doolin Middle School in Miami; University Community Academy and Ronald E. McNair High School, both in Atlanta; and Gainesville Elementary School in Gainesville, Ga.
The program seeks to give teachers new teaching resources and technology tools using NASA’s unique content, experts and other resources. The goal is to make learning science, mathematics and technology more appealing to students. The program is directed specifically at students in grades 4 through 9.
The initiative is sponsored by the NASA Education Enterprise in collaboration with the National Science Teachers Association. Each year, the program establishes a three-year partnership between NASA and the 50 NASA Explorer Schools teams, consisting of teachers and education administrators from diverse communities across the country.
Eighty percent of the schools are located in high-poverty areas, with 75 percent representing predominantly minority communities. Fifty-eight percent of the competitively selected school teams are located in both poverty and high-minority districts.
