While we know that space settlements of the future are a necessity, how we go about creating them frequently becomes a subject of debate. Most importantly, what countries will be represented in the settlements of the future, and can we insure we all work together to create a peaceful society in space? Today, we are joined by three very important people in the realm of this debate, with a focus on student voice.

Frances Dellutri joins us once again. In one of many roles, She is serves as National Space Society Director of Education. In this role she founded and facilitated the NSS Student spUN (space policy and Universalization) Debate program starting in 2017 Students ages 12-18 debate space policy on international teams

Frances is a life-long learner and educator. Her training as a chemist, project manager and science educator enable her to marry technical aspects of the NSS education programs with real-world opportunities for students.

Jordan Strudwick serves as the Project Manager for the National Space Society’s groundbreaking University Level International spUN Debate. A Howard University School of Law graduate, Jordan not only founded the pioneering Space Law Society, the first Space Law organization at any HBCU, but also played a pivotal role in establishing the first-ever Space Law course at an HBCU Law School.

A proud native of Washington, DC, Jordan's expertise encompasses an impressive range of fields, including technology startup companies, international development, and human rights. He is excited to help shape the the future of both the public and private space sector.

Representing the high school sector, Apoorva Bangalore Ravispravad is a sophomore college student pursuing Astrophysics and Astrobiology at the University of Florida.

Lots of great information for student, parents, and teachers alike so stay tuned after for the take away.

Important links:

spUN Debate Website: https://space.nss.org/spun-debates/
University Debate Website: https://spacedge.academy/course/view.php?id=296

University Direct Application Link: https://go.nss.org/spunapplication-univ

Jordan Strudwick's Email: [email protected]

Apoorva Raviprasad: [email protected]

Michael D’Egidio grew up on Long Island, New York. He attended Columbia University in the City of New York where he majored in computer science. Michael has worked as a consultant for Sony Corporation of America producing graphics, copy, and web content for Sony.com, as well as a full-stack software engineer for a small e-commerce startup in Manhattan.

Michael has always felt drawn to the possibilities in education, so he made the move to the teaching world where he developed a robust and innovative computer science curriculum for a prestigious private school in Palm Beach County, Florida. His classes focus on programming languages and their utility in real-world applications such as game development, web application development and more. He was also instrumental in developing coursework in the use of TensorFlow, which is industry-standard software for machine learning and artificial intelligence programming.

Integral to Michael’s educational philosophy is the belief that all students deserve to feel a strong sense of belonging at school. Since 2020, Michael has been led school initiatives in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion where he coordinates student educational opportunities as well as professional development. In short, Michael sees computer science as a way to give back, to be a super hero so to speak helping students to view problems as a way to embrace grit, to affect change, and ultimately to have a voice. Stay tuned after for our takeaway.

Today we meet with Jiangdou (Ginger) Chen. She  is a Ph.D student at Florida Institute of Technology majoring in STEM Education with a primary focus  on Computer Information Systems.  A native to Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, Ginger is dedicated to balance social equity and the advocacy of marginalized communities. Her dissertation details female astronauts' interest in STEM studies in relation to their  career development.  Ginger is passionate about encouraging more young women to enter the space industry. In addition to her academic pursuits, Ginger runs track, cross-country, and participates on the swim team for Florida Tech.  As always, stay tuned after the interview for our take-awayl

Today, we meet with Jackie Blumer-- a Nationally Board Certified educator with over 25 years of STEM experience. She currently teaches Earth/Space Science for 6th graders at Greenville Jr. High School in Illinois. Jackie is also the. St. Louis STEM Chair for the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Jackie was recently selected as a Limitless Space Institute Limitless Educator and was one of 20 educators worldwide to receive this honor. The mission of LSI is to inspire and educate the next generation to travel beyond our solar system and support the research and development of enabling technologies.  We look

Link to Limitless Space Institute:https://www.limitlessspace.org/

Jen Jones is an 8th grade STEM teacher, a Space Foundation Teacher Liaison, a Solar System Ambassador, and a Space ward Bound Educator. She regularly presents on space topics to civic groups, libraries, and schools around northern Utah, and has hosted and organized 5 well-respected annual Space/STEM community outreach nights. Ms. Jones believes in teaching from a real world perspective to promote classroom engagement and to help fill the Stem Pipeline of the future. One example is NASA research project called Growing Beyond Earth which Jones will present to Teacher Liaisons at the Space Symposium in April.

Jenn and her students also work internationally for educational organizations such as African Independence Development or AID to help raise money and awareness for a modernized high school where Jenn could still help train teachers long after she returns home. And these are just a few of the many experiences she provides for her students. We see Jen Jones as one who emulates a BlueSky Learning philosophy and know you will enjoy this episode as much as we will.

Stay tuned after for takeaway.

Today, we meet with Mark Wallace. Mark wrote his first computer program in 1965, and has written a lot of them since, using languages ranging from Assembler to SQL. His interest in zero defect software led him to study software engineering methods such as Structured Design and Object-Oriented Design, and ways to adopt them using Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools. In recent years, he has taught robotics to middle and high school students, and served as a judge in the World Robot Olympics and First Lego League competitions. He is now retired in Boynton Beach, but volunteers to teach computer programming to high school students through a Microsoft-sponsored charity. We met Mark recently while we were all judging student robot presentations and we were quite impressed. We know you will be too and we hope you stay tuned after for the takeaway.  

Link for the Microsoft program mentioned in the podcast:  https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/teals/about

Laurie Orth is a music teacher who teaches about space exploration and rockets in her music classroom. She believes the classroom is where the arts and sciences coexist to develop creative people today for the workforce of tomorrow. In 2019, Ms. Orth published space-themed music in a workbook called Rocket Recorder. Laurie is passionate about starting the STEM and STEAM pipeline for young people through the pathway of music, and she passionately believes educators can collaborate to teach across the curriculum for more engaging lessons. Im addition to her young students, Laurie e teacsh professional development for music, STEM and STEAM educators.As if that were not enough, she volunteers with the Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia, teaching her space-themed music curriculum and combining that with lessons about women in aerospace careers. She is also a volunteer with the Air & Space Forces Association as Chapter President for Savannah AFA. When she is not teaching or inspiring students through music, Laure is a professional singer in her community and even has her own podcast through The Space Foundation. We are sure this interview will hit the right notes and we hope you will stay tuned after for our takeaway.

Laurie's website:  Www.laurieorth.com 

Laurie's podcasthttps://www.spacefoundation.org/2022/01/14/space4u-podcast-laurie-orth-rocket-recorder-author-composer-educator/

Today we meet with Wolfpack VIP member Colin Quinn, a freshman at Suncoast Community High School in South Florida.  As part of the Wolfpack, he was part of the team working on the  CapSat-1 mission and is in the process of developing his own CubeSat mission, which will aim to study cosmic radiation in space. Colin is an aspiringI aerospace engineer and we know he is well on his way to achieving that dream. As always stay tuned after for the takeaway.

Today, Kevin and I meet with Edward Ellegood. Edward began his career as a space industry economist in the Florida Department of Commerce, while there he served as staff to a Governor's Commission on Space, which recommended that the state take a larger role in developing the space industry. He moved from Tallahassee to the Space Coast in 1990 to start-up the Spaceport Florida Authority (now Space Florida) as the nation's first space transportation authority. In 2001 he transitioned to start-up the Florida Space Research Institute as a spinoff of the Spaceport Authority. After FSRI and the Spaceport Authority were dissolved to make way for Space Florida in 2006, he joined Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University as a Space Policy Analyst and Director of Aerospace Development. He has since worked with Starfighters Aerospace, Saalex Corp., SimIS Corp., and currently ICF Corp. He serves on the board of the National Space Club, Florida Committee, publishes the weekly FLORIDA SPACErePORT newsletter, and was inducted in 2022 to the Florida Space Worker Hall of Fame.

Link to his blog: http://spacereport.blogspot.com/

Today we meet with three amazing young women, Sree Patnayakui, Abhi Soundarajan, and Celine Schauer.  These girls, ranging from middle to high school are members of the Wolfpack CubeSat Development Team and have aspiring futures in STEM. Check out what motivates these girls to love space along with their current aerospace goals.