Shelby Woods, an eighth grade computer science teacher at Sevier County Junior High School in Sevierville, Tennessee, was named winner of the $25,000 grand prize in ORAU’s 2024 Extreme Classroom Makeover.
STEM teachers from Kindergarten through high school, and others interested in the STEM fields, can choose from a number of professional development opportunities provided by ORAU. These summer workshops for teachers are ideal for strengthening lesson plans, learning new tips for student engagement, as well as learning about new technologies for K-12 classrooms.
Shipra Sinha, Ph.D., is a a NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellow living in India and conducting research with the Goddard Space Flight Center. Shipra's research focuses on auroras, which occur at both the North and South Poles. Studying auroras is fascinating, as most people in the West know about the Aurora Borealis. Shipra says the biggest challenge with studying South Pole auroras is Antarctica. Getting there is a challenge, so she often has to make estimates about southern aurora behavior based on what is known about their northern counterparts. Throughout this conversation, Shipra talks to host Michael Holtz about how she became an NPP Fellow (this conversation took place before her official start date in January), the importance of surrounding herself with supportive people, the value of mentorship and collaboration, and more. To learn more about the NASA Postdoctoral Program, visit https://npp.orau.org/index.html.
