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SUPERNOVA INC.

Infinite

Possibilities

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary……………………….3-4 Situation Analysis………………………..5-8 Budget Summary…………………………9-10 Secondary Research…………………..11-22 Primary Research……………………...23-33 Summary of Key Findings…………….34-35 Target Audience………………………..36-38 SWOT Analysis…………………….……39-41 Planning Section………………………42-52 Executions……………………………….53-96 Sources of Information……………...97-99 Appendix……………………………….100-106

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Executive Summary

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Executive Summary

Supernova Inc. has developed a plan to address the client’s goals. The first goal is to create nationwide support for STEM education and programs. The second goal is to influence students to pursue aerospace careers.

To achieve the first goal, we propose a month-long campaign renaming April 2012 “Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities,” which is designed to create public awareness and support. The Coalition needs support and funding from policy makers, parents, and teachers to enhance STEM performance among students.

We recommend the Coalition make adjustments to its social media approach. Our research found that the vast majority of students have Facebook accounts. The student presence on Twitter pales in comparison. To reach students using social media, it is recommended to enhance the Coalition’s presence on Facebook.

We recommend targeting school administrators in order to emphasize STEM education, and to help launch “Science Month.” The Coalition should become a member of the STEM Education Coalition in order to receive the benefits of networking and legislative activity. The Coalition can receive positive publicity by sending teachers from under-funded schools to STEM education workshops on a scholarship grant. By enhancing the teacher’s education, the Coalition can enhance student education. The Coalition should encourage more extracurricular STEM activities, because research found students spending more time involved with STEM outside of school are not only more likely to become STEM advocates, but also consider pursuing STEM careers.

In order to achieve the second goal of influencing students to pursue aerospace careers, we recommend the Coalition sponsor events at Science Olympiad. Our research found that if students participated in STEM-related competitions, they were more likely to pursue STEM careers. These students are also more likely to have a more favorable impression of STEM. The Coalition’s sponsorship money could influence Science Olympiad to run more space-themed events. The Coalition could then award scholarship money to event winners. Sponsoring an event can be done for $5,000, and we recommend investing at least $1,000 in scholarship prizes.

Our research found that 94 percent of survey respondents in middle school and high school said they had thought about careers. To achieve the second goal of influencing students to pursue aerospace careers, we recommend creating a committee of high school students, called “Junior Ambassadors.” This committee will work with the Coalition’s Gen Y Board Members to communicate with secondary education students about career opportunities. Junior Ambassadors can also be given access to the Coalition’s Facebook page in order to provide a familiar voice to the target audience. Junior Ambassadors can also be in charge of any videos, blogs and other social media, under the moderation of the Gen Y Board and Coalition. The Junior Ambassadors will also be acting as liaisons with Science Olympiad in order to see the Coalition’s sponsorship is being communicated with secondary education students online and in the competition’s stages.

Research showed that students felt one-on-one interaction with STEM experts created more interest in the subject. “Aerospace Career Mentors” can provide a link between students and STEM experts, and would help put a face on professionals in STEM fields. This will help make STEM careers seem more personable to prospective students interested in STEM careers.

Supernova Inc. tentatively plans to spend a little over budget, with costs totaling $110,761.75.

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Situation Analysis

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Situation Analysis Client: The Coalition for Space Exploration

“The mission of the Coalition for Space Exploration is to promote the importance of space exploration to the national agenda via cost-effective, high-yield public outreach activities that include both traditional and new media to help secure political support and budget resources for NASA and space exploration,” (“About Us,” spacecoalition.com).

The Coalition is an advocacy group campaigning for increased support and policies of space exploration. Its members include Aerojet, ATK, Boeing, Harris, Honeywell, Jacobs, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and United Space Alliance. Its contributors include AGI, Ball Aerospace & Technologies, Paragon, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, and Parametric Technology Corporation. Its partner associations include Citizens for Space Exploration, National Space Society and the Planetary Society.

Members of the Board of Advisors range from middle school teachers, to former NASA astronauts and flight directors, to an Academy Award-winning director. Members and partners of the Coalition employ 689,470 people. Challenges:

The new 2011 NASA budget request unveiled by the White House on Feb. 1, 2010 cancels NASA’s Constellation program, which included a replacement for the retiring space shuttle program (“Obama’s budget would scrap NASA’s moon mission,” www.CSMonitor.com).

Private, non-governmental space exploration initiatives such as the Ansari X Prize and Google Lunar X Prize have had much success. The former generated a low-cost, reusable manned spacecraft able to enter space frequently over short periods of time. The latter is an on-going contest to land a robot on the moon. (www.xprize.org)

Private sector space exploration may have benefits, but according to Lockheed Martin, “there’s too much risk associated with commercial space flight to make that a viable alternative to a government program.” Commercial space programs are unregulated, expensive and often wasteful (www.thenewamerican.com). By scrapping the Constellation program, and following the retirement of the space shuttle, “NASA would rely on private-financed rockets built by commercial launch companies, to ferry astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station,” (CSMonitor.com) or perhaps rely on foreign countries for transportation to the International Space Station.

The Coalition believes the United States is losing its edge in the space industry. It wants a campaign focused on middle school students interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), in order to motivate these students to graduate college with a STEM-related degree, and enter jobs in the American space industry.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress has looked at public school STEM teacher’s backgrounds and found that nearly four out of ten 7-12th grade math teachers do not have a college major in the subject they teach (www.scienceprogress.org).

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About one-third of the fourth-graders and one-fifth of eighth-graders cannot perform basic mathematical computations (National Center for Education Statistics).

Young American student interest in science and technology has eroded over time. In 1960, one out of every six (17 percent) U.S. bachelor or graduate degrees was awarded in engineering, mathematics or the physical sciences. By 2001, that number had dropped to less than one in 10 (just 8 percent) of all degrees awarded in the U.S (National Science Foundation. Science and Engineering Indicators, 2004). Environment:

The Coalition for Space Exploration operates with a yearly budget of less than $1 million.

While the Obama administration has ended the Constellation program, “The President’s Budget invests an additional $6 billion in NASA over the next five years – an overall $100 billion commitment to the agency,” (The Federal Budget, Fiscal Year 2011, NASA, http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/factsheet_department_nasa/).

The new federal budget’s investment in new science, innovation and jobs includes:

• “1.2 billion for transformative research in exploration technology that will involve NASA, private industry, and academia, sparking spin-off technologies and potentially entire new industries.”

• “150 million to accelerate the development of new satellites for Earth Science priorities.”

• “170 million to develop and fly a replacement of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory, a mission to identify global carbon sources and sinks that was lost when its launch vehicle failed in 2009.”

• “500 million to contract with industry to provide an astronaut transportation to the ISS, reducing the sole reliance on foreign crew transports and catalyzing new businesses and significant new jobs,” (“Invest in New Science, Innovation, and Jobs,” http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/factsheet_department_nasa/).

In addition, the new federal budget calls for NASA to “Increase annually the

percentage of NASA higher education program student participants employed by NASA, aerospace contractors, universities, and other educational institutions,” (whitehouse.gov).

The Gallup Organization polled 1,1018 national adults aged 18 and older about space on June 10-12, 2009. Of those polled, 67 percent said they were “very interested,” or “somewhat interested,” in space. Attitudes toward NASA were 58 percent “excellent,” or “good.” The benefits justified the cost of space exploration for 58 percent of those polled, and 60 percent said they would maintain or increase the federal space budget.

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President Obama launched the “Educate to Innovate,” program on Nov. 23, 2009, to improve the participation and performance of American students in STEM education (whitehouse.gov).

Why it is necessary to take action at this time:

Fifteen of the 20 fastest growing occupations projected for 2014 require significant mathematics or science education to realistically compete for a job (Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Fastest growing occupations, 2004-14, http://www.bls.gov/emp/emptab21.htm)

STEM education is necessary to create “life sciences and biotech, clean energy, and green jobs,” (Tim Murray, Lt. Gov. of Massachusetts in Converge Magazine).

Our country’s industrialized economy depends on products and innovation, which rely heavily on knowledge in math, science and engineering. (www.stemedcaucus.org)

American students need to improve STEM test scores and enter the space industry to assuage fears that the U.S. has lost its edge in the space industry to nations such as China – a nation with plans to land on the moon before the U.S. can return – and Russia – a nation NASA would rely on for transportation to the International Space Station after the space shuttle is retired.

NASA and private industry needs young, qualified employees entering the workforce from America’s colleges and universities to meet the competitive challenges of space exploration in the 21st century, and to achieve the high-priority performances goals laid out in President Obama’s federal budget.    

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Budget Summary

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Budget Summary

Science Month Web site $1,500.00 Obama’s proclamation & media kit 5,000.00 Create network of partner associations 165.00 Logo contest 500.00 Create parent page for Science Month 1,000.00 Sending bumper stickers to parents 6,000.00 Planetarium and science museum month 1,600.00 Producing online videos 7,000.00 Science Month promotion at AASA 10,000.00 Space/science education activities packet 6,000.00 Sending teachers to space workshop 7,500.00 3-month magazine ad 15,750.00 Career center website on Coalition’s site 1,000.00 Space Career Mentors 1,500.00 Space Career Mentors posters 2,047.50 Junior Ambassador’s Committee 10,000.00 Science Olympiad liaison 1,000.00 Junior Ambassador’s access to social media 19.25 Produce videos, blogs, podcasts and Facebook status updates 2,000.00 Sponsor Science Olympiad Nationals 6,000.00 Host Science Olympiad Nationals 20,000.00 Press release with Science Olympiad 180.00 Coalition member to speak at Nationals 5,000.00 Budget total $110,761.75

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Secondary Research

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Secondary Research

Client

The beginnings of the Coalition for Space Exploration start with the creation of

NASA in 1958 as a government agency in charge of the nation’s civilian space program. In

1983, industry leaders in the space field developed the non-profit, non-partisan U.S. Space

Foundation "to foster, develop and promote, among the citizens of the United States of

America... a greater understanding and awareness ... of the practical and theoretical

utilization of space ... for the benefit of civilization" (spacefoundation.org).

The Space Foundation, among other things, created the Space Technology Hall of

Fame, honoring scientists and engineers responsible for new technologies developed in

space (spacetechhalloffame.org). The Foundation, comprised of nearly 100 corporate

supporters, also runs The Space Certification Program, which allows products using space

technology to use the NASA logo, such as Tempur-Pedic (spaceconnection.org) and

annually publishes The Space Report: The Authoritative Guide to Global Space Activity.

In 2004, the Foundation wanted to support President Bush’s Vision for Space

Exploration. Thus, the Coalition for Space Exploration was created “under the umbrella of

the U.S. Space Foundation” (Covault 57). About half of the Foundation’s corporate

members also became member companies of the Coalition along with many partner

associations. The Coalition has since advocated for continued government funding for

space exploration.

Recent news of President Obama’s proposed budget has had an impact on the space

community. The 2011 budget ends NASA’s Constellation program and outsources low-

Earth orbit travel to commercial firms (Achenbach). The federal budget still increases

NASA’s budget by $6 billion over five years. The budget shift is possibly a result of the

unrealistic nature of the Constellation program succeeding. Former Lockheed executive

Norman Augustine admits that Constellation would have “little chance of ever having a

‘useful role,’” (Achenbach).

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The Coalition for Space Exploration has eight major member companies, including

Lockheed, Honeywell, Boeing and Northrop Grumman. Each of the major companies

supports its local community through educational support. The key here is local

community. Aerojet, for example, funds the Sacramento Challenger Learning Center where

kids learn through hands-on activities (Aerojet.com). Aerojet does not assist funding for the

network of 44 other Centers (Challenger.org). The Harris Foundation, as well, reaches out

to students aspiring to pursue STEM-related careers but only offers scholarships and grants

to local schools. Lockheed has a program called “Engineers in the Classroom,” where

practicing engineers assist teachers in supplementing curriculum with hands-on lessons.

However, this program is only for schools located near its facilities (Adams).

The Coalition and Social Media

The Coalition’s Web site conveniently provides access to educational materials and

curricula offered by NASA and member companies on a page titled, “education station.”

There is also a well-defined “Kids Space,” with links to many space-themed online games.

Even so, navigating the Web site to find these resourceful materials is difficult. The Web

site has no ads and yet continues to use Web-banner type links for routing. One helpful

page listing links to space-related contests is only discoverable by finding the Education

Station and clicking two images which both look like advertisements. Several links are

repeats or dead, a heavy emphasis is placed on NASA Web sites and resources, there’s no

information on scholarships or grants offered by member organizations and the site map

does not function (SpaceCoalition.org).

The Coalition has a Twitter account with four tweets per day on average, each of

which provide links to articles of interest to space exploration (Twitter.com). With 857

followers, the profile doesn’t measure up to the most influential Twitter profiles with 1.2

million followers (Twitalyzer.com). The profile in the past five days was uniquely

retweeted only four times. The Coalition doesn’t need to use Twitalyzer to determine its

Twittering has much to improve. At this point, the frequent tweets waste time and energy

for the measurable outcomes.

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The Coalition’s Facebook fan page similarly lacks much accomplishment and

influence. There are many posts linking to online, space-related articles, about three per

day. Unfortunately, there has been almost no interaction with fans, only nine fan posts by

three of their 395 fans – a small number compared to NASA’s 35,000 (Facebook.com). The

number one reason for creating a fan page is to engage your audience with your brand and

message (Farr). No one is engaged, and there is little traffic flow.

Finally, the Coalition attempted to develop its own social network using Ning,

launched in 2005. The site has 127 users, and most of whom have not uploaded a profile

picture. With two groups, 12 total blog posts, one listed event and two discussion forums;

one might simply skip this site. However, the Ning page has a generous archive of 65

photos and 81 videos in comparison to its Facebook counterpart. This site has done a better

job attempting to engage its members. However, traffic is still noticeably low. “The reality

of Ning is that it’s lost whatever coolness it had, no one uses it and Ning is going to have a

very hard time getting people’s attention” (Arrington).

Even with the plethora of videos, photos and blogs, emerging analysts and experts

of the recent social media phenomenon recommend businesses and organizations do more.

In the age of Web 2.0 “Placing the video is not enough… you have to do ‘PR’… tagging,

linking and having others point to it and republish it to spark the viral potential of your

content” (Solis). The one thing the Coalition’s Facebook Fan page lacks is participation in

others’ work, especially that of middle and high school students. One of the top 10 things

Solis mentions in his text, Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How Social Media

is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR, is to “Listen. Learn. Respect.” A successful

Facebook page engages with others and humanizes the process of messaging by

conversing. “Once properly guide [younger generations] have an advantage for joining and

leading more strategic communications online [for your brand]” (Soils).

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Audience

The client has stressed the importance of reaching middle and high school students

to discover how to make science “cool,” and encourage them to pursue degrees in STEM

education.

The U.S. is experiencing a declining student interest in STEM majors. The well-

known college admission and placement exam company ACT, Inc., has documented this

decline. The ACT includes an interest inventory, or UNIACT, with its college admission

tests. The UNIACT asks questions about a student’s basic interests, and that information is

used to compile a report suggesting career options and majors for the student. Interest

inventory data found that the percentage of ACT-tested students who said they were

interested in majoring in engineering has dropped steadily from 7.6 percent to 4.9 percent

over the past 10 years (ACT, Inc. 1).

Several studies have investigated methods of increasing general science interest.

One survey measured the relationship between the types of resources used in classrooms

and students’ interest in science careers. Resources were analyzed based on their

“sociableness” and “webnicity.” Highly sociable resources provide information through

interactions with people, such as guest speakers and experts. Resources low in sociableness

include books, posters and models. Resources high in webnicity, such as the Internet, have

fluid connections to supporting information. Resources low in webnicity have limited

access to supporting information, are not easily accessible and often require students to

leave the classroom to find additional information. Low webnicity resources can include

books, posters and computers without Internet. More than 600 middle school students rated

their interest in pursuing a science career. Their interest levels were then compared to their

respective classroom’s sociableness and webnicity resource levels. In general, students in

the classrooms with more social and web resources reported higher interest levels of

science career interest (Koszalka).

It should also be noted that guest lecturers and other human resources were

significant predictors of high science career interest for both boys and girls. However,

while increased use of Web resources correlated with increased science interest in girls,

Web resources had little effect on boys (Koszalka).

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Large percentages of “tweens” – an age group ranging from 10-14 in this study by

Stuart Larkins – said that they spent at least an hour per day online and nearly half go

online more than three times a day for at least half an hour each time. This age group also

has a high representation on MySpace and other social networking sites, and uses Google

for its search engine. Forty percent of respondents said they use search to further learn

about a product or service after seeing an ad. Through this study it is clear that in order to

gain attention from this population the Internet would be a smart place to go whether it be

on social networking sites, Google advertisements, or other aspects of online media

(Larkins).

One study evaluated the long-term impact of a high school summer science

program on students’ interest and perceived abilities in science. The University of

Rochester’s Life Sciences Learning Center has offered a Summer Science Academy (SSA)

for high school students since 1996. The SSA lasts two to four weeks each summer and

offers guided and independent lab projects, bioethics discussions, a biocomputing course,

scientist seminars and field trips. Of the 96 former SSA participants who were surveyed, 80

percent of them said attending the SSA contributed to their interest in a science career.

Students also commented that their experiences at the academy motivated them to excel in

their science classes at school, led to an increased confidence in their scientific abilities,

and had a positive influence on their attitudes toward science (Markowitz).

Another study examines the link between a high school academic competition and

the participants’ career choices and lifelong commitment to science. The National

Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) is a “quiz bowl” type of competition for high ability

secondary students. Of the 303 previous participants surveyed, 41 percent agreed or

strongly agreed that NOSB participation influenced their career choice. Also, 48 percent

agreed or strongly agreed that ocean or science-related hobbies influenced the selection of

their career or college majors. The strongest influence on career selection was students’

perceptions of their own abilities (Bishop and Walters).

A large proportion (87 percent) of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that

participating in the competition encouraged an overall interest in science. Even participants

who did not pursue a major or career in a STEM area said they are still highly concerned

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about environmental and ocean issues. The competition gave them a positive lasting

impression of science in general (Bishop and Walters).

More than 300 high school students who participated in the National Ocean

Sciences Bowl were surveyed about their experiences in the competition. When these

students were asked a question regarding career rewards, they strongly indicated a desire to

make a difference in the community or world. They value service to humankind in general

and social good (Bishop and Walters).

Youth engagement has become a large push in the educational community.

Anderson Wiliams, co-author of The Core Principles for Engaging Young People in

Community Change, encourages educators and non-profits to give youth the opportunity to

lead and serve as a way of learning. This also works well for organizations to us as

resources now. In other words, putting youth on a board of directors, as the Coalition has

done, is a great start but activating those youth to carry out initiatives and represent the

Coalition is the next inevitable step. Williams does not believe ‘youth are the future.’ He

asks the question, “With effective, ethical leadership and a breadth of transferable

leadership skills fundamental to healthy individual development and critical for positive

economic, social and cultural development, why would we wait to cultivate or to engage

our youth and defer their leadership to some nebulous future?” (Williams).

Challenges

One of the problems the client currently faces is the cancellation of NASA’s

Constellation program. Transportation to and from the International Space Station will be

out of the federal government’s hands. American astronauts will have to rely on private

industry or foreign space programs. Ending Constellation also results in an end to the

space shuttle fleet, without an immediate replacement vehicle.

Another problem are low math and science test scores posted by American students

in comparison to international students, particularly Asians. Results of the Trends in

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International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) in 2008 showed that American

students have not improved since the first testing in 1995 (washingtonpost.com).

America’s industrialized economy depends on products and innovation, which rely

heavily on knowledge in math, science and engineering (www.stemedcaucus.org). This is

equally true of the global economy. These test scores raise concerns that American

students are not being educated and prepared to compete in the global economy.

Opportunities

Canceling NASA’s Constellation program also presents an opportunity. As

mentioned in the client research, the new federal budget actually increases NASA’s budget

by $6 billion over five years, and allows private industries to compete for the chance to

create a deep-space transport. This may give NASA a chance to refocus its goals for the

future.

Federal programs are already addressing the problems created by American

students underperforming in STEM disciplines. President Barack Obama spoke to

American students in September at the White House’s Back to School Event, and said,

“We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can

help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re

not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country,” (whitehouse.gov). Among

the difficult problems facing America in the 21st century are STEM-related issues – such as

developing clean sources of energy and developing cures for cancer.

The White House held an Astronomy Night on Oct. 7, 2009 for students who had

made astronomical discoveries. In the future, the White House plans to begin hosting an

annual science fair showcasing the student winners of national science, technology, and

robotics competitions.

When announcing the Educate to Innovate program Nov. 23, 2009, President

Obama said, “We’re going to show young people how cool science can be.” To show its

commitment, the White House made $4.35 billion in federal grants available to schools that

can innovate in STEM disciplines. The three goals of Educate to Innovate are to increase

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STEM literacy among all students to improve critical thinking in STEM disciplines,

improve the quality of math and science teaching to keep American students competitive

with international students, and expanding STEM education and career opportunities to

underrepresented groups. The grant program is titled, “Race to the Top,” and it is bolstered

by an additional $260 million commitment from the private sector. Race to the Top funds

will be given to states that can, among other criteria, raise standards of student

achievement, increase teacher effectiveness, and “make it possible for STEM professionals

to bring their experience and enthusiasm into the classroom,” (whitehouse.gov).

John Holdren, science advisor to President Obama, hopes Educate to Innovate and

Race to the Top will help inspire kids in the classroom as well as at home, in part by

showcasing careers that are available in STEM.

The original five public-private partnerships announced include:

• Time Warner Cable’s “Connect a Million Minds” campaign, in

partnership with FIRST Robotics and the Coalition for Space After

School, which will attempt to connect more than one million students with

after-school STEM activities that already exist in their area.

• Discovery Communications’ “Be the Future” campaign, which will air

content over Discovery’s 13 U.S. networks, and will create STEM

Connect – a national education resource for teachers.

• “Sesame Street’s Early STEM Literacy Initiative,” which will commit

20 new episodes to focus on STEM, 13 on science and seven on math.

• “National Lab Day,” a partnership between science and engineering

industries and foundations, which will attempt to upgrade science labs,

support project-based learning, and build communities for STEM teachers.

• National STEM game design national competitions to design STEM-

related video games, one of which will be open only to children

(whitehouse.gov)

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President Obama announced an expansion of the Educate to Innovate campaign on

Jan. 6, 2010. The expansion includes an additional $250 million in five new public-private

investments, a commitment to training more than 10,000 new and more than 100,000

existing teachers, and NASA’s official initiative in cooperation with the campaign

(whitehouse.gov).

The five new public-private partnerships:

• “Intel’s Science and Math Teachers Initiative,” a ten-year, $200 million

campaign to provide training to more than 100,000 science and math

teachers over the next three years at no cost to the teachers.

• “Expansion of the National Math and Science Initiative’s UTeach

Program” – to prepare more than 4,500 STEM undergraduates to be new

math and science teachers by 2015, and 7,000 new teachers by 2018.

• A campaign led by the presidents of more than 75 public universities

committing to Train 10,000 Math and Science Teachers Annually by

2015.

• “The PBS Innovative Educators Challenge,” with an annual

“Innovative Educators Challenge,” highlighting 50 teachers and creating a

platform to spread effective methods and practices.

• “Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowships in Math and Science,” which

plans to provide future math and science teachers with a Master’s degree

in education, and employ them in difficult-to-staff middle and high

schools in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio (whitehouse.gov).

In cooperation with Educate to Innovate, NASA announced a “Summer of

Innovation” – multi-week learning programs (combining classroom time, camps,

internships, and mentoring) in summer 2010 with middle school students and teachers in

STEM education. “The Summer of Innovation pilot will infuse NASA content and products

into existing, evidence-based summer learning programs at the state level coupled with

design competitions and events open to students and teachers nationwide. The program will

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culminate in a national event, in partnership with other departments and agencies,”

(nasa.gov).

In addition to the Summer of Innovation, NASA sponsors many other competitions

and programs, which can be found on its Web site. One such organization is the After

School Astronomy Clubs (ASAC), which is sponsored by NASA, and it allows schools

across the nation to register as an official after-school club. The after-school club is for

grades K-12 and registration is an online procedure.

Planetary Scientist Louis A. Mayo believes that the reason young students haven’t

taken a strong interest in sciences, especially astronomy, isn’t because of a mere lack of

interest, but simply because the science of astronomy gets paid little or no attention to in

school. Space science is buried within Earth Science curriculum and is often taught by

teachers who have had no training in that field.

To change what he thought schools were lacking, Mayo decided to start his own

after-school astronomy club. Community involvement and training are key factors in this

procedure. Contacting local professional and amateur astronomers to talk to students and

the club could inspire them to become further involved in sciences and more specifically,

space sciences. Reaching out to boy and girl scouts is also an effective way to inspire these

students. By getting local businesses to do volunteer work activities and philanthropy, this

could further the after-school system for a science club.

If a particular school is uncertain or is lacking information in terms of starting an

after-school science club, Mayo went as far as writing up a 16-page handbook on how to

run an after-school astronomy club. The guidebook touches on working with the school,

designing the club, teacher involvement, parent involvement, community involvement and

direct observation.

As for the students themselves, Mayo recommends hands-on activities to get the

students engaged. He says, “Children (and adults for that matter) learn best when they are

allowed to participate actively in the process of discovery and evaluation.” Hands-on

activities promote better memory retention within the classroom than traditional teaching

methods (astrosociety.org).

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The NASA Ames Research Center has developed an excellent Web site full of

resources and fact sheets of NASA career opportunities in a variety of fields such as

physics, engineering and biology (Day). The information is not organized in a database nor

does it offer a way to identify careers that match users’ interests. It does offer a short

biography and tips from real-life NASA employees.

Finally, an excellent nationwide competition allows organizations and businesses to

sponsor events. Science Olympiad is a K-12 team competition that requires knowledge of

science and engineering ingenuity. Every May, Science Olympiad hosts a national

tournament for its middle and high school divisions with various events. Organizations can

donate $5,000 to sponsor a single event at the National Science Olympiad Tournament.

Other donations are used to provide scholarships for winners.    

       

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Primary Research

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Primary Research

Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center Survey

This survey was conducted March 3-13, 2010, under the auspices of the Kansas

Cosmosphere and Space Center (KCSC). Students enrolled in JOUR 676 Strategic

Communication Campaigns at the University of Kansas generated questions for the survey

on behalf of its class client, the Coalition for Space Exploration. KCSC e-mailed a link to

an online survey to 1,242 former Space Camp participants. Two hundred seventy-nine e-

mail accounts were invalid and 411 of e-mails were opened. Twenty-eight students and one

professor from JOUR 676 were also invited to participate. The survey response rate was

just over 10 percent.

The questions on the survey related to the students’ interests, mainly highlighting their

inspirations, influences, school subjects and their knowledge and curiosity of space.

Because the results come from KCSC, there is little surprise that 77.2 percent like math and

92.1 percent like science. Also of little surprise, 92.7 percent of the participants showed

interest in space exploration (53.3 percent responded, “Strongly agree,” and 39.4 percent

“Agree.”), and 96 percent of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with the

statement, “I admire astronauts,” (59.8 percent “Strongly agree,” 36.2 percent “Agree.”).

The middle and high school demographic is thought to value cliques and being popular. We

believed students would be highly influenced by their peers regarding what’s “cool” and

what isn’t. Also, children are often depicted as rebellious and resistant to parental

influence. However, according to the KCSC survey, only 40.9 percent claimed their friends

influenced their interest in school while 81 percent said their parents are a large influence

in their school participation.

Survey participants were asked to rank a list of media using “1” to represent the medium

they use the most, “2” the second-most, etc. Each medium’s total score was averaged. A

low average represents a frequently-used medium. This is counterintuitive, but a low

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average score means that medium received more number 1 and 2 rankings. “Computer

(Internet use)” received a 1.47 average response rate, and television ranked a distant second

with an average of 3.02. The preferred medium of these survey participants is by far

“Computer with Internet use.”

Of the 95 percent of students with parents in a STEM career, 78 percent said they like math

and 98.7 percent said they like science. These results seem to indicate that children with

parents who work in a STEM field are more likely to enjoy math and science. That could

be extrapolated even further to hypothesize that these same children are more likely to

pursue STEM careers themselves. Though these results seem promising for a potential

boost in STEM careers, they also only reflect the thoughts and opinions of students who

visited the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center.

Focus Group

On March 4, 2010, two members of Supernova Inc. traveled to Leawood Middle School in

Leawood, Kan., to conduct a focus group. It was organized with the full cooperation of

Marcia Eaton, a paraprofessional at the school, who co-moderated the focus group. The

group consisted of eight students from 6th to 8th grade who were Science Olympiad

participants. Science Olympiad is an annual K-12 standards-based science competition,

comprised of school-based teams of up to 15 students competing in more than 240 regional

and state tournaments, culminating in the Science Olympiad National Tournament. Among

other things, Supernova Inc. wanted to find out what makes science, math or technology

interesting to middle school students, what they think about NASA and space, and what

their classes are like.

The students said they think science is “awesome,” because it makes them feel smart and

helps them to discover answers to experiments and questions. They said they feel that math

is a subject that gives you right or wrong answers. When one student said, “Math applies to

everything you do,” another said, “So does science!” These students are possibly more

likely to see the big picture about math and science, because several of them have parents

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and older siblings who inspired and pushed them to be successful in STEM disciplines.

Several of the students have parents who work in STEM fields.

The students all agreed they like computers. All but one has a mobile phone. One student

observed that they and their peers are “really dependent on technology—maybe over

dependent.”

When asked if they have considered college or careers, some said they hadn’t yet because

they are only in middle school. One student said they are considering architectural

engineering. Another student said it’s their dream to be a forensic scientist like on the TV

show “CSI.” One student is thinking about being a veterinarian, and another is considering

designing video games.

When asked about Science Olympiad, the students were all very enthusiastic about the

competition. The students were also excited about being able to learn with their friends,

and having the opportunity to hang out and travel with their friends to these competitions.

When asked about space exploration and NASA, the students showed knowledge of recent

developments in the federal budget. One didn’t understand why Obama would cut the

shuttle program, but another one saw it as an unnecessary expense at this point with the

economy. There was a general consensus that space exploration is important, to discover

and learn things from outside Earth, but that maybe it could take a backseat for now with

some of the problems here. The student who had earlier considered a profession in video

game designing admitted an interest in becoming an astronaut.

The discussion switched gears into lively dialogue about the students’ science classes. The

group complained about science classes being too boring because of repetitive review, the

slow pace, teachers not going in-depth with the subject–possibly because of a lack of

knowledge, and a certain teacher being a hard grader which makes other students not enjoy

the subject. Some of the students said they learned more by reading the book themselves,

27

going in-depth and at their own advanced pace. It seems the students dislike busy work and

waiting for the entire class to be ready before they move on. They agreed that “any hands-

on lab is awesome,” except when the teacher doesn’t trust students to do the experiment.

The focus group concluded after the students were asked to use only one word each to

describe science, math and technology. Their responses for science included “pwns,” “fun,”

“mysterious,” “interesting,” “question-answering,” and “experimental” (pwn: Internet slang

derived from the verb, “own,” possibly developed as a common typo, meaning victory or

triumph over an opponent. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pwn). Their math

responses included “fun,” “straightforward,” “interconnected,” “interesting,” “awesome,”

and “hardcore.” Responses for technology included “innovative,” “complicated,”

“dependable,” “newfangled,” “evergrowing,” “sleek,” and “helpful.” Supernova Inc. took

these one-word responses from the focus group to help form a question on a survey

developed for middle and high school students.

Supernova Inc. Survey

Group members of Supernova Inc. developed and distributed a survey to middle school

students attending Pleasant Ridge Middle School in Overland Park, Kan., South Junior

High in Lawrence, Kan., and high school students attending Blue Springs High School in

Blue Springs, Mo. This survey was similar to the KCSC survey. We received responses

from 53 middle school students and 83 high school students. Among other things,

information sought by the survey included reasons that a class or subject is interesting, if

students had thought about a career, feelings about math or science competitions, and

media use.

The first section of the survey asked students to respond to statements by selecting their

level of agreement. Possible responses ranged from “strongly disagree,” which earned a

score of “1,” to “strongly agree,” which scored a “5.” Each question’s scores were

averaged. Higher average indicated students often agreed or strongly agreed with the

statement, while lower average indicated students mostly disagreed. Results found that 113

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out of 136 (83 percent) participants agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, “If my

teacher is excited or engaged, I am more interested in the class or subject,” and it scored an

average of 4.23 out of a possible five.

The second section asked participants to select what makes a class or subject interesting

from a given list of options. The most often selected choices were hands-on experiments

(115 of 136, 85 percent), in-class discussions (97 of 136, 71 percent), videos (95 of 136, 70

percent), the use of technology in class (94 of 136, 69 percent) and field trips (91 of 136, 67

percent). Perhaps the most surprising result is the high percentage “in-class discussions”

received. This may be related to the fact that students said they respond well to an exciting

and engaging teacher.

The survey found that 94 percent (128 of 136) of participants said they had thought about a

career already, as highlighted in figure 1. When discussing career options, 88 percent (120

people) had spoken to parents or guardians, 85 percent (115 people) had spoken to friends,

46 percent (62 people) had spoken to teachers, and only 38 percent (52 people) had talked

with guidance counselors about careers. Figure 2 presents a visual interpretation of these

results. It appears students are reaching out to parents and friends more often than guidance

counselors or teachers for career advice.

Three survey questions measured who most influences students’ interests in school.

Students were asked to indicate their level of agreement with the statement, “My parents

have influenced my interest in school.” Similar questions were asked regarding teachers

and friends. Each question’s “agree” and “strongly agree” responses were combined to

determine the percentage of students who agreed with the statement. From the three groups

of people we asked about, parents influence students the most (76 percent agreed or

strongly agreed), teachers influence students second most (66 percent agreed or strongly

agreed) and friends influence students the least (52 percent agreed or strongly agreed).

Figure 3 illustrates these results. Teachers may be underutilized resources for steering

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students toward STEM careers because of their powerful influence on students’ interests in

school.

Participants were also asked, “When you think of science, what three words come to

mind?” From a list of ten words (Cool, Straightforward, Uninteresting, Exciting, Boring,

Interesting, Nerdy, Awesome, Mysterious, Difficult) the most selected response was

“Interesting,” (94 of 136, 69 percent). Only 21 of 136 (15 percent) selected

“Uninteresting.” Participants were also asked to choose three words to describe math, and

“Straightforward,” was the most selected response (72 of 136, 53 percent). The gap

between “Interesting,” and “Uninteresting,” was also close, with 53 (39 percent) and 39

responses (29 percent), respectively.

Results concerning social media use found that 76 percent (103 of 136) of participants

belong to or use Facebook, and 74 percent (100 people) belong to or use YouTube. Only 10

percent (14 of 136) of participants belong to or use Twitter. These results are presented in

figure 4.

Supernova Inc. survey data from high school and middle school students

“Have you thought about a career?”

Figure 1

No - 5%

Unanswered - 1% Yes - 94%

Unanswered-­‐  1%  

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“I have discussed career options with…”

Supernova Inc. survey data from high school and middle school students (continued)

“These people influence my interest in school…”

 

Figure 2

Figure 3

Parents/ Guardians

Friends Teachers Guidance Counselors

Parents Teachers Friends

Perc

ent o

f stu

dent

s who

agr

eed

and

stro

ngly

agr

eed

Perc

ent “

Yes

”

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“I belong to/use these social media sites:”

Spahr Library Survey

This survey was conducted at 1:00 p.m. on March 10 at the Spahr Engineering Library on

the University of Kansas campus. Free pizza was available for those who participated in the

survey. Thirty-six students responded, 21 males and 15 females, and the average age was

22.

Thirteen of the survey’s 29 questions asked participants to respond to statement by

selecting their level of agreement ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree.”

Similar to the previous two surveys, “1” denoted a “Strongly disagree” answer, and “5”

denoted “Strongly agree.”

There were several interesting results. Responses to the statement “In high school, I believe

my friends influenced my interest in school,” averaged 2.6, indicating general

disagreement. The people surveyed did not feel that friends had much influence on their

Figure 4

Facebook YouTube Myspace Other Twitter Blogs

Num

ber o

f stu

dent

s (ou

t of 1

36)

who

use

this

form

of s

ocia

l med

ia

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interest in school. However, responses to the statement “My teachers have influenced my

interest in school,” averaged 4.08, indicating general agreement. These opinions are

strengthened by responses to two related statements. The first such statement, “In high

school, I believe my friends were interested in math, science or space exploration,” results

in a 2.94 average, leaning more toward the ‘disagree’ side of ‘no opinion.’ Responses to

the second related statement, “If my teacher is excited and engaged, I am more interested in

the class or subject,” resulted in a 4.72 average, on the stronger side of ‘Agree.’

Only 42 percent of respondents cited a guidance counselor as someone they spoke to about

career options, while 92 percent spoke to parents and approximately 70 percent spoke to

friends or teachers. In retrospect, whether accurate or not, most college students do not

recall their guidance counselor helping them decide on a career. Perhaps little, if any, effort

should be spent reaching out to this intervening public in our plan, because they hardly

affect the target audience.

The survey asked participants to “Describe your favorite high school teacher and why

he/she is your favorite.” The responses include reasons such as the teacher’s engagement

with the class and material, the teacher’s enthusiasm and excitement, caring for students’

ability to learn, conducting hands-on demonstrations and experiments, being a personable

teacher with a sense of humor, and having a broad knowledge of curriculum. An

overwhelming number, 78 percent, agreed hands-on experiments made a class more

interesting.

The survey also asked its participants to “Describe your least favorite high school teacher

and why he/she is your least favorite.” Responses include boring teachers, not going in-

depth with material, not having interest in the students, not promoting discussions, being

unknowledgeable, being unnecessarily strict, not being relatable, and being unmotivated.

In response to the question, “Have your career interests changed since high school?” 20

respondents said yes, and 16 said no. When the participants were polled to consider when

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they learned they had an interest in the STEM disciplines, nine said elementary school, 13

said middle school, 10 said high school, and two said college. While the client's assumption

that STEM-based careers are chosen during middle school matched our results, nearly 60

percent stated they learned they had an interest in the STEM fields during high school or

elementary school. This suggests that while most students realized they enjoy STEM

disciplines specifically in middle school, a majority of students would be left out if we only

focused on middle school.

Participants responded to three statements about space and one about the current space

exploration budget. Responses to the statement, “Space exploration is important,” resulted

in a 3.69 average, or mostly leaning toward “no opinion.” The statement, “I admire

astronauts,” returned a 3.77 average, again hovering around “no opinion.” Responses to, “I

follow new information about NASA and space exploration,” resulted in 3.14, the closest

average to “no opinion,” returned regarding the space statements. Participants were asked,

“How much government funding should be spent on further space exploration in

comparison to the current budget?” For spreadsheet scores on this rating, “1” means

“Significantly more,” “2” means “More,” “3” is “Same,” “4” is “Less,” and “5” is

“Significantly less.” There is also a “Don’t know,” option. Three responded, “Don’t

know,” but the average score is 3.09. This data shows that this group of participants feels

fairly apathetic about NASA and space travel, but favorably leaning slightly toward finding

it important. This is important because it shows there is still hope. For the most part, they

don’t have strong opinions about space exploration, which would make it easier for us to

help them form one.

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Summary of Key Findings

35

Summary of Key Findings

Supernova Inc. conducted primary and secondary research to learn more about middle

and high school students. Our primary research regarding who influenced their interest in

school was surprising. We found mostly teachers, then parents and finally friends influence

students. Perhaps teachers should be more involved in discussing career opportunities with

interested students because of their powerful influence. Students also strongly indicated that

if their teachers are excited and engaged, they themselves are more likely to be interested in

the class or subject. Teachers should be aware that the manner in which the material is

presented affects the students’ interest level. If the teachers are excited, then the students will

be excited.

When students were asked to select activities that made a class or subject interesting

the overwhelming favorite were hands-on experiments. Students who participate in science-

based competitions are more likely to pursue STEM careers. Students who participate in

those competitions and didn’t pursue STEM careers are still advocates for STEM progress.

Four other top choices were in-class discussions, videos, technology and field trips.

Secondary research found that, in general, students in classrooms with more guest

speakers and Web resources reported higher science interest levels. Primary research found

that among students, the most frequently used medium is a computer with Internet access.

Because students already enjoy using the Internet, utilizing Web resources in the classroom

can potentially increase academic interest, and therefore achievement. More than three out of

four students surveyed use Facebook, about the same number use YouTube, but only one out

of 10 use Twitter. The low Twitter usage by students means that there could be less emphasis

on this form of social media.

The White House has committed more than $4.5 billion to improve STEM

performance and innovation in schools. The three goals of Educate to Innovate are to

improve critical thinking in STEM disciplines, improve the quality of math and science

teaching, and expanding STEM career opportunities. This provides a platform for the

Coalition to take advantage of funding and partnership opportunities.

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Target Audience

37

Key Publics

Secondary Education (Middle School and High School) Students: These students are entering an age when interests of study begin to shape. This campaign is attempting to influence middle school students to be interested in STEM disciplines, and eventually pursue space-related careers. This would inform students of potentially high-paying and rewarding career opportunities students might not be aware of. The key message in targeting this public is to encourage the importance of STEM education as well as stimulate interest in STEM education. College Students: This group is preparing to graduate and enter the workforce. There are concerns that industries other than aerospace will recruit highly qualified graduates, resulting in a dwindling pool of qualified graduates to enter the aerospace industry. Ultimately, this public’s stake is similar to the secondary education students’ public, in that they are seeking high-paying and rewarding careers. The key message in targeting this public is to convince college-aged students to pursue STEM related careers within the NASA field as opposed to the “hip” corporations, i.e., Google. Teachers: Our research found that teachers are capable of greatly influencing their students’ interest level in the subject they teach. Teachers should encourage students to participate and be enthusiastic about STEM, and they should provide guidance to highly interested students. Students are likely to enjoy a class more if the teacher is engaged and helpful. The key message in targeting this public is to convince teachers to encourage interest in STEM education and be enthusiastic about teaching students about aerospace education. Parents: This public will encourage their kids to have an early interest in STEM disciplines, therefore influencing those students to consider pursuing a STEM career. Parents want their children to be successful and enjoy what they do. The key message in targeting parents is to allow parents to push their children into STEM education and STEM related careers. College Career Center Advisors: Advisors need to know what the aerospace industry can provide to college students. They need to be able to connect students with professionals in the industry, and provide career opportunities. The key message in targeting college career center advisors is to guide students towards professional careers and possible career opportunities hopefully within the STEM related fields.

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Media: An intervening public used to build public support and interest in a unique project involving high school students in leadership roles. The news media is always looking for new stories, and will be kept informed about new events pertaining to space exploration. Media would provide a positive outlook to the public about students getting involved in leadership roles and providing news stories about the efforts students are making to encourage others about STEM education and opportunities. School Administrators: This public will be targeted to raise support and awareness for Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities as well as possibly allocate funds and influence curricula. These school administrators will be seeking re-election, and supporting education can lead to higher approval ratings. School administrators will encourage STEM education through curricula provided by the coalition as well as dedicate one month to science and space related topics. Strategic Partnerships with Industry Leaders: This public is intended to help with spreading the word of the campaign, provide financial support, and expertise. Ambassadors and the industries they represent will benefit from the public exposure involved with appearances and sponsorships. Science and Technology Centers: This public is targeted for the purpose of giving schools reduced rates for field trips and tours during Planetarium and Science Museum Month. This public will benefit from increased visitation during this month, and any further publicity as a result of the campaign.

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SWOT Analysis

40

SWOT Analysis  

A  SWOT  analysis  is  designed  to  identify  the  environment  in  which  an  organization  is  operating.    Doing  so  aids  in  the  development  of  communication  strategies.    For  the  purposes  of  a  SWOT  analysis,  internal  factors  are  those  things  over  which  an  organization  has  some  measure  of  control.    External  factors  are  those  things  over  which  an  organization  has  no  control.  

• Strengths  –  Positive,  internal  factors.    A  list  of  the  organization’s  present  strengths,  especially  related  to  issues  confronting  the  organization.  

• Weaknesses  –  Negative,  internal  factors.    The  organization’s  present  weaknesses,  especially  related  to  its  competitors.  

• Opportunities  –  Positive,  external  factors.    Potential  future  opportunities  related  to  the  present  issues.  

• Threats  –  Negative,  external  factors.    Threats  the  organization  must  be  prepared  to  face  in  the  future.    Threats  can  be  anything  that  can  prevent  the  organization  from  reaching  its  goals.  

 The  SWOT  Analysis  Grid:  

Strengths  • Exciting  industry  and  jobs  • World  of  technology,  developing  • Inspiring  history,  emotional  

connection  • Lots  of  online  content  (blogs,  

contest,  etc)  • Current  Gallup  Poll  suggests  public  

support  for  NASA  

Opportunities  • Easier  to  form  an  opinion  in  

students  than  change  an  opinion  • High  paying  jobs  • Partner  with  rising  countries  • Only  half  of  surveyed  college  

students  got  a  STEM  specific  scholarship,  so  more  scholarships  can  be  made  available  

• No  teachers  specifically  trained  in  space  education  

• Smart  phone    

Weakness  • Budget  cuts  • Social  media  hits/engagement  low  • Difficult  STEM  course  work  • Higher  engineering  graduates  per  

capita  than  other  countries  • No  more  shuttle:  no  concrete,  

tangible  events  to  occur  • Space  industry  jobs  are  not  top  of  

mind  as  possibilities  • Lack  of  young  Twitter  audience  

 

Threats  • Dwindling  workforce  • Economic  issues  • Budget  cuts  • Large  countries  changing  out  

technical  students  • Thinking  locally  • No  agreement  on  job  market  for  

engineering  graduates  • Private  industry  to  NASA  

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 The  chart  above  describes  many  current  strengths  of  the  Coalition  for  Space  

Exploration  and  the  cultural  environment  of  the  youth  generation.  For  one,  our  primary  research  shows  that  many  students  see  space  as  exciting,  rich  with  history  and  emotion.  Many  of  the  surveyed  students  reinforced  the  assumption  that  young  people  are  technologically  dependent.  One  focus  group  participant  said,  “maybe  too  dependent.”  Of  middle  school  and  high  school  students,  76  percent  had  a  Facebook  account.  Luckily,  the  Coalition  has  much  online  content  and  a  frequently  updated  Facebook  fan  page.  

While  positive,  the  Coalition’s  social  media  engagement  is  a  weakness  along  with  the  Web  sites’  hits  and  traffic.  Twitter,  in  our  surveys,  was  hardly  used  at  all  by  students,  only  10  percent.  Another  surprising  weakness  discovered  in  our  research  was  the  lack  of  career  advice  sought  by  high  school  students  from  their  guidance  counselors.  Instead,  parents  should  be  targeted  as  they  are  a  major  influence  on  students,  a  much  more  difficult  audience  to  reach.  Students  cited  difficult  coursework  and  other  career  opportunities  as  discouragements  from  pursuing  STEM  careers.  Without  the  space  shuttle  fleet  or  concrete  event  for  which  to  draw  attention,  the  future  of  PR  for  the  Coalition  will  be  tough.  Compound  that  with  a  rough  economy  and  a  high  number  of  engineering  graduates  per  capita  competing  for  fewer  jobs.  

Outside  forces,  such  as  foreign  nations  producing  more  and  more  college  graduates  with  STEM  degree  and  the  private  industry  moving  in  on  space  exploration,  also  pose  a  threat.  Much  focus  right  now  is  on  local  concerns  and  survey  participants  were  split  on  whether  to  focus  more  efforts  at  home  or  in  space.  There  also  seems  to  be  very  little  agreement  on  the  job  market  for  STEM  graduates  –  some  say  it’s  great  and  other  say  it’s  bleak.  

Some  of  these  threats,  however,  can  also  be  seen  as  opportunities.  Teaming  up  with  the  private  space  industry  could  also  help  the  Coalition  and  inspire  young  people  to  join  private  companies.  Nearly  half  of  high  school  and  middle  school  students  are  interested  in  a  STEM  career,  but  only  50  percent  of  current  engineer  majors  surveyed  received  a  scholarship  specifically  for  their  major.  This  is  a  major  opportunity  on  which  the  Coalition  could  capitalize.  As  stated  earlier,  parents  have  a  major  influence  on  students’  career  choices.  Teachers,  as  well,  were  cited  as  influencers,  yet  few  are  specifically  trained  in  space  sciences.  These  are  growing  issues  that  the  Educate  to  Innovate  initiative  has  been  addressing.  The  great  news  is  that  there  is  still  time  to  influence  young  people.  Surveyed  participants  were  fairly  neutral  when  asked  about  their  opinions  of  NASA  and  space  exploration.  It’s  easier  to  form  an  opinion  than  to  change  an  opinion.  Young  people  right  now  are  at  a  tipping  point.  The  Coalition  just  needs  to  help  them  out.  

           

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Planning Section

43

Planning Section

Goal 1- To create nationwide support for STEM education and programs

Objective 1- Declare April 2012 National Science Month Tactic 1- Design a Web site for this month of awareness

Description: An easy to access Web site complete with explanation of STEM, its importance, participating partners, list of Month’s events and information on curriculum

Targeted audience: Media, school administrators, teachers, parents, and students

Timetable: Launch Site Summer 2010 Cost: $1,500 Tactic 2- Persuade President Obama to proclaim April 2012 Space Month

Description: Announce launch of Web site through dispersion of media kits, motivation for month of awareness and the planned events. Also, announce Junior Ambassador Committee (see Goal 2, Objective 2) members and their integral involvement in the year of awareness. Promote with intervening audiences such as state education boards, National Education Administration (NEA) and space blogs.

Targeted audience: Media, education administrators Timetable: Spring 2011 Cost: $5,000 Tactic 3- Create network of partner associations

Description: Utilize not only Coalition members but also expand network to many similar advocacy groups through individual executive meetings and by contacting them through form letters. Potential partner associations could include the White House, Department of Education, NASA, NEA, National Lab Day, Universities, Google and other STEM-related corporations.

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Targeted audience: Industry leaders, school administrators

Timetable: December 2010- Send letters to associations Cost: 250 letters at $0.16 per letter at Kinko’s = $40 250 letters with $0.44 per stamp = $110 250 envelopes at Office Depot = $15 Tactic 4- Logo Contest

Description: Launch contest on Facebook to find suitable logo for Science Month. Targeted audience: Students Timetable: Announce contest- Feb. 2011 Promote contest- Aug.- Sept. 2011 Deadline for submission Oct. 31, 2011

Cost: $500 total prize money

Objective 2- Increase awareness of the Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities by involving parents

Tactic 1- Create page for parents on the Science Month

Description: The Parents page will include information about the Month, how to join the parents group, etc.

Targeted audience: Parents Timetable: Summer 2010 Cost: $1,000 according to dotlaunch.com Tactic 2- Send members of the parent group a bumper sticker Description: Bumper sticker promoting science. Targeted audience: Parents Timetable: Winter 2011 Cost: $0.60 per bumper sticker X 10,000 stickers = $6,000

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Objective 3- Increase extracurricular STEM activities Tactic 1- Create “how-to” guide for running an after-school science club. Description: An easy to follow guide with templates and instructions on

how to create and run a science club, including a template letter to teachers, promotional posters, club projects, and activities. An example of an after school group would be astronomy club.

Targeted audiences: Middle and high school students and teachers Timetable: Mail handouts -Summer 2010 Cost: E-mail and available for online download (Free) Tactic 2- Declare April 2012 “Planetarium and Science Museum Month”

Description: Collaborate with Association of Science-Technology Centers to create discounts for class trips and tours during Space Month. Inform administrators at conference and students through Facebook. Use brochure to promote these activities.

Targeted audiences: Students, administrators, museums and teachers Timetable: Brochures mailed March/April 2012 Cost: $0.16 per brochure X 10,000 = $1,600

Objective 4- Enhance Social Media sites Tactic 1- Make Facebook presence more interactive and engaging

Description: Match Facebook updates with comments on students’ profiles

Targeted audiences: Middle and high school students Timetable: Immediately; Again in 2011 by Junior Ambassadors Cost: Free

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Tactic 2- Reprioritize Social Media presence

Description: Focus discussion of STEM on Facebook and less on Twitter

Targeted audiences: Middle school students Timetable: Immediately Cost: Free Tactic 3- Create Facebook events

Description: Use Facebook to promote contests and competitions. See Logo Contest, Museum Day, Science Olympiad and after-school clubs.

Targeted audiences: Middle school students Timetable: Winter 2011 for AASA Conference Spring 2011 Science Olympiad Event Logo Contest August 2011 April 2012- Space Month May 2012- Science Olympiad Cost: Free Tactic 4- Produce monthly online videos

Description: Junior Ambassador Committee will write and produce 3-5 minute videos monthly, upload them to YouTube and post them on Facebook. Related to Science Month and upcoming events.

Targeted audience: Middle school students Timetable: Produced monthly during 2011-2012 Cost: $7,000

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Objective 5- Establish the Space Coalition as an advocate for STEM education Tactic 1- Join STEM Education Coalition

Description: Join more than 200 organizations in supporting legislation that supports STEM educations

Targeted audiences: School administrators Timetable: Immediately Cost: Free

Tactic 2- Promote Science Month at the American Association of School Administrators National Conference on Education

Description: Promote John Kao, author of Innovation Nation, as major spokesman at conference encouraging School Administrators to support increased space curriculum during 2011-2012 school year.

Targeted audiences: School administrators Timetable: Feb. 2011 Cost: $10,000 Tactic 3- Provide a packet of possible space science education activities to AASA Conference Description: easy to follow activity instructions provided by

NASA Targeted audiences: Middle school and high school students Timetable: Feb. 2011 Cost: 10,000 flyers at $0.06 per = $6,000

Tactic 4- Send teachers to space/science education workshops on teaching middle school and high school students at UC Berkeley Space Science Laboratory

Description: An application process to send middle school and high school teachers to NASA sponsored workshop on teaching space sciences specially designed at UC Berkley.

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Targeted audiences: Middle school and high school teachers Timetable: Summer 2011 Cost: $1,500 for travel and hotel accommodations per teacher Send five teachers = $7,500

Tactic 5 – Run a three-month magazine ad promoting space/science education workshop in teacher and parent magazines Description: Magazine poster ad will run from January-March 2011, in

advance of the Summer 2011 workshop, providing information on how to send a teacher to the workshop.

Targeted audiences: Middle and high school teachers Timetable: January-March 2011 Cost: $5,250 per month for three months = $15,750

Goal 2: To influence students to pursue space-related careers

Objective 1 – To make aerospace-related career information easily accessible, personal and engaging

Tactic 1 – Create a career center for students on Coalition Web site

Description: Create a searchable database based on students’ interests and hobbies. Results yield fact sheets on STEM career opportunities, pictures, contact information for “Space Career Mentors,” career videos, and information for parents.

Targeted audiences: Middle school and high school students, and parents

Timetable: Summer 2010

Cost: $1,000 (according to estimates at dotlaunch.com)

Tactic 2 – Create “Aerospace Career Mentors”

Description: Professionals of a variety of fields donate their time to connect with interested students. Mentors create short videos of a typical work day and STEM studies practical application. Mentors speak directly

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to students via Facebook pages and organized Webinars with classrooms. Distribute to college career centers and Facebook.

Targeted Audiences: Middle school, high school and college students, teachers, college career center advisors

Timetable: Summer 2010

Cost: $1,500 for Web site, according to dotlaunch.com

Tactic 3 – Create Aeropace Career Mentors posters

Description: Create posters featuring the Space Career Mentors. Each poster will feature one Mentor’s picture, details about their job duties, pictures of them at work, their education and career paths, their hobbies and interests and what school “subjects” they use at work. Headline example: “My name is Bob Smith and I use physics every day.” Allow teachers to request posters for their classrooms.

Targeted Audiences: Middle and high school students, teachers

Timetable: Distribute March 2011 at National Science Teacher Association Conference, also as downloadable pdf

Cost: $2,047.50 (10,000 posters, 18” x 24”, 4 color, according to uprinting.com)

Objective 2 – To establish peer-group outreach to middle and high school students

Tactic 1 -- Establish the Junior Ambassadors Committee, a committee of high school students who are interested and invested in space exploration

Description: 12-15 High school students currently interested in STEM fields communicating with students and schools about opportunities and events. Junior Ambassadors would also build retention into GEN Y Board Members program, and could work closely together on various projects.

Targeted audiences: Students, teachers, industry leaders, schools, parents, media

Timetable: Send out invitations/applications to prospective students handpicked by the Coalition by July 1, 2010 Select committee members by Aug. 1, 2010

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Attend AASA conference Feb. 2011

Cost: $10,000 Tactic 2 –Liaison with Science Olympiad in creation of competition criteria

Description: Develop a unique, space-themed concept for the nationwide competition to be held 2012, as well as a possible single event in 2011.

Targeted audiences: Industry leaders, students, teachers

Timetable: December 2010- Contact Science Olympiad Cost: $1,000

Tactic 3 – Allow the Junior Ambassadors access to the Coalition’s Facebook account

Description: Allow the Coalition’s current employees in charge of the Facebook account to moderate the Junior Ambassadors use of the account in order to give the Youth Committee a voice in communicating with peers.

Targeted audiences: Student audience the Coalition is currently not reaching with its social media efforts.

Timetable: Immediately following creation of the Junior Ambassadors and a social media-training seminar.

Cost: Purchase of The Social Media Bible, $19.25 new at Barnes & Noble.

Tactic 4 – Produce videos, blogs, podcasts and Facebook status updates.

Description: Content will include science experiments, entertaining NASA updates, critique of curriculum, new events. (See G.1 Objective 4, Tactic 3)

Targeted audiences: Facebook followers, students, teachers, parents.

Timetable: Immediately; continued regularly until May 2012

Cost: $2,000 budget to produce videos and podcasts.

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Objective 3- Become “partner” of Science Olympiad

Tactic 1- Sponsor event at Science Olympiad Nationals 2011

Description: Start by sponsoring a single event during 2011 competition and provide scholarship for first place team.

Targeted audience: Industry leaders, students, teachers Timetable: May 2011 – Sponsor Olympiad Event

Cost: $6,000 Tactic 2- Host Science Olympiad Nationals 2012

Description: Match funds from Coalition members in order to sponsor entire competition for 2012 with heavy emphasis on STEM application to space exploration.

Targeted audience: Industry leaders, students, teachers Timetable: May 2012 Cost: $20,000 Tactic 3- Joint Press Release with Science Olympiad

Description: Emphasize Junior Ambassador leadership and growth of major national competition with the Coalition industry leaders

Target audience: Industry leaders, school administrators, general public, parents

Timetable: Spring 2011

Cost: $60/hour production for three hours = $180

Tactic 4- Coalition Member Speaker

Description: Have a key member of coalition speak at Nationals to appeal to industry leaders, parents and students for continued growth of STEM education even past Science Month

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Target audience: Industry leaders, media, teachers, parents, students, school administrators

Timetable: May 2012

Cost: $1,500 for travel and hotel accommodations, $3,500 (average) speaking fee  

       

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Executions

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 Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #1    Title:    Design  a  Web  site  for  this  month  of  awareness    Brief  Description:        

This  is  the  Web  site  that  will  provide  information  about  Science  Month  and  all  of  the  activities  and  events  surrounding  it.    The  site  is  set  to  launch  in  the  summer  of  2010.  Supernova  Inc.  has  decided  that  the  best  way  to  display  in-­‐depth  information  about  Science  Month  to  the  public  is  through  a  Web  Site  dedicated  to  the  month.  The  site  will  target  the  media,  policy  makers,  teachers,  parents,  and  students  and  will  inform  them  about  the  upcoming  events  and  activities  that  surround  April  of  2012,  Science  Month.    The  Science  Month  Web  site  will  also  explain  STEM,  its  importance,  possible  curriculum  changes,  and  the  participating  partner  organizations.    There  will  also  be  a  links  to  the  Coalition  Web  site  and  games  portal.            

Timetable:  Summer  2010    Status:  Incomplete    

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #2    Title:  Media  Kit  Announcing  “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities”    Brief  Description:      

This  media  kit  contains  a  news  release,  backgrounder  on  the  Coalition,  fact  sheet,  and  social  media  news  release  to  cover  the  announcement  of  Science  Month.    The  media  kit  is  scheduled  to  be  released  in  April  2011  in  conjunction  with  President  Obama’s  official  proclamation  declaring  April  2012  “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities.”     The  media  kit  should  be  sent  to  national  media  (such  as  CNN,  The  New  York  Times,  The  Washington  Post),  regional  media  (such  as  KCTV-­‐5,  The  Kansas  City  Star)  and  PR  and  news  wires.     The  news  release  reports  the  White  House’s  official  endorsement  of  Science  Month.    It  mentions  the  Coalition’s  partnerships  with  organizations  such  as  the  Department  of  Education  and  NASA.    It  also  promotes  the  Month’s  Web  site  and  Facebook  page.     On  the  second  page  of  the  news  release  are  “short-­‐teaser”  sections  providing  information  on  the  Science  Month  logo  contest,  Science  Olympiad  sponsorship,  Junior  Ambassadors  Committee,  and  Aerospace  Career  Mentors.     The  backgrounder  is  a  separate  document  containing  brief  background  information  on  the  Coalition,  including  notable  partner  organizations  and  members  of  the  Board  of  Advisors.     The  fact  sheet  is  a  separate  document  that  breaks  down  the  newsworthy  facts  of  the  news  release  into  What,  Who,  Where,  When  and  Why  quick-­‐hitters  for  journalists.     The  social  media  news  release  is  the  final  document  in  the  media  kit.    It  contains  news  facts  and  quotations,  and  links  to  Science  Month  on  YouTube  and  Facebook,  as  well  as  a  link  to  the  Coalition’s  Web  site,  and  the  traditional  news  release  in  PDF  form.  

 Timetable:  Spring  2011    Status:  Complete    Location:  All  documents  of  the  media  kit  follow  this  description  

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 News Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: April 11, 2011 Julie Arnold Media Contact 281-335-0200 julie@griffincommgroup.com

White House Declares April 2012, “Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities”

HOUSTON – President Obama has signed a proclamation declaring April

2012, “Science Month: Re-launching Student Achievement.” The Coalition for

Space Exploration has partnered with many organizations, including the

Department of Education and NASA, to bring this month of Science,

Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education into middle and high

school classrooms in April 2012.

The Coalition has launched a Web site for Science Month to serve as a

central hub for administrators, teachers, parents and students to learn more

about Science Month and its activities and events. For more information, please

go to http://www.sciencemonth.com. The Coalition has also made a Facebook

fan page available to promote Science Month and establish conversations with

students and parents online.

-MORE-

 

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Coalition for Space Exploration announces additional events and services in support of Science Month

• Science Month Logo Contest

The Coalition is asking students to design a logo for Science Month which will be used for the Web site, Facebook page, in-class Science Month materials and activities, and official stationary. The contest winner will receive a $500 cash prize. Details of the contest can be found online at sciencemonth.com or on the Facebook fan page, or contact Julie Arnold, 281-335-0200, julie@griffcommgroup.com.

• Science Olympiad Sponsorship

The Coalition for Space Exploration will sponsor a space-themed event at Science Olympiad Nationals 2011. The Coalition will reward a $1,000 scholarship to the first place individual or team.

• Junior Ambassadors Committee

The Junior Ambassadors Committee is made up of 20 high school students (ten 11t h graders, ten 12t h graders) interested in STEM fields and communicating with students and schools about Science Month and other opportunities. The Junior Ambassadors attended the American Association of School Administrators national conference in February to raise support for Science Month. They will be working closely with promoting Science Olympiad, and will be communicating with student peers about Science Month online in social media. Details of how to become a Junior Ambassador, or to communicate with the committee, can be found online at http://www.spacecoalition.com/juniorambassadors, or on the Coalition’s Facebook page. Contact Julie Arnold, 281-335-0200, julie@griffcommgroup.com.

• Aerospace Career Mentors

The Coalition has made a career center on its Web site with a searchable database of careers based on students’ interests and hobbies. Aerospace Career Mentors are professionals from a variety of fields speaking directly to students on the Web site, Facebook and organized classroom Webinars. Visit the Aerospace Career Mentors on http://www.spacecoalition.com/careerportal, or contact Julie Arnold, 281-335-0200, julie@griffcommgroup.com.

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Backgrounder FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: April 11, 2011 Julie Arnold Media Contact 281-335-0200 julie@griffincommgroup.com

Coalition for Space Exploration

The Coalition for Space Exploration is comprised of aerospace industry companies that are

collaborating to advance the cause of space exploration.

The Coalition’s mission is to inform the public about the value and benefits of space

exploration in order to build support and funding for NASA and to ensure the United States

remains a leader in space, science and technology.

The Coalition was formally established in January 2004, after industry representatives agreed

on the need to garner public support for future NASA initiatives. Member organizations include

Aerojet, Boeing, CISCO, Honeywell, IBM, and Lockheed Martin.

The Coalition relies on the advocacy efforts of its Board of Advisors. The Board currently

includes members such as Academy Award-winning director James Cameron, former NASA

flight director for the Apollo program Gerry Griffin, former astronaut Steve Hawley – currently a

physics and astronomy professor at the University of Kansas, Gene Kranz, a former flight

director who successfully guided Apollo 13 safely back to Earth, and Miles O’Brien, who has

served as CNN’s science, space, aviation technology and environment correspondent.

The Coalition is currently advocating “Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities,” which

has been endorsed by the White House.

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 Fact  Sheet    FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE                            FOR  MORE  INFORMATION,  CONTACT:                             Julie  Arnold                   Media  Contact                   281-­‐335-­‐0200                                     julie@griffincommgroup.com    

White  House  Declares  April  2012  as  “Science  Month”    

What:   April  2012  has  been  declared,  “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities,”  by  the  White  House.    “Science  Month”  will  be  dedicated  to  encourage  middle  school  students  to  get  excited  about  science,  technology,  engineering  and  math  (STEM)  subjects.  

    The  Coalition  for  Space  Exploration  has  collaborated  with  many  different  

associations,  including  NASA  and  the  Department  of  Education  to  help  launch  this  month  dedicated  to  STEM  education.    

 Who:   President  Obama  recently  signed  a  proclamation  that  April  2012  will  be  

officially  declared,  “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities.”      Where:   Science  Month  will  be  held  in  middle  and  high  schools  throughout  the  United  

States.    When:     “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities,”  will  progress  for  the  entire  

month  of  April  2012.      Why:     The  future  of  space  exploration  and  the  expansion  of  STEM  education  is  in  

middle  and  high  school  students  and  their  enthusiasm  to  pursue  these  careers.      “STEM  education  and  outreach  is  critical  and  we  need  to  get  middle  and  high  school  kids  motivated,”     -­‐-­‐Gwen  Griffin,  Griffin  Communications  Group  

             #  #  #  

                   

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White   House   Declares   April   2012,   “Science   Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities”  Obama  signs  proclamation  dedicating  a  month  to  science  education    News  Facts  

• Obama recently signed a proclamation, which officially declared April 2012 as, “Science Month: Explore Infinite Possibilities.”

• The Coalition for Space Exploration has partnered with NASA and the Department of Education to bring Science Month to middle and high schools.

• The month is designed to encourage students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in order to help space exploration.

• “Science Month,” will help motivate and inspire middle and high school students to look at science as “cool.”

• Several events will take place to help support Science Month. These events include a Science Month Logo Contest, a Science Olympiad Sponsorship (with a $1,000 reward) and a Junior Ambassador’s Committee (a group of 20 high school students interested in STEM), who will help communicate with students and schools during and beyond Science Month.

Quotations

• “STEM  education  and  outreach  is  critical  and  we  need  to  get  middle  and  high  school  kids  motivated,”  –Gwen  Griffin,  Griffin  Communications  Group  

• “We  need  to  convince  these  kids  that  science,  technology,  engineering  and  math  are  cool,”  –Gwen  Griffin,  Griffin  Communications  Group  

 Multimedia  

• Youtube  video:  Science  Month  • Link  to  traditional  news  release  (PDF)  

 Related  Links  

• Coalition  for  Space  Exploration  • Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities  • Science  Month's  Facebook  Page  

 About  Coalition  for  Space  Exploration  

Located   in  Houston,  Tex.,   the  Coalition’s  mission   is   to   educate   the  public   about   space  and   its   endless   possibilities.   Their   goal   is   to   expand   STEM   in  middle   and  high   school  students  in  order  to  continue  America’s  lead  in  space.    

 For  More  Information  

Julie  Arnold  Media  Contact  281-­‐335-­‐0200  julie@griffincommgroup.com  

 

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #3    Title:    Network  of  Partner  Associations  Letter    Brief  Description:      

This  is  the  letter  that  will  be  mailed  out  to  partner  associations  in  the  December  of  2010.  It  will  also  be  mailed  to  politicians  connected  to  Educate  to  Innovate  and  the  Department  of  Education.  Supernova  Inc.  has  created  a  form  letter  that  illustrates  the  values  of  the  Coalition  and  the  importance  of  educating  students.    This  letter  also  emphasizes  the  importance  of  making  sure  that  students  are  aware  of  the  career  possibilities  within  STEM  subjects.    The  letter  asks  for  help  in  funding  and  contacts  to  ensure  that  the  events  leading  up  to  Science  Month  are  the  best  that  they  can  be.    The  funding  would  also  be  beneficial  in  sponsoring  Science  Olympiad  events.    This  letter  will  be  used  to  further  the  network  of  partner  associations,  politicians,  and  companies  who  have  an  invested  interest  in  education  as  well  as  STEM  subject  education.      

 Timetable:  December  2010    Status:  Completed      Location:    The  letter  follows  this  description.    

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National  Education  Association    1201  16th  St,  NW    Washington  D.C.,  20036    April  15,  2010    Dear  National  Education  Association:    Do  you  have  a  passion  for  STEM  subjects?    Does  your  company  want  the  brightest  and  most  innovative  minds  in  the  country?  Are  you  interested  in  informing  today’s  youth  about  the  importance  of  technology?    

On  behalf  of  the  Coalition  for  Space  Exploration,  I  would  like  to  inform  you  of  “Science  Month:  Explore  Infinite  Possibilities”  and  the  activities  planned  around  this  major  event.        

We  realize  your  organization  is  invested  in  educating  students  with  the  highest  quality  teachers  and  the  Coalition  shares  that  goal.    We  would  like  teachers  to  have  the  opportunity  to  go  to  space  workshops  and  are  looking  for  sponsors  to  make  this  possible.  Together  with  University  of  California-­‐Berkley,  we  hope  to  send  five  teachers  to  a  private  workshop  in  the  summer  of  2011  With  your  help,  we  could  send  more.      

Throughout  the  next  two  years  we  have  created  a  schedule  of  events  that  encourage  students  in  middle  and  high  schools  to  find  a  passion  for  science,  technology,  engineering,  and  math  (STEM).    We  will  also  be  working  with  faculty  and  staff  to  include  more  STEM  based  activities  within  teaching  curriculum  and  will  be  creating  after-­‐school  clubs  for  students  to  further  explore  these  fields.  At  the  Coalition,  we  believe  that  educating  our  youth  is  imperative  for  the  success  of  our  country  and  these  fields  of  study  are  of  extreme  importance.                We  would  greatly  value  your  support  in  our  major  quest  to  persuade  President  Obama  to  officially  name  April  of  2012  “Science  Month.”    

In  the  long  run,  we  hope  to  develop  innovative  young  minds  and  make  certain  that  these  students  are  strongly  considering  going  into  STEM  careers.    To  better  ensure  that  you  are  receiving  the  most  talented  future  employees  we  strongly  encourage  you  to  send  a  guest  speaker  to  one  of  our  events  or  join  the  Board  of  Directors  for  Science  Month.    This  will  guarantee  that  your  organization  is  getting  exposure  to  students  and  faculty  involved  in  this  event  by  being  able  to  interact  with  audience  and  promote  your  association.    If  your  group  is  unable  to  send  contacts  we  would  appreciate  any  aid  in  funding  these  events.    If  you  have  any  further  questions,  or  would  like  to  participate  please  contact  me  by  e-­‐mail.          

We  appreciate  your  continued  support  and  believe  that  motivating  our  youth  to  participate  in  STEM  careers  will  be  a  huge  factor  in  the  success  of  our  nation  as  a  whole.    

Sincerely,    

Julie  Glenn  Director  of  Operations  jglenn@coalition.org  

 

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #4    Title:    Launch  a  Logo  Contest  for  Science  Month    Brief  Description:      

This  logo  contest  is  created  with  the  intention  of  building  early  enthusiasm  for  Science  Month  among  middle  and  high  school  students.    The  contest  will  be  promoted  on  Facebook,  which  is  the  social  media  site  of  choice  for  the  target  audience.    The  contest  will  allow  students  to  have  interaction  with  Science  Month,  and  give  them  creative  responsibility  for  an  important  part  of  the  Science  Month  campaign.    Prizes  and  online  publicity/recognition  should  be  used  as  motivating  factors  to  entice  student  participation  in  the  contest.    Students  would  be  able  to  submit  their  logos  on  Facebook  or  the  Science  Month  Web  site.    The  media  kit  that  will  be  released  in  April  2011  has  a  short  teaser  on  the  logo  contest,  so  the  contest  can  be  announced  simultaneously  with  Science  Month’s  announcement,  or  postponed  for  back-­‐to-­‐school  Fall  2011.    The  Coalition’s  board  members  could  set  a  deadline  on  the  competition,  and  vote  on  the  logos  to  decide  the  winner.    The  winning  logo  would  then  immediately  be  placed  on  the  Science  Month  Web  site,  the  Coalition’s  Web  site,  and  Facebook  pages.    The  Coalition  could  mail  a  prize  to  the  winner  (or  top  three  finishers),  and  post  a  short  profile  story  of  the  winner  on  the  Science  Month  Facebook  page.  

 Timetable:     Announce  contest-­‐  Feb.  2011       Promote  contest-­‐  Aug.-­‐  Sept.  2011       Deadline  for  submission  Oct.  31,  2011      Status:  Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #5    Title:    Create  a  Parents  page  on  the  Science  Month  Web  site    Brief  Description:        The  parents’  page  would  provide  parents  information  about  Science  Month,  including  tips  on  how  to  get  involved.    It  should  highlight  the  benefits  of  having  a  child  interested  in  pursuing  STEM  fields,  as  well  as  promote  the  prizes  available  in  Science  Olympiad  competitions  and  the  Science  Month  Logo  Contest.    Timetable:    Summer  2010    Status:    Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #6    Title:  Provide  Bumper  Stickers  to  parents    Brief  Description:      

Provide  bumper  stickers  for  parents  who  have  middle  and  high  school  students.    The  goal  of  the  bumper  sticker  is  to  encourage  students  to  become  more  active  in  the  fields  of  STEM  (science,  technology,  engineering  and  math)  and  recognize  that  those  fields  are  exciting  and  fun.    

 Timetable:  Winter  2011    Status:  Complete    Location:  The  bumper  sticker  follows  as  an  insert      

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #7    Title:    “How-­‐To”  Guide  for  running  an  After-­‐School  Science  Club    Brief  Description:      

This  how-­‐to  guide  would  include  templates  and  instructions  on  how  to  create  and  run  a  science  club.    The  club  would  be  designed  to  be  able  to  meet  after  school,  or  during  study  lab  periods  in  school.    The  guide  would  include  a  template  letter  to  teachers  to  encourage  them  to  sponsor  a  club,  promotional  posters  to  hang  in  school,  and  club  projects  and  activities,  such  as  participating  in  Science  Olympiad.    The  guide  would  be  sent  to  middle  and  high  school  teachers  and  administrators.    It  would  demonstrate  the  benefits  of  engaging  students  with  science  projects  and  activities  outside  of  the  traditional  science  classes.    Our  primary  research  found  that  hands-­‐on  activities  and  engaging  teachers  were  highly  influential  factors  in  students’  enthusiasm  for  a  subject.    These  after-­‐school  science  clubs  would  combine  those  two  factors  into  a  productive  conduit  for  science  enthusiasm.    The  guides  could  be  sent  out  swiftly  and  affordably  in  e-­‐mail  form  to  schools  and  administrators.  

 Timetable:  Summer  2010    Status:    Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #8    Title:  Brochure  of  information  on  discounts  for  class  trips    Brief  Description:      

Provide  a  brochure  to  help  collaborate  with  Association  of  Science-­‐Technology  Centers  to  provide  discounts  for  class  trips  and  tours  during  Space  Month.    The  goal  of  the  brochure  is  to  inform  science  museums,  planetariums,  and  Science-­‐Technology  Centers  as  well  as  schools  about  how  to  get  involved  in  Science  Month  and  why  it  is  important  to  have  a  Science  Month.  

 Timetable:  March  and  April  2012    Status:  Complete    Location:  The  brochure  follows  this  description  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #9    Title:  Make  Facebook  presence  more  interactive  and  engaging    Brief  Description:      

The  Coalition  should  begin  reading,  exploring  and  learning  about  other  groups  and  fan  pages  related  to  space  advocacy  and  STEM  education.  After  carefully  observing  others’  wall  posts  and  comments,  the  Coalition’s  Fan  Page  should  post  on  other  fan  pages  and  comment  on  their  wall  posts.  Posts  should  not  include  the  blog’s  title  and  lede.  Posts  and  comments  should  summarize  and  relate  the  Coalition’s  blog  to  the  interests  of  the  other  user.  Links  to  blogs  and  videos  need  to  be  double-­‐checked  to  ensure  they  link  to  the  original  sources.    

 Timetable:  Begin  Immediately;  Allow  Junior  Ambassadors  the  freedom  to  post  for  the  Coalition  Fan  Page  under  staff  supervision  beginning  February  2011.    Status:  Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #10    Title:    Reprioritize  Social  Media  presence    Brief  Description:  

 Based  on  research,  we  recommend  the  Coalition  focus  its  discussion  with  students  on  Facebook,  and  less  on  Twitter.  Efforts  on  Ning.com  should  be  greatly  reduced.    

Timetable:  Immediately    Status:  Incomplete    

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #11    Title:    Create  Facebook  events    Brief  Description:        

The  Coalition,  after  reprioritizing  its  social  media  efforts  to  focus  discussions  more  on  Facebook  and  less  on  Twitter,  should  use  Facebook  to  promote  contests  and  competitions.    Students  participating  in  After-­‐School  Science  Clubs  (see  Goal  1,  Objective  3,  Tactic  1)  would  be  able  to  communicate  with  members  of  their  own  clubs,  as  well  as  peers  from  around  the  country.    The  Science  Month  Logo  Contest  (see  Goal  1,  Objective  1,  Tactic  4),  would  be  competitive  on  Facebook,  and  it  would  open  up  opportunities  for  discussion  and  debate,  as  well  as  a  convenient  location  to  announce  the  winner.    The  Coalition  could  announce  its  sponsorship  at  Science  Olympiad  (see  Goal  2,  Objective  3)  on  Facebook,  promote  its  scholarship  prize  opportunity,  and  encourage  participation  and  competition.    The  Coalition  could  also  remind  Facebook  users  of  its  collaboration  with  the  Association  of  Science-­‐Technology  Centers  (see  Goal  1,  Objective  3,  Tactic  2)  and  provide  information  and  benefits  to  Facebook  fans.  

 Timetable:     Winter  2011  for  AASA  Conference       Spring  2011  Science  Olympiad  Event       Logo  Contest  August  2011       April  2012-­‐  Space  Month       May  2012-­‐  Science  Olympiad    Status:  Incomplete      

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #12    Title:  Produce  monthly  online  videos    Brief  Description:      

Provide  Junior  Ambassadors  the  resources  to  create  monthly  videos  to  post  on  YouTube  and  link  on  Facebook  fan  page  and  other  groups  and  pages.  Videos  don’t  need  to  be  high  quality.  Junior  Ambassadors  should  use  modest  equipment  and  focus  on  creating  fun,  interesting  pieces.  They  could  create  a  “Bill  Nye”  type  science  experiment  show  or  make  space-­‐themed  music  videos.  Junior  Ambassadors  could  visit  local  Coalition  member  and  video  a  tour  of  its  headquarters.  Videos  should  attract  middle  school  students.  Content  does  not  necessarily  need  to  be  educational.  A  link  to  www.spacecoalition.com  should  precede  and  follow  the  short  3-­‐4  minute  spots.  The  desire  is  to  attract  attention  and  drive  traffic  to  the  site.  

 Timetable:  February  2011  and  every  month  to  follow    Status:  Incomplete    

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #13    Title:  Join  STEM  Education  Coalition    Brief  Description:      

It  is  important  that  the  Space  Coalition  join  more  than  200  organizations  in  supporting  legislation  that  supports  STEM  education.  Joining  more  organizations  is  a  good  way  to  get  the  name  out  and  become  more  involved.      

 Timetable:  Immediately      Status:  Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #14    Title:  Promote  Science  Month  at  the  American  Association  of  School  Administrators  National  Conference  on  Education    Brief  Description:      

This  is  going  to  be  an  entire  month  dedicated  to  teaching  students  about  science.  This  month  will  promote  a  guest  speaker,  John  Kao,  author  of  Innovation  Nation,  to  come  and  speak  at  a  conference  encouraging  School  Administrators  to  support  increased  space  curriculum  during  2011-­‐2012  school  year.  This  promotion  will  target  school  administrators  at  the  American  Association  of  School  Administrators  National  Conference  on  Education.  This  will  encourage  school  administrators  to  consider  dedicating  an  entire  month  just  to  space  curriculum.    

 Timetable:  February  2011    Status:  Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #15    Title:  Provide  a  packet  of  possible  space  science  education  activities  to  AASA  Conference    Brief  Description:      

This  packet  would  be  full  of  easy  to  follow  activities  provided  by  NASA  and  aerospace  educators,  targeted  to  school  administrators  and  teachers  in  advance  of  Science  Month.    It  will  be  distributed  at  the  AASA  conference  in  February  2011,  and  an  updated  version  should  be  distributed  again  in  February  2012  as  a  reminder  of  sorts.    These  suggested  activities  will  provide  the  basis  for  what  students  will  be  doing  in  class  during  Science  Month.  

 Timetable:    February  2011    Status:    Incomplete    

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #16    Title:  Magazine  advertisement  for  Science  Teacher’s  magazine  and  Parent’s  magazine    Brief  Description:      

This  is  the  magazine  advertisement  that  will  run  in  both  a  Science  teacher’s  magazine,  i.e.,  Science,  and  a  parent’s  magazine,  i.e.,  Parents  Magazine,  promoting  the  idea  to  send  a  group  of  teachers  to  UC  Berkeley  where  they  will  instruct  teachers  the  proper  way  to  teach  aerospace  science  to  middle  and  high  school  students.  The  headline  is  supposed  to  attract  both  parents  and  teachers  to  the  content  within  the  advertisement  with  the  hopes  of  applying  or  nominating  a  teacher.  The  picture  is  supposed  to  attract  both  audiences  as  well  and  encourage  people  to  apply  or  nominate.  We  chose  this  picture  as  a  way  to  express  the  idea  of  space  and  to  draw  attention  from  the  audiences.    

 Timetable:  Run  the  ad  January-­‐March  2011    Status:  Completed    Location:  The  two  advertisements  follow  this  description      

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Want  to  be  a  teacher  that’s  out  of  this  world??  

 

Apply  to  win  a  trip  to  a  space-­‐science  education  workshop!    

• Where?  UC  Berkeley  • When?  Summer  2011  • Cost?  Free  • How  to  Apply?  Visit  spacecoalition.com  

 

For  more  information  visit:    http://spacecoalition.com/  

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Have  a  teacher  that’s  out  of  this  world??  

Send  your  middle  or  high  school  teacher  to  a  space-­‐science  education  workshop!    

• Where?  UC  Berkeley  • When?  Summer  2011  • Cost?  Free  • How  to  Apply?  Visit  spacecoalition.com  

For  more  information  visit:    http://spacecoalition.com/  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #17    Title:  Run  a  free  month  magazine  ad  promoting  space/science  education  workshop  in  a  teacher  and  parent  magazine    Brief  Description:      

We  will  send  at  least  5  teachers;  unless  we  can  match  funds  with  new  partner  organizations  (i.e.  NEA)  then  there  will  be  an  opportunity  to  send  more  teachers  to  the  University  of  Berkley  Space  Education  Workshops.    These  workshops  will  be  private  workshops  created  through  collaboration  with  University  of  Berkley  and  consist  of  showing  how  to  teach  middle  and  high  school  students  these  subjects  while  making  it  more  enjoyable.  We  will  be  running  magazine  ads  to  help  promote  the  workshops.  

 Timetable:  Summer  2011    Status:  Incomplete    

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #18    Title:    Create  an  Aerospace  Career  Portal  on  Space  Coalition  Web  site    Brief  Description:      

The  Aerospace  Career  Portal  will  be  an  additional  page  within  the  Coalition  for  Space  Exploration’s  existing  Web  site.  A  Career  Portal  tab  will  be  added  to  the  top  of  the  Space  Coalition’s  home  page.  The  top  of  the  home  page  of  the  career  portal  will  display  tabs  for  pages  within  the  portal,  such  as:  Career  Survey,  Aerospace  Careers,  Students,  Parents,  Teachers,  Career  Mentors  and  Videos/Pictures.  The  career  survey  page  will  include  a  survey  designed  to  help  students  determine  which  aerospace  career  may  be  best  for  them  based  on  their  hobbies,  interests  and  favorite  school  subjects.  The  results  from  the  survey  will  suggest  several  aerospace  career  options,  each  of  which  will  be  hyperlinked  to  the  Aerospace  Careers  database.  Every  aerospace  career  entry  in  the  database  will  include  information  such  as  a  position  description,  video  position  description,  pictures  of  job  functions,  related  school  subjects,  suggested  degrees  and  an  Aerospace  Career  Mentor  to  contact.  

 Timetable:  Summer  2010    Status:  Mock-­‐up  completed      Location:  Screenshots  of  possible  designs  and  content  follow  this  description                                      

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #19      Title:  “Create  Space  Career  Mentors”    Brief  Description:      

The  plan  for  the  Space  Career  Mentors  is  to  have  a  variety  of  professionals  from  different  fields  of  STEM  related  careers  dedicate  some  of  their  time  to  helping  and  connecting  with  students  who  are  interested  in  those  fields.  These  mentors  will  work  through  Facebook  as  well  as  organize  Webinars  where  they  can  speak  directly  to  students  in  classrooms  across  the  country.  As  for  what  the  students  will  be  looking  for  from  these  mentors,  they  will  do  activities  such  as  showing  a  video  of  their  typical  workday  and  demonstrate  where,  how  and  when  STEM  subjects  are  applicable  in  real-­‐life  situations.  These  mentors  will  be  helping  middle  school,  high  school  and  college  students  as  well  as  teachers  and  college  career  center  advisors.    

 Timetable:  Summer  2010    Status:  Incomplete  

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #20    Title:    Create  Aerospace  Career  Mentors  posters    Brief  Description:      

Every  Aerospace  Career  Mentor  will  have  his  or  her  own  poster.  Each  headline  will  highlight  a  different  aerospace-­‐related  school  subject  that  the  mentor  uses  at  work  on  a  daily  basis.  The  poster  will  also  include  the  mentor’s  job  title,  place  of  employment,  education  and  career  paths,  contact  information  and  pictures  of  them  working.  These  posters  will  be  distributed  to  teachers  at  the  National  Science  Teachers  Association  conference.  PDF  versions  will  be  available  online  on  the  Career  Portal  Web  site  as  well.  

 Timetable:     Release  a  poster  August  2011,  and  a  new  one  every  month  thereafter       Distribute  March  2012  at  National  Science  Teacher  Association  Conference    Status:  Complete    Location:  An  example  poster  follows  this  description.        

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Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #21    Title:  “Establish  a  committee  of  high  school  students  who  are  interested  and  invested  in  space  exploration”    Brief  Description:  

The  goal  of  the  Junior  Ambassador  Committee  is  to  have  a  group  of  high  school  students  who  are  willing  to  communicate  with  other  students  as  well  as  other  schools  regarding  different  STEM  opportunities,  events  and  competitions.  They  would  work  under  the  GenY  members  at  the  Coalition  and  would  be  given  access  to  social  media  Web  sites  (Facebook,  YouTube)  while  still  being  moderated  by  GenY  and  the  Coalition.      In  order  for  these  Junior  Ambassadors  to  get  involved  as  soon  as  possible,  invitations  and  applications  should  be  sent  out  to  prospective  students  by  July  1,  2010  and  would  therefore  be  able  to  attend  a  Houston  conference  by  Jan.  1,  2011.    

 Timetable:     Send  invitations  to  students  handpicked  by  the  Coalition  by  July  1,  2010             Select  committee  members  by  August  1,  2010           Attend  AASA  conference  February  2011    Status:  Incomplete  

90

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #22    Title:  “Liaison  with  Science  Olympiad  in  Creation  of  Competition  Criteria”    Brief  Description:      

A  space-­‐themed  competition  is  to  take  place  in  2012,  held  by  the  Science  Olympiad.  This  space-­‐themed  concept  will  be  held  throughout  the  nation  and  will  be  easily  accessible  for  anyone  to  get  involved  in.  A  close  relationship  with  the  Science  Olympiad  is  critical,  as  this  will  be  the  Coalition’s  best  bet  at  getting  closely  involved  with  student  competitions.  

 Timetable:  December  2010    Status:  Incomplete

91

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #23    Title:  Allow  the  Junior  Ambassadors  access  to  the  Coalition’s  Facebook  account    Brief  Description:      

Allow  the  Coalition’s  current  employees  in  charge  of  the  Facebook  account  to  moderate  the  Junior  Ambassadors  use  of  the  account  in  order  to  give  the  youth  committee  a  voice  in  communicating  with  peers.  

 Timetable:  Immediately  following  creation  of  the  Junior  Ambassadors  and  a  social  media-­‐training  seminar.    Status:  Incomplete    

92

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #24    Title:    Produce  videos,  blogs,  podcasts,  Facebook  status  updates    Brief  Description:      

The  Junior  Ambassadors  will  work  to  create  social  media  to  invoke  interest  of  STEM  subjects  to  young  people.  The  Junior  Ambassadors  will  be  given  the  assignment  to  produce  videos,  blogs,  podcasts,  and  Facebook  status  updates  because  the  target  audience  used  these  types  of  social  media  most  often.    Through  these  mediums  we  will  be  targeting  Facebook  followers,  students,  teachers,  and  parents.    The  content  will  include  science  experiments,  entertaining  NASA  updates,  critique  of  curriculum,  new  events.      

 Timetable:  Immediately;  continued  regularly  until  May  2012.    

   Status:  Incomplete  

93

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #25    Title:  Sponsor  event  at  Science  Olympiad  Nationals  2011    Brief  Description:      

Start  by  sponsoring  a  single  event  during  2011  competition  and  provide  scholarship  for  first  place  team.  

 Timetable:  May  2011    Status:  Incomplete    

94

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #26    Title:  Host  Science  Olympiad  Nationals  2012    Brief  Description:      

Match  funds  from  Coalition  members  in  order  to  sponsor  entire  competition  for  2012  with  heavy  emphasis  on  STEM  application  to  space  exploration.  

 Timetable:  May  2012    Status:  Incomplete    

95

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #27    Title:  Joint  Press  Release  with  Science  Olympiad    Brief  Description:      

Emphasize  Junior  Ambassador  Leadership  and  growth  of  major  national  competition  with  the  Coalition  industry  leader.    Goal  is  to  get  students  more  active  in  Science  Olympiad.  

 Timetable:  Spring  2011    Status:  Incomplete      

96

Executions    Communications  Package  Description  #28    Title:  Coalition  Member  Speaker    Brief  Description:      

Have  a  key  member  of  the  coalition  speak  at  Nationals  to  appeal  to  industry  leaders,  parents  and  students  for  continued  growth  of  STEM  education  even  after  Science  Month.  

 Timetable:  May  2012    Status:  Incomplete        

97

 

Sources of Information

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Works Cited

Achenbach, Joel. “Obama’s plans for NASA changes met with harsh criticism.”

Washington Post 10 March 2010. Web. 10 March 2010.

ACT, Inc. “Developing the STEM Education Pipeline.” Act.org. 2006. 9 March 2010.

Adams, John. “Lockheed’s Ray O. Johnson on Supporting STEM fields.” Govconwire. Govconwire.com, 1 March 2010. Web. 10 March 2010.

Arrington, Michael. “Ning- R.I.P.?” TechCrunch. WordPress.com, 20 Jan. 2006. Web. 10 March 2010.

Astrosociety.org. Web. 10 March 2010.

Bishop, Kristina and Howard Walters. “The National Ocean Sciences Bowl: Extending the Reach of a High School Academic Competition to College, Careers, and a Lifelong Commitment to Science.” American Secondary Education 35.3 (2007): 63-76. Web.

Covault, Craig. “Exploration Advocacy.” Aviation Week and Space Technology 8 March 2004: 57. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 10 March 2010.

Day, Brian. Astro-venture. NASA Ames Research Center, 10 November 2009. Web. 18 April 2010.

Farr, JR. “How to Create a Successful Facebook Fan Page.” Net Media Group. Net Media

Group, 9 Feb. 2010. Web. 10 March 2010.

Glod, Maria. “Scores on Science Test Causing Concern in U.S.” Washington Post 10 December 2008. Web. 3 March 2010.

Koszalka, Tiffany. “The Relationship Between the Types of Resources Used in Science Classrooms and Middle School Students’ Interests in Science Careers: An Exploratory Analysis.” Middle Level Teacher Education Initiative. Web.

Larkins, Stuart. "New Data Shows the Tween Scene is Online." 29 July 2008. Web. 24 Feb. 2010. http://www.chiefmarketer.com.

Markowitz, Dina. “Evaluation of the Long-Term Impact of a University High School Summer Science Program on Students’ Interest and Perceived Abilities in Science.” Journal of Science Education and Technology 13.3 (2004): 395-407. Web.

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Nasa.gov. NASA In Your Life. “NASA Supports the President's Educate To Innovate Campaign With Summer Of Innovation To Bring Students The Universe” 6 January 2010. Web. 28 February 2010.

Solis, Brian and Deidre Breakenridge. Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How

Social Media is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR. Albany: FT Press, 2009. Web. 24 March 2010.

SpaceCoalition.org. The Coalition for Space Exploration. Web. 10 March 2010. SpaceConnection.org. The U.S. Space Foundation. Web. 10 March 2010. SpaceFoundation.org. The U.S. Space Foundation. Web. 10 March 2010. Twitalyzer.com. Twitalyzer, LLC. Web. 10 March 2010. Twitter.com. Twitter. Web. 10 March 2010.

Whitehouse.gov. Media Resources. “Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama: Back

to School Event” 8 September 2009. Web. 10 March 2010.

Whitehouse.gov. Office of the Press Secretary. “President Obama Launches ‘Educate to Innovate Campaign for Excellence in Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (Stem) Education” 23 November 2009. Web. 28 February 2010.

Whitehouse.gov. Office of the Press Secretary. “President Obama Expands ‘Educate to Innovate’ Campaign for Excellence in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education” 6 January 2010. Web. 10 March 2010.

Williams, Anderson. Personal interview. Summer 2009.

Williams, Anderson. “Says and Means.” Cascade Matters Blog. Cascade Educational

Consultants, 17 March 2010. Web. 19 April 2009.

Zuckerberg, Mark. Facebook.com. Facebook, Inc. Web. 10 March 2010.  

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Appendix

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 This Survey is being conducted as part of a class project at the University of Kansas. Because we do not wish to inadvertently influence your answers to the following questions, we will not tell you at this time the subject of our research, but we will share that with you after the surveys are completed if you wish. You are not obligated to participate in this survey and may discontinue the survey at any time. Each survey response will be handled in the strictest confidence. Should you have any questions about the class or your participation in this research, please contact Associate Professor David Guth at the University of Kansas School of Journalism at (785) 864-0683 or dguth@ku.edu. Thank you for your participation. Let’s begin! First please indicate the degree to which you agree with each of the following statements.

1. I like math.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

2. I like science

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

3. Space exploration is important.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

4. I admire astronauts.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

5. I am interested in having a career in math, science or space exploration.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

6. My parents have influenced my interest in school.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

7. My parents are interested in math, science or space exploration.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

8. In general, I believe my friends have influenced my interest in school.

102

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

9. In general, I believe my friends are interested in math, science or space exploration.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

10. My teachers have influenced my interest in school.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

11. If my teacher is excited and engaged, I am more interested in the class or subject.

___Strongly disagree ___Disagree ___No opinion ___Agree ___Strongly agree

12. Please indicate what makes a class or subject interesting. Check all that apply.

___ “Hard-grading” teacher ___ In-depth analysis of one subject

___ “Easy-grading” teacher ___ Exposure to many different subjects

___ Field trips ___ Hands-on experiments

___ Videos ___ Reviewing the material

___ Lectures ___ Technology (i.e., cell phones, PowerPoints, computers,

___ In-class discussions online activities, Smart Boards, etc.)

___ Other (Please explain) _____________________________________________________

13. Describe your favorite teacher and why he/she is your favorite. (Please do not use

names.)

14. Describe your least favorite teacher and why he/she is your least favorite. (Please do

not use names.)