Higher Education Faculty

 

NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) has an essential role in NASA’s education mission “to inspire the next generation of explorers.” SMD has a long and strong history of supporting post-secondary opportunities. Through the Science Education and Public Outreach Forums SMD is working to further strengthen its support of undergraduate programs through opportunities for students and faculty. Here you will find information that will allow you to:


Network with Colleagues
Share ideas, information, and resources for teaching undergraduates through these initiatives:

Heliophysics and Planetary Science Faculty Networks
If you are interested in becoming involved with these emerging networks, please contact Dr. Emily CoBabe-Ammann, Emily A. CoBabe & Associates, Inc., ecobabe “at” spaceeducation.org.

Center for Astronomy Education
The Center for Astronomy Education is dedicated to the professional development of introductory astronomy instructors. Efforts include workshops and an online discussion group for those interested in improving college-level astronomy teaching and learning.

Faculty Institutes for NASA Earth and Space Science Education (FINESSE)
These workshops assist university and community college faculty in preparing future teachers in science education. NASA Earth and space scientists and educators share authentic inquiry activities, data, and resources related to key topics from the national science standards. You may also join the FINESSE online discussion group.


Learn about the SMD Forums’ Higher Education Efforts
Each of the four SMD E/PO Forums has exciting plans and endeavors underway in the area of higher education. These range from facilitating partnership and identification of best practices, to enabling sharing of teaching materials, to promoting networking amongst higher education faculty. We will be posting more as our efforts develop!


Learn about SMD’s Higher Education Working Group Efforts
The Higher Education Working Group is tasked with providing NASA SMD and its four Forums (Astrophysics, Earth Science, Heliophysics, Planetary Science) with data, analysis, and access to expertise on higher education audiences and initiatives. If you are interested in learning more about the Higher Education Working Group, examine the Higher Education section under “Documents.” Over the five-year lifetime of the Forums, this section will grow to contain a library of information about best practices in higher education and the needs of the higher education community with respect to the use of SMD content, expertise, and facilities.


Propose an Education or Public Outreach Project to SMD
SMD encourages higher education faculty to be involved in projects that directly impact the preparation of students. Examples of projects that could involve SMD E/PO funds include:

  • Collaboration between Earth and space science departments and schools of education to enhance the science literacy of students preparing to become K-12 teachers.
  • Employing a graduate student in education to work on the design and development of educational products and materials or the evaluation of an E/PO activity.
  • Enhancing introductory undergraduate courses in Earth or space science for non-science majors at community colleges as well as 4-year colleges and universities.
  • Workshops on how to do successful classroom outreach for science and engineering graduates and undergraduates involved in SMD research and development efforts.
  • Developing and/or enhance courses for science majors in SMD research fields.
  • Collaborations with minority institutions to develop undergraduate coursework and/or experiential opportunities that promote increased minority interest and participation in science and engineering.
  • Development and/or enhancement of research opportunities for undergraduates in SMD research areas, such as “Student Collaborations” for development of ground and/or flight software/experiments and data analysis in connection with SMD missions.

If you have a great idea for an educational project that enhances student learning, you might consider pursuing one of two types of grants offered by SMD:

  1. Proposals for Education and Public Outreach in Earth and Space Science (EPOESS) are requested annually, as part of NASA SMD’s Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Science (ROSES). These typically are in the range of $100,000 annually for one to three years.

Proposal Solicitation
2010 Selections
2009 Selections
2008 Selections

  1. Proposals for supplemental education and public outreach grants to ongoing SMD-funded research projects are requested twice a year. These must be proposed by the scientist leading the research project in collaboration with an educator. The parent research project must have at least 12 months remaining at the time of proposal submission. Proposals can be submitted for one of two paths:
    • Education projects (up to $15,000 for each year remaining on the parent research project). For proposal guidelines, click here.
    • Outreach projects (up to $10,000 for each year remaining on the parent research project). For proposal guidelines, click here.

2009 Education Supplements

2009 Outreach Supplement Selections

2008 Education Supplement Selections

2008 Outreach Supplement Selections

For either of these opportunities proposers are encouraged to carefully read abstracts of previously selected proposals before they begin their own proposal. We also recommend that you carefully read the evaluation criteria by which proposals are reviewed. The most up-to-date versions can be found here.

If you are interested in including students directly in your research efforts, there are several traditional pathways that NASA researchers can leverage. Such research experiences are highly valuable in helping students develop as young professionals. Undergraduate researchers can be supported through internships and as part of Research and Analysis grants. In addition, Student Collaborations, whether hands-on instrument programs or data analysis collaborations, can be important components of mission science efforts.

Internships
Research and Analysis Grants

2010
2009

Student Collaborations

You may also find solicitations for other types of education and outreach projects from other NASA divisions at NASA’s clearinghouse for proposal information (NSPIRES).


Partner with an SMD E/PO Community Member
New opportunities for partnership are advertised through Community Announcements. Please contact the correspondent listed. If you would like to find a partner, please contact the Science Education and Public Outreach Forum that most closely aligns with your content interest; contacts are listed in the “About” menu under “Questions / Contact.”


Be a Participant in an SMD Education and Public Outreach Program
New opportunities, such as field testing classroom materials or faculty workshops, will be advertised through Community Announcements and in the Calendar. Please contact the correspondent listed.


Find Resources
Over their five-year effort, the Forums will assist SMD in developing a “one-stop shop” to provide an intuitive and searchable database of SMD products and activities, including those developed for higher education. The Higher Education Working Group is in the process of developing guidelines for reviewing these materials. Efforts are also underway within the Forums and the SMD E/PO community to identify and create resources for your use.

Resources available through NASA’s Office of Education include:

NASA’s Higher Education Page

Search NASA Teaching Materials

List of NASA Higher Education Programs and Products

List of NASA Opportunities for Post-Secondary Students