Chelen Johnson
I was surprised how many people I now know after 2 AAS [meetings]. There were quite a few people who remembered me and were interested in talking with me. This was fun (I like talking with people) and disruptive as I did not make as many talks as I anticipated.
NITARP is the best professional development (PD) program I have participated in and I have participated in many PD programs.
I already had a pretty good idea of how astronomers do science, but NITARP helped me see more exactly how data is collected, processed, and analyzed. It helped me also see that I can do astronomy myself, and can make a contribution beyond my own classroom. Not only can I analyze astronomical data to find scientifically useful results, but I can publish my work as a poster and be part of this community. I did not feel like a stranger or usurper or even out of place – it felt like I belonged.
