NEWS RELEASE

Communications and Marketing Office
600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd.
Daytona Beach, FL 32114-3900

For more information, contact:
Phone: 386-226-6157
Fax: 386-226-6158
Contact: Mary Van Buren
Phone: 386-226-6525

Embry-Riddle and SpaceTEC Present Workshop for Math/Science Teachers

Daytona Beach, Fla., Sept. 21, 2007 -- Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the SpaceTEC education consortium will conduct an aerospace-focused workshop for teachers Oct. 22-23 at Kennedy Space Center.

Educators who teach fifth-grade through 10th-grade math and science in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, or Volusia counties are eligible to participate in the TeachSpace workshop, which will emphasize hands-on rocketry and propulsion.

Embry-Riddle and SpaceTEC jointly designed the workshop, with Embry-Riddle leading the project and SpaceTEC delivering the workshop and handling rocket activities. Sharing responsibilities are Dr. Michael Hickey, Teresa Ochoa, and Edward Ellegood from Embry-Riddle and Dr. Tom Steffen and Doug Howse from SpaceTEC.

“TeachSpace workshops give educators the tools and techniques to make math and science more exciting for students by using human space flight and exploration materials in the classroom,” says Dr. Hickey, TeachSpace director and associate dean of Embry-Riddle’s College of Arts and Sciences. “In addition, the October workshop will be tailored to support space and physics modules to prepare students for FCAT testing.”

Over the course of the workshop, participants will learn basic rocket theory, observe launch demonstrations, build and launch paper rockets, and build water-bottle rockets and plastic model rockets.

Teachers selected for the program will receive a daily stipend as well as instructional materials and supplies. One teacher will win a weightless ride in a Zero Gravity Corp. aircraft.

The workshop is sponsored by the Florida Space Grant Consortium and Space Florida under the Florida/NASA Matching Grant Program and is a preliminary to the World Space Expo at Kennedy Space Center scheduled for Nov. 1-4.

Embry-Riddle established TeachSpace in 2004 as a national program to provide space-focused professional development for K-12 math and science teachers. With support from NASA and other sponsors, TeachSpace has provided standards-based workshops, materials, and follow-on support to over 150 teachers in Florida and other states.

SpaceTEC is a national center of excellence for aerospace technical training, headquartered at Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation, SpaceTEC is a consortium of 11 colleges and universities, including Embry-Riddle, that serve major aerospace industry locations nationwide.

For more information, contact TeachSpace administrator Teresa Ochoa at (386) 226-4995 or teachspace@erau.edu.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. The university educates more than 34,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., through the Worldwide Campus at more than 130 centers in the United States, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East, and through online learning. For more information, visit www.embryriddle.edu.