Chelen Johnson
This virtual team collects all independent research presented in 2017, and done by NITARP or Spitzer alumni with (or without) students outside of a formal NITARP team.
The experience has and will continue to help me develop more effective uses of NASA/JPL resources for me and to promote professional development.
We had a staff meeting this morning and the kids presented our research and shared our experiences to the entire staff. They did an outstanding job and many of our teachers have commented to me how impressed they were by what they did. One of our teachers (and MIT grad) asked a couple of good questions and commented afterward to me he was impressed that they could explain the answer (noting that they were not just number crunching).
To get the chance to work with astronomers and researchers in the field, to do authentic research, and to attend conventions and be immersed in astronomy is absolutely amazing for a high school science teacher.
