Casual Space 60: Teacher in Space program President Elizabeth Kennick
You know that teachers are already an intricate and massively important part of helping to educate (STEAM) and inspire student explorers and curious minds! And while some great PAYLOADS have gone from the classroom to space, it soon will be the TEACHERS TURN TO EXPLORE. This opportunity is way overdue, don't you think?
Liz Kinnick and her team at the Teachers In Space program agrees. So she's working to provide teachers with extraordinary space science experiences and industry connections.
- Liz was on an international flight when she read an article from British Airways inviting Liz to "collect your miles and go to space"… and thus the plans began.
- The Teachers in Space program is a non-for-profit, independent organization, and started as a project of the Space Frontier Foundation, inspired by NASA's Teacher in Space Program.
- In 2008, the Space Frontier Foundation felt like the space sub-orbital programs that were starting should include teachers to be cheaper, safer, more environmentally friendly and does not quite exist yet- you can't fly as a paid passenger YET.
- The first call-out was done by the Space Frontier Foundation and they received 1,100 teacher responses- a lot of a time when there we no flights, and the space shuttle program was about to end with the launch of Endeavor. 7 were selected and several teachers are still with the program. Some were even from NASA Educator Astronaut Trainee program.
WHAT CAN I DO? Go to www.teachers-in-space.com and donate. OR tell your local school/ science museum/ church camp/ educations that there's a place that can provide them resources for students who are interested in space!
More information on Teachers In Space:
Teachers in Space, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit educational organization which stimulates student interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by providing their teachers with extraordinary space science experiences and industry connections.
Our professional development workshops for STEM teachers include personal and experimental flight opportunities, hands-on work with data sensors and remote device control, opportunities to meet and interact with scientists and developers at NASA and commercial space companies, and unique teaching materials and design contests to take back to the classroom.
Teachers In Space, Inc. sparks a transfer of passion for space science and exploration from teachers to their students, preparing and encouraging those students to pursue further education and exciting, rewarding careers in the emerging space industry.
About Liz: Liz Kennick has directed the Teachers in Space (TIS) program since 2011, initially as a project manager for the Space Frontier Foundation (SFF). In 2014 Liz and her management team incorporated TIS as an educational nonprofit organization in the state of New York.
A member of SFF's Board from 2009-2013, Liz was previously Vice President of Client Technology at Morgan Stanley with a $2M annual budget for 1700 software users. She holds degrees in Information Systems / Operations Analysis, English, and Education and is certified as a Project Management Professional and as a Network Engineer. Liz is co-founder of NYC's Software Process Improvement Network and has produced Yuri's Night NY, a space-themed party for 200+ guests, annually since 2008, and TEDxMidTownNY, as space-themed speaker series, in 2010-2011.
Liz created the Space Frontier Foundation's Business Plan Bootcamp for the 5 finalists in the foundation's 2011 Business Plan Competition, and was a judge at the 2011 SEDS Student Business Plan Competition. She created Escape Guesthouse LLC, a boutique bed and breakfast in Brooklyn, New York in 2006 and sold it in 2013 for 3 times purchase price.
She has flown on ZeroG, experienced centrifuge and hypobaric chamber training, scuba dived to 70 feet, and climbed Cotopaxi, Earth's highest extinct volcano. Liz is a frequent speaker on The Space Show, The Invisible World, Rotary Club and TEDx events, and at conferences such as NewSpace, SpaceVision, Project World and the International Space Development Conference (ISDC). Her 2014 TEDx presentation "Gimme Some Space!" can be seen at: http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/Space-adventures-get-real-Eliza
BONUS NOTES FROM THE SHOW:
- Best thing that's happened in the Teacher in Space program lately? Standing in Texas watching Blue Origin launching their payload! (A CubeSat that they've been working on since 2012!)
- Blue Steel by "Consider the Source" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlkiOYUmzkg