Article Provided By ORTA Team
On June 3, 2024 NOAA and partners sponsored a NOAA STEM Day at Brightwood Elementary School in Washington D.C. (NW).
The goals of the STEM Day were to:
- Educate students about NOAA science and services
- Build a relationship with STEM teachers
- Create a future candidate pool of diverse talent
- Prepare students for federal internships/careers
Brightwood Elementary School, Washington, D.C. (Photo Credit: Brightwood)
NOAA’s mission includes sharing knowledge and information with others:
“Service is the communication of NOAA’s research, data, information and knowledge for use by the Nation’s businesses, communities and people’s daily lives. NOAA services include climate predictions and projections; weather and water reports, forecasts and warnings; nautical charts and navigational information; and the continuous delivery of a range of Earth observations and scientific data sets for use by public, private and academic sectors.”
NOAA STEM Day Event Group Picture (Photo Credit: Brightwood)
The NOAA team set up multiple tables with various activities and displays. The students were divided into age groups/classes with assigned times so that every student could visit and experience each table.
- Pre-k 10:15 am – 10:45 am
- 3rd & 4th Grade 11:00 am – 11:45 am
- Lunch 11:45 am- 1:00 pm
- Kindergarten & 1st Grade 1:00 pm- 1:45 pm
- 2nd & 5th Grade 2:00pm – 3:15pm
- End of event 3:15 pm
The NOAA offices and partners that participated were:
- NOAA/National Ocean Services (NOS) Office for Coastal Management
- NOAA/NOS Tides and Currents
- NOAA/Office of Human Capital and Services (OHCS)
- NOAA/National Marine Fisheries (NMFS)
- NOAA/National Weather Service (NWS) Environmental Modeling Center (EMC)
- NOAA/NWS
- NOAA/Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO)
- U.S. Patent and Trade Office (USPTO)
- NOAA/Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR)/Office of Research, Technology and Application (ORTA)
- International Trade Administration (ITA)
- NOAA/NOS DEIA Program
The coordinator for this event was Regina Cain, Program Specialist in the NOS DEIA Program office. Also instrumental and assisting with organizing the event were staff from Brightwood Elementary:
- Director of Operations – Mrs. Paniagua
- Assistant Principal – Mrs. Ball
- PTA President – Ms. Vanessa Rubio
Ms. Cain’s intent was to ensure the event was geared toward building a presence and connection between NOAA and the people we serve, and to develop and enhance K-12 student’s interest in NOAA related mission areas. This event also served as educational outreach to students from underserved communities, bringing them awareness of NOAA’s science and technology and educating students on earth conservation and climate change.
Mrs. Paniagua, Mrs. Ball, Ms. Vanessa Rubio, Ember (NOAA Canine Ambassador), and Regina Cain (Left to Right) (Photo Credit: NOAA)
- Hurricane Hunters (OMAO)
- Capt. Mansour
- Cloud in a Bottle (NWS)
- Nathalie Rivera-Torres
- Tornado in a Bottle (NWS)
- Daniel Konde
- Weather Ready Nation (NWS)
- Claudia Castro
- Shark Jaws (NMFS)
- Alejandra Mickle-Acre
- Tech Superpowers (USPTO)
- Lekeisha Lewis
- Tarun Sinha
- Erin Kryukova
- VR Experience (OAR/ORTA)
- Andrew Peck
- Normandy Carter
- Ember (NOAA’s Canine Ambassador) (OAR/ORTA)
- Kenneth Vierra
- Marine Debri (NOS)
- Sarah Siegel
- Ravi Chittilla
- Build a Boat (NOS)
- Artara Johnson
- Virginia Dentler
- Terrine Stewart
- Magic Milk (OHCS)
- Vernetta Fields
- Ocean Jeopardy (NOS)
- Lucia Houttuijn Bloemendal
- Plan Sensory (ITA)
- Ann Nago
OAR/ORTA table was staffed by Kenneth Vierra /w Ember (NOAA’s Canine Ambassador), Normandy Carter, Andrew Peck (left to right) (Photo Credit: NOAA)
ORTA hosted a virtual reality (VR) experience, which offered the students the chance to discover colorful corals, explore a shipwreck, swim with playful sea lions, or explore Hawaiian waters with green sea turtles. These VR experiences were created by the NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. More information about these can be found at the Sanctuaries 360°: Explore the Blue website. Also available on ORTA’s VR headset was the opportunity to investigate the urban heat island effect in Washington, DC. This virtual reality experience created by the NOAA Environmental Visualization Lab guides viewers through the nation’s capital, displaying the urban heat island phenomenon throughout the city. Urban heat islands are areas that experience higher temperatures compared to nearby areas. These temperature differences are often due to highly concentrated urbanized features, such as buildings and roads and limited greenery, such as trees.
Collage of the various tables of activities engaging the students (Photo Credit: Brightwood)
Collage of the various tables of activities engaging the students (Photo Credit: Brightwood) (Continued)
ORTA’s Ken Vierra brought along Ember, his K-9 Caring Angels Therapy Dog, who is a Keeshond and a NOAA Canine Ambassador. Kids of all ages took turns petting Ember, and Ken handed out Ember’s trading cards. Ember is a member of ORTA’s outreach team and affectionately known as a “Living Teddy Bear.”
Ember in action with Brightwood students and staff (Photo Credit: Brightwood)
WUSA Channel 9 News Station reported on the event and gave a shout out to NOAA and to Ember, asking if the “Living Teddy Bear” is even real. Ember is always so patient in her role with kids and adults alike!
The Diversity and Professional Advancement Working Group, with the support of several other NOAA offices, partners, and Brightwood Elementary School did an outstanding job hosting this event. They provided access and visibility to pre-K through 5th grade students to NOAA staff and opened their eyes to NOAA’s science-based mission.