AAS - 2022

The Winter American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting is usually the largest meeting of professional astronomers in the world. NITARP educators attend an AAS first to meet their team, then they go home and work remotely for much of the year, and then attend an AAS to present their results. At any given AAS, then, we could have two NITARP classes attending - those finishing up, and those getting started. Reload to see a different set of quotes.

The 2020/21 and 2022 NITARP teams had planned to attend the 2022 January AAS meeting in Salt Lake City, UT. However, the meeting was entirely cancelled due to COVID. We still have this special article about the NITARP teams finishing and starting up. All of the posters from the 2020/21 teams we presented are here. Most of the 2020/21 teams came instead to the June 2022 AAS meeting in Pasadena, CA instead. Those posters were iPosters, so the PDF versions that are here are still the versions from Jan 2022, but the numbers are from June 2022.

Science Poster - 101.18 Strasburger et al., "OIRMA: Optical-Infrared Reverberation Mapping of AGN"
Education Poster - 242.05 Sharif et al., "Bringing Experiential Education into the Classroom"
Education Poster - 242.02 Rodriguez et al., "Promoting Student Interest in Astronomy Using Student-Delivered Professional Development"
Science Poster - 406.05 Rodriguez et al, "Visible and IR Light Curve Variability Analysis of Young Stellar Objects in IC417"
Science Poster - 406.06 Urbanowski et al., "Cataloging and Analysis of Young Stellar Objects in the Spider Nebular (IC 417) Using Archival Visible and Infrared Data"
Alumni poster - 242.04 Blackwell, "Opening of New Observatory Facility at Phillips Exeter Academy"
Alumni talk - 212.03 Granucci, "Authentic Astronomy Research Hybrid Course - A method to reach all level of learners in astronomy"
Alumni poster (Jan only) - Rutherford, "Sixteen Years of Astronomy Research at Sullivan South High School" (submitted to Salt Lake City, not going to Pasadena)

The 2022 class got started on Jan 9, just before when the winter AAS would have been held. There are two teams in 2022.

Quotes

I use spreadsheets much more now. I do this because the kids need spreadsheet skills that they’re not getting through direct instruction in the “foundations of technology” classes. I also do it because aggregating and parsing data are defining STEM skills and kids shouldn’t have to wait for college before they start doing it.
NITARP is the shining example of science outreach to public education, and should be a model for similar federal entities, such as CDC, DOE and even the NEA. Any entity currently providing grants could make their impact more palpable by sharing their work and culture directly with high school teachers and students as NITARP does. A program like NITARP turns teachers into adult representatives of the discipline at its heart; a program like NITARP makes every day in the classroom a Career Day.
Confusion is the normal, and much appreciated, state during a NITARP experience. But it is that healthy, wonderful form of confusion that is triggering curiosity and engagement. The experience of the professional astronomers with individuals of our limited background knowledge and skills allowed them to constantly adjust the pacing and content of the experience to keep us on the edge of comfort/confusion. This is the sweet spot for cognitive challenge and growth, so it was a true pleasure to experience it in the NITARP setting with such fidelity and control over such a long period of time. The NITARP experience is masterful at supporting our development as amateur astronomers and professional educators. I loved every minute of it… even the, “wait a minute… what? No seriously… ??????” moments. Keep doing exactly this… let us flounder to the point of ALMOST tearful frustration… and then swoop in to pull us back just inside the edge of our comfort zones… it is awesome to experience.
...learn enough to answer 80% of your questions while recognizing 10 new ones, and getting just enough data found, crunched, visualized, considered and understood to still not quite have caught up with your goals. But that is science… the real-world, messy, challenging, inspiring world of science. Embrace your curiosity, embrace the opportunity to question and to explore, embrace the 80% success that you will achieve because that, along with the remaining 20% you will never get to, is what the next scientists in the line will be able to pick up and run with as the data that drives their inquiry. You are scientists in a long line of scientist that have been, are, and shall always be… so have FUN with it!
[student:] I always used to think astronomy and research, in general, was a very cutthroat, individual field where it’s every scientist for themselves. But through NITARP, it’s become clear to me that astronomy is nothing like this at all. The whole goal of this field is to work together to create a greater understanding of our universe. Everyone is collaborative, encouraging, and happy to help you learn.

AAS - 2022

Quotes

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