Speakers Bureau forges lasting partnership with Alief Independent School District

On Sept. 26, Outreach Volunteer Programs Manager Dr. Glenda Johnson with NASA Johnson Space Center’s Speakers Bureau, and Jared (Jerry) Woodfill of the Engineering Doctorate shared their knowledge and expertise with engineering and robotics students at the Hastings Ninth Grade Center. Ninth grade is a pivotal time when students begin looking at summer opportunities to enhance their future goals, so the information on internships and academic opportunities available to students that Johnson offered was a helpful and timely addition to the program.

As part of this collaboration opportunity, Halcyon Sutton, the engineering and robotics teacher at the school, “shadowed” Woodfill to observe the many special technical projects at NASA.

Approximately 300 students in grades 9 to 12, as well as after-school science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) clubs, sat in on the presentations. Both STEM clubs are registered locally, regionally and nationally through the Texas Alliance for Minorities in Engineering and the Southeastern Consortium for Minorities in Engineering (SECME). They compete throughout the year in engineering competitions. Last year, these Alief Independent School District (AISD) students won first, second and third place in the SECME Robotics Competition and second place place in the Bottle Rocket Engineering and Design Competition. They plan to do as well again this year—and this visit by Johnson experts could be the edge needed to put them over the top.  

There are approximately 1,000 students at the Hastings Ninth Grade Center, and 92 percent are considered at risk. Johnson’s External Relations Office (ERO) was pleased to offer this community outreach opportunity to AISD. As a result of this collaborative effort, Johnson and Woodfill accepted the Alief Community Partnership Plaque on behalf of Johnson, ERO and NASA.